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It’s How You Get Back Up: 101+ Life Knocks You Down Quotes

It’s How You Get Back Up: 101+ Life Knocks You Down Quotes

Life is not always rainbows and butterflies, and there will be times when we will feel like we’re living at rock bottom for a while. 

We may begin to lose hope, especially when it seems like we can’t easily climb out, and it’s quite easy to just let life beat you up when you cannot find any reason to stand up any longer.

But remember this: life is always meant to be this way.

We have to experience pain. We have to experience grief. And we have to realize that the grass isn’t always greener on our side.

What’s important is that we should realize that we can always just get back up—it’s as simple as that!

That being said, here are some “life knocks you down” quotes that you would surely appreciate, especially when you’re experiencing some hardships right now.

Scroll on and enjoy!

Life Knocks You Down Quotes

Image of life knocks you down quote by Jackie Chan

1. “I do this ‘Walker shake.' You got to get knocked down many times, shake it off. Life is about ups and downs, and you got to keep standing up.” — Herschel Walker

2. “It takes courage to live your dream and bounce back up when you have been knocked down. Your dreams give you the energy and inspiration to live a great life.” — Justin Langer

3. “When life knocks us down, we can choose whether or not to get back up.” — Jackie Chan As Mr. Han, Movie: ‘Karate Kid’

4. “As long as you've done your best, making mistakes doesn't matter. You and I are human; we will mess up. What counts is learning from your mistakes and getting back up when life has knocked you down.” — Shawn Johnson

5. “It's about being able to go through the grind, willing to get back up when you're knocked down. And when life's not going well, not getting down on yourself and just getting back up and getting back to work, and striving to be the best you can be.” — Robbie Lawler

6. “When you get knocked down you get knocked down in Round 1 of life, there's Round 2.” — Pattie Mallette

7. “The question in life is not whether you get knocked down. You will. The question is, are you ready to get back up… And fight for what you believe in?” — Dan Quayle

8. “When life knocks you down, sometimes it’s better to lay there and watch the grass grow.” — Maxwell Ingram

9. “Safe. No one ever is. No matter how hard we try. No matter how much we plan and prepare. There will always be an enemy at the door and a storm trying to knock us down. Life’s not about security. It’s about picking up the pieces after it’s all over and carrying on.” — Sherrilyn Kenyon

10. “The struggles and the chaos are part of life. But you have to accept them with grace and serenity because they have their own gifts too.” — Demi Lovato

11. “Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you’re living?” — Bob Marley

12. “Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” — Marie Curie

13. “The things that knock you down in life are tests, forcing you to make a choice between giving in and remaining on the ground or wiping the dirt off and standing up even taller than you did before you were knocked down.” — Colleen Hoover

14. “When life knocks you down, lick your wounds, learn your lessons and move on because that’s what heroes do.” — Savaliya Tushar

15. “It doesn't matter how you get knocked down in life, because that's going to happen. All that matters is that you gotta get up.” — Ben Affleck

16. “Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith.” — Steve Jobs

17. “You can conquer every fear and shut out every doubt. There is no obstacle too big for you to overcome, for you are more powerful than you could ever imagine.” — Marisa Donnelly

18. “The truth is you don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow. Life is a crazy ride, and nothing is guaranteed.” — Eminem

19. “The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph! What we obtain too cheaply, we esteem too lightly. Heaven knows how to put a proper price on its goods.” — Thomas Paine

20. “Life is a song—sing it. Life is game—play it. Life is a challenge—meet it. Life is a dream—realize it. Life is a sacrifice—offer it. Life is love—enjoy it.” — Sai Baba

21. “When life knocks you down you have two choices- stay down or get up.” — Tom Krause      

Short Quotes About Life Knocking You Down

Short life knocking you down quote by Eric Thomas

22. “If you can look up, you can get up.” — Eric Thomas

23. “Sometimes in life, you will get knocked down.” — Ray Rice

24. “Sometimes life will knock you down so you can learn how to fight.” — Billy Cox

25. “Don’t go through life, grow through life.” — Eric Butterworth

26. “Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.” — Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

27. “Life is getting up one more time than you've been knocked down.” — John Wayne

28. “When life knocks you down, get up and try at it again.” — Marcquiese Burrell

29. “The art of living is simply getting up after you've been knocked down.” — Joe Biden

30. “A knock down has never been a knockout unless you allow it.” — Jaachynma N.E. Agu

31. “Winner: Getting up more times than life knocks you down.” — Kat Kaelin

32. “You never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.” — Bob Marley

33. “If you only walk on sunny days you’ll never reach your destination.” — Paulo Coelho

34. “He who has a why to live can bear almost anyhow.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

35. “Only two things can reveal life’s great secrets; suffering and love.” — Paulo Coelho

Encouraging Life Knocks You Down Quotes When It Gets Hard

Image of life knocks you down quote by Richard Branson

36. “Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let the pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.” — Iain Thomas

37. “You don’t learn to walk by following the rules. You learn and fall of by doing so.” — Richard Branson

38. “That’s what life holds for you. You make plans, carefully plots whole road-map; but you never know when a vehicle comes at you full throttle from the next bend and knocks you down.” — Aman Jassal

39. “There comes a point in your life when you need to stop reading other people's book and write your own.” — Albert Einstein

40. “You can hit the lowest low and face the darkest dark, but you can always get back up and get in the light. All of this is what actually makes life worth living.” — Kerli

41. “Without defeats, how do you really know who the hell you are? If you never had to stand up to something – to get up, to be knocked down, and to get up again – life can walk over you wearing football cleats. But each time you do get up, you're bigger, taller, finer, more beautiful, more kind, more understanding, more loving. Each time you get up, you're more inclusive. More people can stand under your umbrella.” — Maya Angelou

42. “Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” — John Lennon

43. “When the stormy winds of life threaten to knock you down, may you have the courage to spread your wings and fly!” — Lance Wubbels

44. “If it were easy, everybody would do it. Hard is what makes it great.” — Tom Hanks, A League Of Their Own

45. “Our hearts will break — time and time and time again — over the course of our feeble existences. But they never break irreparably. They never shatter in ways we can’t fix. Our hearts are stronger than all of the things that ever break them if we give them permission to be.” — Heidi Priebe

46. “My strength did not come from lifting weights. My strength came from lifting myself up when I was knocked down.” — Bob Moore

47. “Whenever you make a mistake or get knocked down by life, don't look back at it too long. Mistakes are life's way of teaching you. Your capacity for occasional blunders is inseparable from your capacity to reach your goals. No one wins them all, and your failures, when they happen, are just part of your growth. Shake off your blunders. How will you know your limits without an occasional failure? Never quit. Your turn will come.” — Og Mandino

48. “We all get knock down in life. We must never stay down. Find the grace to rise up. You have the chance to start again.” — Lailah Gifty Akita

49. “It’s okay if you fall down and lose your spark. Just make sure that when you get back up, you rise as the whole damn fire.” — Colette Werden

Life Knocks You Down Quotes That Pack Some Power

Image of Suraj Patil quote about life knocking you down

50. “Next time I’ll be braver, I’ll be my own savior when the thunder calls to me. Next time I’ll be braver, I’ll be my own savior, standing on my own two feet.” — Adele

51. “There is magic in knocking down your most important domino day after day. All you have to do is avoid breaking the chain, one day at a time, until you generate a powerful new habit in your life.” — Gary W. Keller

52. “When life knocks you down, get up and turn back to God. When life puts you in higher position, knee down and turn back to God.” — Suraj Patil

53. “When the storms do come; you can only allow them to slow you down, but don’t let them stop you, there will be delays, detours, and disappointments, but you have to keep pushing through it.” — Bernard Kelvin Clive

RELATED: Weather Life’s Storms: 100+ When it Rains, it Pours Quotes

54. “Life can give you strength. Strength can come from facing the storms of life, from knowing loss, feeling sadness and heartache, from falling into the depths of grief. You must stand up in the storm. You must face the wind and the cold and the darkness. When the storm blows hard you must stand firm, for it is not trying to knock you down, it is really trying to teach you to be strong.” — Joseph M. Marshall III

55. “You have a dream and you have obstacles in front of you as we all do. None of us ever get through this life without heartache, without turmoil, and if you believe and you have faith and you can get knocked down and get back up again and you believe in perseverance as a great human quality, you find your way.” — Diana Nyad

56. “Life is easy when you’re hot. But what happens when the ball bounces the other way? You just keep getting back up and climbing up.” — Bill Walton

57. “Not everyone who's homeless is a drug-addict or in need of mental health care. Some are normal people who've been knocked down, and it can happen to you, too. Not all of us made bad life choices.” — Sherrilyn Kenyon

58. “Out of massive suffering emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.” — Khalil Gibran

59. “Sometimes life knocks you down not to hurt you, but to remind you that you deserve better than what you’ve settled for.” — Pam Stucky

60. “Sometimes when things are falling apart, they may actually be falling into place.” — J.Lynn

61. “Life doesn’t actually knock you down. It does, however, provide you with many opportunities to evaluate your standing in life: what you stand on, what you stand for, how you stand within yourself and for yourself.” — Iyanla Vanzant

62. “Just an observation: it is impossible to be both grateful and depressed. Those with a grateful mindset tend to see the message in the mess. And even though life may knock them down, the grateful find reasons, if even small ones, to get up.” — Steve Maraboli

63. “I’m most proud of the blessings that God has bestowed upon me, in my life. He’s given me the vision to truly see that you can fall down, but you can still get back up. Hopefully, I’ll learn from my mistakes and have the opportunity to strengthen and improve the next thing I do.” — Martin Lawrence

64. “Life is designed to knock you down. It will knock you down time and time again, but it doesn’t matter how many times you fall—it matters how many times you get back up.” — Lilly Singh

65. “When things fall apart, consider the possibility that life knocked it down on purpose. Not to bully you, or punish you, but to prompt you to build something that better suits your personality and your purpose.” — Chinua Achebe

66. “When life knocks us down, God CAN put us back together again. He can meet us in our brokenness and restore us to something even more glorious than we were before we were shattered.” — Heather Hart

67. “Every person and every team will be tested on their journey. It is part of the curriculum of life. It's just like riding a bicycle. In the beginning you're going to fall off and get knocked down but the important thing is to get back on, stay strong, and after a while once you master it you'll ride with the confidence of a champion.” — Jon Gordon

Motivational Life Knocks You Down Quotes

Image of motivational life knocks you down quotes

68. “For all those moments in your life when you absolutely think you can’t… think again.” — Scott Schafer

69. “If you want to knock down the wall between you and the life of your dreams, it's best to do it one brick at a time!” — Paul McKenna

70. “Don't just give up, Hachiko. Life is about getting knocked down over and over, but still getting up each time. If you keep getting up, you win.” — Ai Yazawa

71. “Be brave! Be strong! Be fearless! Once you have taken up the spiritual fife, fight! Fight as long as there is any life in you! Even though you know that you are going to be killed, fight till you are killed! Don't die of fright! Die fighting! Don't go down till you are knocked down.” — Swami Vivekananda

72. “If life knocks you down, try to land on your back. Because if you can look up, you can get up. And if you get up, you can stand up. And if you stand up, you can fight for your dream once again. You have something special. You have GREATNESS within you!” — Les Brown

73. “Life may rock you to the core and knock you down, but whatever the circumstances you must refuse to lose and get back up.” — Rebecca Davi

74. “Life brings what it brings. I might be young but I've learnt this: prepare for each blind corner with your strongest shoulder dropped, ready to smash through whatever is thrown at you next. Once the dust clears you will be standing tall, a champion, a victor. NOTHING will be able to knock you down once you've taken the biggest hits this life has to offer, so come on life, BRING IT!” — Adam Johnson

75. “When you get knocked down, don't stay down; get back up again. Nothing good is going to happen as long as you're down on yourself.” — Joel Osteen

76. “If you look the right way, you can see the whole world is a garden.”  — Frances Hodgson Burnett

77. “Life with through punches at you and sometimes knock you down. Learn to take the hit ,but more importantly learn to get back up and keep punching every single day!” — Jerry Gladstone

78. “Life can suck. It can hurt. It has teeth and won’t hesitate to bite you. But if you pick yourself back up every time it knocks you down, it’ll start to hurt less, because you’ll be stronger.” — T.J. Klune

79. “Sometimes life knocks you down, but all you need to do is to get up because happiness isn’t in the absence of problems but the strength to overcome.” — Ane Krstevska

80. “Many times life will hit you hard, knock you down, and hurt you. Persevere, never give up, and do your best to get up and keep going.” — John Cena

81. “Sometimes in life, things happen that will knock you back. Hell, you may get beaten to your knees but you must never allow this world to knock you down! Conjure up all the strength you have and drive through whatever it is keeping you on your knees. Build up the strength and your knees may never buckle again!” — Adam Johnson

82. “Don't ever let someone tell you, you can't do something. Not even me. You got a dream, you got to protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they want to tell you you can’t do it. You want something, go get it. Period.” — Chris Gardner, The Pursuit Of Happyness

83. “You have to drown out those little voices in your head telling you that you can’t do anything spectacular, because you’ll fail, or because you’re simply not good enough, and what on earth makes you think that you have what it takes? Pay no attention to this. Hear those voices and make it your mission to knock them flat out with your brilliance.” — Shani Jayawardena

84. “Getting knocked down in life is a given. Getting up and moving forward is a choice.” — Zig Ziglar

85. “When life kicks you in the teeth and knocks you down to the ground. Are you able to stand up and keep fighting?! That’s what it’s all about.” — Bob Harper  

RELATED: 120+ Life Goes On Quotes For Whatever Life Throws Your way

Life Knocks You Down Quotes To Help You Get Back Up

Michael Flatley quote about life knowing you down and then getting back up

86. “When you stumble, keep the faith. And when you’re knocked down, get right back up and never listen to anyone who says you can’t or shouldn’t go on.” — Hillary Rodham Clinton

87. “Life isn't about the number of times you're knocked down, it's about the number of times you get back up.” — Michael Flatley

88. “For what it's worth: it's never too late to be whoever you want to be. I hope you live a life you're proud of, and, if you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start over.” — F. Scott Fitzgerald

89. “Football is a direct reflection of life. There are wins, there are losses; you get knocked down, you get back up.” — Chris Spielman

90. “The harder you slam a ball into the ground, the higher it bounces back up… A divorce, a breakup, losing a job, or just feeling seriously down can ground you, rough you up a bit, leave calluses on your feet, and grit under your fingernails. But more than that, it leaves you wiser and stronger next time… Life is about experiencing opposites, isn’t it?” — Laurel House

91. “If it weren’t for love, the suffering we experience wouldn’t be worth it. If it weren’t for the suffering, we wouldn’t cherish the good things life gives us. Sometimes it’ll seem as though life only knocks you down, but you have to learn to pick yourself up and fight back.” — Claire Contreras

92. Say goodbye to all the words people told you about yourself, the ones that made you love yourself a little less. Think of how little these people know about you and your story or why you are the way you are. Think of how some people like to belittle others to feel good about themselves, and while you are it, say goodbye to these people. — Rania Naim, 16 Things You Should Say Goodbye To In 2016

93. “Life will always knock you down. Learn to roll with the punches and get back up. Then go again.” — Catrina Barton

94. “Life stuff happens. You get knocked down, and you get back up. That’s just always been my mentality. I’m not really fazed by anything. It’s in the past. There’s nothing I can really do about it now. You learn from it, and you move on.” — Odell Beckham, Jr

95. “Opportunity does not knock; it presents itself when you beat down the door.” — Kyle Chandler

96. “You are your own asset, and it's probably time you started giving yourself more credit.” — Maya Kachroo-Levine, All The Reminders You Need To Get You Through Anything In Life

97. “You can’t invent Google, Facebook or the iPod unless you’ve mastered the basics, are willing to put in long hours and can pick yourself up from the floor when life knocks you down the first 10 times.” — Amy Chua

98. “I am a survivor and not a victim. Life isn’t perfect. When you get a knock, you have to get up, dust yourself down and get on with it.” — Patsy Kensit

99. “Always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” — Christopher Robin

Inspirational Life Knocks You Down Quotes By Rocky Balboa

Rocky Balboa quote

100. “Every champion was once a contender who refused to give up.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

101. “It ain’t how hard you hit…it’s how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. It’s about how much you can take and keep moving forward!” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

102. “No, maybe I can’t win, maybe the only thing I can do is just take everything he’s got. But to beat me, he’s gonna have to kill me and to kill me, he’s gonna have to have the heart to stand in front of me, and to do that, he’s gotta be willing to die himself and I don’t know if he’s ready to do that.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

103. “One step at a time. One punch at a time. One round at a time.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

104. “Bring back everything that’s ever hurt you, all the pain you had inside. They don’t know what we’ve been through. You belong here!” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

105. “If I can change, and you can change, everybody can change.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

106. “Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place, and I don't care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done! Now, if you know what you're worth, then go out and get what you're worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain't you. You're better than that! I'm always gonna love you, no matter what. No matter what happens. You're my son and you're my blood. You're the best thing in my life. But until you start believing in yourself, you ain't gonna have a life.” ― Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

107. “Life's not about how hard of a hit you can give… it's about how many you can take, and still keep moving forward.” ― Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

108. “I believe there’s an inner power that makes winners or losers. And the winners are the ones who really listen to the truth of their hearts.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

109. “If this is something you wanna do, and if this is something you gotta do, then you do it. Fighters fight.” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

110. “Going in one more round when you don’t think you can. That’s what makes all the difference in your life.” ― Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa

What’s Your Favorite Life Knocks You Down Quote?

Life is never meant to be smooth sailing—we have to go through things to fully embrace the meaning of our existence in this world.

No matter how many obstacles we face, we must always push ourselves to see the beauty in our struggles, especially when we utilize the belief that we can survive almost anything.

We just have to trust ourselves to always get back up no matter what happens.

Just like they say, “When life gives you lemons, make some lemonade!”

Find a silver lining even when life seems to be hindering you from moving forward, just like how this “life knocks you down” quotes push you to come out of your shell and find the courage to stand tall. 

Let us know in the comments which of these quotes are your favorites!