Zero to Ironman. Again.

I’m pretty sure it’s like having a baby. 

[Did I just liken competing in one of the worlds toughest triathlons to having a baby?! Oops...]

The satisfaction it gives you afterwards outweighs the pain. Eventually. Maybe.

You forget the dark damp early winter mornings at the pool, the extreme coldness you feel in your feet and hands after five hours on the bike on a February morning, the crazy thought of lake swimming at the start of April because the race you chose is at the start of summer...

I do like to set myself one big challenge a year and for next years challenge I’m revisiting an old flame.

In 2011 having never completed a triathlon and not even owning a road bike I decided to take on ultra endurance sports biggest challenge - The Ironman.

The Ironman is a 2.4 mile swim (often in the sea), 112 mile cycle and a 26.2 mile run. Done one after the other. On the same day. 

I brought a bike, took advice on how to swim, read the books and followed a time-friendly plan which saw me training for up to 20hrs per week and arrived at the start of Ironman France uncertain of what would happen... 

I crushed it! Finishing Ironman France in 12hrs 43mins, I was immensely satisfied with my efforts and decided to leave it there. Crossing the finishing line of Ironman France was the culmination of an amazing six-months training and was most certainly one of my proudest moments, but the training was so tough I decided despite the vast expense of buying a bike, wetsuit and copious amounts of lycra never to do it again.

Therefore I haven’t sat on my bike since that monumental day. It’s laid dusty and dormant in my garage since I pulled it out the bike box and put it back together. My wetsuit has taken pride of place at the back of my wardrobe alongside the pair of trousers I’m never going to wear, but can’t throw away. And my tri-suit? I’m not really sure wear that is!

However, after a mug or two of idea juice in Pret, I somewhat conveniently forgot the reasons why I vowed not to do it. I remember the euphoria, the carnival atmosphere you get at this race, the cool stash. I remembered the feeling of crossing the line, the feeling of knowing you are the fittest you have ever been and the feeling you have done something quite incredible. 

The race itself is alright (I guess if you take the time to prepare properly...), but the training for this race is brutal.

Swim, bike, run, swim, bike, run, swim, bike, run... To get good at three different sports takes time. Training takes up to 20 hours a week. But, like my hero The Rock says, ‘there’s great value achieving the goal. But the greater value is in the struggle and hard work to achieve it..’ 

There really is no glory without sacrifice.

I guess it’s this final point which makes Ironman an incredible race. When my friend Nikki told me she was keen to do it, I was keen to share her journey. The hard work, sacrifices and struggles make it an amazing accomplishment and that feeling is totally worth it.

I guess I’ve just got to remember this in the next couple of months!

Let my journey to Ironman Lanzarote begin...