Ironman. What is Ironman?
I am again submerged in the Ironman training which gives me a lot of thinking time. Since I'm training for Ironman Indiana after completing Ironman Lake Placid, Ironman is consuming me. I thought typing this blog out might help get the thoughts together and may help help others understand Ironman. I may start an interesting conversation. We shall see.
On it's face, Ironman is a triathlon consisting of a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride then followed up with a 26.2 mile marathon which all must be completed in under 17 hours (16.5 hours if race starts later in year example Ironman Indiana. ) That doesn't sound too bad right?? ;) Splash in water, play bikes and then go for a run. No problem.
What does it take to prepare for an Ironman?
1. Training for the swim, bike and run can be done in numerous ways. There is the athlete who prepares themselves by a strict training plan. There are athletes who just train on the weekends. Some athletes have coaches, some athletes buy training plans online, some read their training plans out of a book. There are many different ways to prepare the body for a 140.6 mile adventure. Those who don't prepare, usually don't make it to the finish line. You can also over prepare. Work too hard and you get injured. Get injured at the right time and you don't even start the race. Get injured at the wrong time and you are out the $800 registration fee. Training for anywhere from 8-20 hours (some train even more) in a week depending on how far out their race is also requires fuel.
2. If you meet a triathlete, ask them what kind of snacks they have on them. We are always hungry. When you demand the body to continue exercising day in and day out, it requires food to keep moving forward. Some athletes train with Gatorade, some of us have personal fuel blends to keep us moving. Some athletes use real food like fruits or peanut butter sandwiches, PayDay candy bars are a hit with a lot of triathletes. Gotta have fuel. Stop feeding the machine that is our body and the machine breaks down. The body breaks down, there is no more training.
3. Rest. Some of us have a really hard time with this one. You get so hell bent on training hard so often, we forget to let it set in. Training is good, but it requires rest for the body to recover. Some of us require more rest than others.
4. Time management skills. Most of us are athletes with full time jobs, families, other responsibilities.Time management skills are essential. Can I finish my run and change my clothes before I go pick up the kid from school? What time is that wedding? Can I fit this ride in during (insert your kids sport here)
5. Discipline. The willingness to say no to others. The discipline to go to bed early just to wake up and get going before the sun rises. Understanding that others who aren't living this lifestyle can't understand why you need to go ride your bike for 5 hours. The discipline to dedicate time to preparing yourself to enjoy race day.
6. Mental health awareness. The mind games Ironman prep and race day are incredible.
When the ravenous hunger monster hits me, I have to watch myself to not snap at people. A hungry and tired triathlete may have a short fuse. Positive thoughts, "Man I killed that ride!, are great. Negative thoughts, "My run sucks! I'm never going to make it through this race."Negative thoughts can wreak havoc on a training triathlete. "I'm getting slower! How the hell am I getting slower??" Having the mental health awareness of stepping back and reassessing (4 syllable word used correctly!) the heavy training load or weather conditions or both and taking a deep breath then moving forward can keep a triathlete from going crazy. Keeping a journal (or a blog!) can help work these thoughts out.
7. Motivation. What is your WHY?? This question gets asked a lot. What is your WHY? Why do you train like crazy? What keeps you getting out of bed at 4:30am just to jump into a swimming pool? Are you doing this to prove to yourself you can? Are you showing your kids or community what can be done if you refuse to quit? Are you running away from the unhealthy person you once were? Are you running toward a bigger goal? Does this make you happy? Can you use negative influences to motivate you? ( so and so doesn't believe in me, I'm going to show them how great I am!)
8. Support. I can't tell you how important support is. Having a wife and kids who understand why Daddy is gone way before they wake up and won't be home until after lunch makes it easy to get the training in. Having a wetsuit hang to dry in the shower, walking in on a bicycle in the living room, dishwasher is full of bottles, washer is full of sweaty clothes, our families put up with some crazy things. Yet they see how happy we are when we nail a workout or set a personal record for a specific distance. Willing to hang out at races just to cheer us on, carry our gear at the end, listen to us when we say, "I'll never do that again." Family support just means the world to us.
I titled this, "What is Ironman?" I've thought about that question a lot. I came up with a list of short answers. I bet others will add to it..
What is Ironman?
1. A Goal
2. A Dream
3. A triathlon
4. A physical and mental challenge
5. A numbers game
6. An addiction
7. A Lifestyle
8. A confidence builder
9. A confidence thief
10. A commitment
11. Discipline builder
12. Limits and Perspective changer
13. A Community
Most of those are self explanatory. The one that provoked a lot of thought to me was A Numbers Game:
140.6 - total distance of an Ironman
2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run...easy right??
temperature on race day? water temp, body temp,
heart rate
power
calories..how many calories can your body ingest and turn into fuel?
time..time limits/cutoffs, time in-between calories, transition time,
items it takes to complete..(wetsuit,goggles,tri kit,timing chip, swim cap, lube) thats just for the swim
The numbers can get maddening if you let them. Ironman numbers go way beyond 140.6.
The mental challenge of Ironman for me, has been rough. There are athletes who thrive in "suffering". Suffering is the common term when you know you are hurting, but you press on anyway. When I spoke to Lake Placid champ Lisa Norden, she said, "Our pain is the same. I hurt just as bad as you are." She admitted she had suffered as I was. There are times the suffering makes the physical pain seem way worse than it is. When I start "falling down the dark hole", it's a tough fight to get out of. The bad seems to outweigh the good and it just keeps piling it on. I'm trying to build my mindset to prepare for this in Indiana. We shall see how that goes.
Breaking the 3 main parts down;
The swim- 2.4 miles might not sound that bad. When we mean 2.4 miles of swimming, now it starts to make sense why it's challenging. 2.4 miles is a long swim! This is also a crucial part of the race in terms of athlete safety. Not only do you have to be prepared to swim the 2.4 miles, you gotta swim in the same water as all the other athletes at the same time. The term "washing machine" is used to describe an Ironman swim. An athlete can get pushed, pulled, hit, kicked, or swam over by other athletes. You hope this is accidental. Some athletes, new or veteran racers, can have freak out moments in the water. My worst freak out moment was the jellyfish stings to the face in Maryland. I had to swim to a kayak and chill out for a minute before continuing on. In water freak out moments can be the end of a race for some. Freak out too bad, and your heart might not recover. Heart stops, breathing stops...there is a reason there were scuba divers in Mirror Lake while we swam in Lake Placid. Triathletes will joke when asked about their swim, "I didn't drown!" is a common answer. We laugh, but on the inside, were happy we didn't die. You can slow down on the bike or run, but you get tired in the middle of a lake, you gotta keep stroking. No giving up or you sink. The swim is the shortest part of the Ironman, but if you don't swim the 2.4, you don't get to move on. The swim is also the hardest part to take on nutrition. Hard to carry your water bottle or energy gels while swimming. There are some races where the swim is 2 loops which require an athlete to swim a loop, exit the water, run to start 2nd loop then swim 2nd loop. This allows for time and ability to take a gel if you can figure out how to carry it with you (wetsuit seems to hold it against tri top). I don't want to forget that you also have to know how to sight while swimming. Making sure you aren't going too far off course or following others who get lost while swimming. Swim 2.4 miles...swim 2.4 miles against a ton of athletes all fighting to go same direction while sighting buoys and praying you don't get tired...or drown. Trying to not have an adrenaline dump because you still have a long day ahead of you. This is how we start an Ironman.
The bike. 112 miles. I don't have to try and impress people when I say 112 miles. Most people say "I don't even like to drive that far." We get it. We don't like driving 112 miles either. But for triathletes who love the bike, 112 miles can be a ton of fun. For those who aren't prepared, 112 miles can be seriously challenging. I can say that because I was way undertrained for my first half Ironman, and the cramps my legs gave me were debilitating. I have rode many long rides trying to build the endurance to make this 112 miles feel good. Each individual race will have differing levels of difficulty. Lake Placid had the added challenges of the Keene descent and the 11 mile climb at the end of the loop that we did twice. Maryland was flat which meant constant pedaling. It was a challenge to keep my mind from being bored from no elevation challenges. Indiana will be interesting as there are some elevation changes, but not much. The bike course will be on a closed highway. Should make for a fast bike split. Again, biking 112 miles with all the other athletes. Some going fast, some slow, going in and out of aid stations.
Praying there are no wrecks. Praying we don't have flat tires or bike mechanical issues. Staying hydrated and well fueled. Making sure we hit every time cutoff but without burning up your legs. You still have a marathon to run. Maybe the swim wore you out? Maybe the "demons" start making you ask if you are really prepared for this?? Are you "suffering" already?
The run. "it's just a marathon!" That's right boys and girls step right up! An event that is life-changing by itself, the marathon! 26.2 miles on foot! I know when I completed my first marathon, it changed me. I proved I could train for that event. Prepare my legs, prepare my mind. Fight through cramps. Keep moving forward. In the sadistic world of Ironman, we have you swim a long way, then bike a much longer distance before requiring you to run a marathon!! You are welcome!! The start of the Ironman marathon is very interesting because the thought pops into your head, "All I gotta do is finish this run and I'm done!" The success your brain is feeling from conquering the swim and bike can uplift you. You're feeling really good about yourself. You want to get moving! If you run too fast too early, your heart and legs may say, "Nah, were good. You are done." Suddenly you can't run, you just walk. I've talked to some athletes who said it hit them at mile 3. Others might make it 13 or 20 miles in. Lake Placid for me was mile 11. There are others who fight through the pain and tired and keep chugging on through. You just never know how your legs will respond. You must keep moving forward. "Forward is a pace". Quitting isn't an option, although it will sound good at times. There are many tricks to try and help, each athlete must figure out what works for them. You just gotta keep moving forward. For me, I usually get pretty emotional during the run portion. I pray. I think of strong warriors who have fought cancer. Family members who have fought their own personal battles. Pray for safety of all the athletes racing with me. Thanking volunteers and police along the route. Talking with other athletes. Remembering my "Fat Matt" days. Thinking of my wife and kids. Just wanting to make them proud. Whatever it takes to keep moving forward.
The Ironman Finish Line. I have tried in the past to describe the feelings I get when crossing that finish line. I can describe it all day long. But until you EARN that Finish Line, you can't fully grasp it. The training, dedication, sacrifice, pain, suffering, planning, executing, everything comes together and success is yours. No other event gives you a new title like, IRONMAN! Each Ironman finish line proves, it was all worth it. The success of completing this epic adventure, the showing yourself you can fight through tired and pain, the joy of being able to sit down!! It's all worth it.
I hope this blog entry gives you an insiders look on what is Ironman. A deeper dive into what it takes and what it really is. Ironman isn't pretty. Ironman is far from easy. Each Ironman race has its pros and cons. Ironman is wild. Ironman is fun. "Ironman challenges you in every way" Chris Tech said after Ironman Lake Placid. Ironman will challenge you. It may challenge you in ways it doesn't challenge me.
There are 2 sports that stand out to me when I think of sports tattoos. The Olympic Rings tattoo that an Olympian gets and the M-Dot tattoo that an Ironman earns. When I see an M-Dot tatt, I know I immediately have a few things in common with that athlete. It's a badge of honor, a symbol of triumph. My one and only tattoo. Nothing else drove me to getting a tattoo, but Ironman did!
Let me know your thoughts. Agree or disagree I'd love to hear about your thoughts on this topic. Maybe this inspires an athlete to give it a go. They might hate me for it, only to thank me later. Maybe it pushes someone to say, "Nope! That's not for me." And that is just fine. There are lots of challenges in this world. Find your dream. Find your goal. Go get it. Work your ass off for it. Show people how great you can be. Thanks for reading, IRONDAD Matt
