Why the hell…again?

Here we go again; today marks the start of training for Ironman 2016.  You (as well as most in my circle) might be asking yourself, “why the hell would someone put themselves through this again?”.  Perfectly fair question, but before I get to that I have to mention a few things for those new to this blog.  The full distance triathlon consists of a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike, and a 26.2 mile run, all to be completed within 17 hours to be considered an official finisher.  I penned this blog in 2014 during my first to 1) stay sane – it was a means of therapy for the mental battle that is training, 2) as to recall my journey when looking back, and 3) so users can choose to follow my progress vs having to unfriend me on Facebook because of all the Ironman updates.

Now to the why; my number one reason is because I feel like I need my revenge.  My first time out in 2014 I didn’t set any goals other than to finish in good health and I accomplished half of that.  Granted the finishing was most important but in the end I spend the night deliriously in the medical tent, my shower at home puking and the next day in the ER due to overhydrating on water (I didn’t even think that was possible).  So I feel in a small way that the race still got the better of me and I need to prove to myself that I am capable of a better performance.  I heard from someone after the race that there’s an interesting dilemma many participants encounter, if they race poorly they feel like they can do better and if they race well they feel like they can do better.

I think much of my motivation in 2014 was derived from the fear of the unknown and whether or not I could push myself to the finish line.  I’m nervous that the fear has now subsided and it will have an unintentional impact to my training effort, so I must generate a new fear.  That fear, I hope, will be generated from the embarrassment of not accomplishing my goal that I’m setting this year and that is to finish under 13 hours (2014 was 13 hrs 37 mins) and be well enough to drink a Miller Lite after the race. 

I hope to share some useful information and encouragement with you all over the next 7 months that you will be able to apply to your own personal struggles and goals.