sweatventure | trichick
Not too long ago I made a commitment to perseverance and hard work in order to compete in Ironman 70.3 Gulf Coast (it consists of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, and 13.1 run).
Up until this point, I competed in one long course so it’s safe to say I call myself a rookie, not in triathlon but in long course racing.
I learned the hard way, there is no straight path to the top. Life throws curve balls at you left and right but that’s okay because that makes the end result taste so much better!
Mistakes, mistakes, and negligence of my own health brought me down with nasty respiratory infection and just like that, months of hard work were gone in a heartbeat. I was devastated to let go, but I knew that it would be an absolute nightmare to race on that day. It is hard to get a perspective in situations like this one, I thought O-M-G what a waste of my time. It’s tough, but if you are going through something similar, don’t worry there are plenty of races that you can sign up for once you are fully recovered and ready to resume training. I was oblivious to the fact that Ironman Foundation puts out hundreds of races each year and this one was one fraction of all of them. Thank goodness for family and friends, with their help I realized that regardless race or no race, I would be swimming, biking and running anyway.
Technically, the plan was to race amongst my dad and a brother and push each other past our limits. So that’s exactly what we did, there is no way I could just abandon those two amazing individuals in action. Even though my plans changed from racing to a role of support crew on sidelines, I was happy to see their faces light up when they saw me cheering for them on the course. I was beyond excited and relieved that they made it to a finish line without any major injuries and meeting their personal goals!
Congratulations to both of you! You guys are rock stars!
An important lesson, I cannot stress this enough if you think triathlon is just about swimming, biking and running, WRONG, I hate to break it to you but that’s just one aspect of it. Of course, I had to learn the hard way (perks of being stubborn). A lot goes behind the scenes of every successful triathlete whether your goal is to finish your first sprint triathlon or compete at the highest level in long course, it doesn’t matter what your goals are but you have to be ready to give it your all! Plan it out, pay attention to nutrition, sleep is crucial, don’t take recovery lightly and add strength training! Your body will thank you for staying healthy and injury free!
UP NEXT: Summary of IRONMAN 70.3 RACINE
– Dana
Sweatventure 