Just keep going
Week 28/31: The biggest training week of my life and reflections from week 27
Just keep going.
That’s what I told myself all week.
Just keep going.
I had the biggest training week of my life.
Here was the schedule.
Monday - supposed to be 1.5 hr bike but was tired after biking 140k on Saturday and running 22.5k Sunday, so took a rest day.
Tuesday - 1 hr swim nonstop.
Wednesday - 45 min open water swim.
Thursday - 1.5 hr bike + 1 hr run.
Friday - 45 min open water swim.
Saturday - 6-hour bike.
Sunday - 3.5 hr run.
Absolutely insane volume.
These numbers used to seem impossible to me.
How can you bike for 6 hours straight?
How can I swim for an hour straight?
Impossible.
Yet here I am.
Just finished it.
Bit of ankle soreness after the run, but overall, not bad.
Doesn’t mean it was easy.
Far from it.
Saturday was the worst.
Most difficult workout of my entire life.
Started out strong.
First 50k was fine.
Next 40k was a struggle.
Was running low on my nutrition.
Legs started feeling sore.
But still had 50k left to get home.
Started the ride in 32 degree heat with the sun beating down on me when the wind started to pick up.
40k/hr winds.
Right in my face.
So for the next 2 hours I had to bike up and down hills in super hot conditions with the wind in my face the whole way back.
I wanted to cry.
I wanted to break down.
I wanted to stop.
But I kept pushing.
Kept telling myself.
Just keep going.
Even if takes you forever, don’t stop.
So I did.
Just like Dory said.
Just keep swimming.
Even when it hurts.
Even when it sucks.
Even when you want to cry.
Just keep going.
That’s been my motto this whole journey.
Wake up.
Look at the workout you have to do.
Finish that.
Don’t focus on tomorrow.
Don’t focus on the weekend.
Don’t look too far ahead.
Focus on today.
Where you are.
Do what you have to do today.
That’s it.
Then slowly watch.
And see how far you’ll come.
I’ve done all of this in 6 months.
6 months from zero.
And now we’re here.
Training 6 days a week.
Biking for 6 hours straight.
Running casual half marathons every week for months.
I can’t believe it.
Genuinely.
This journey has been unbelievable.
Truly didn’t think I could get this far.
Yet here we are.
3 weeks away from completing an Ironman.
3.8k swim.
180k bike.
42.2k run.
All together.
No break in between.
It’s a feat so insane that less than 0.01% of the population has ever completed it.
Less than a million people in history.
They all needed something to keep them going.
When the pain gets too much and you want to quit, how are you going to show up?
How are you going to get through it?
What are you truly made of?
Remember a friend who completed one a few years back said to me -
This journey is not about completing the actual race.
It’s about the person you become along the way.
You’ll find out if you’re an Ironman during training.
Not on race day.
Race day is a celebration.
It’s a celebration of the commitment you made and the hours upon hours of time you put in when no one was there but you.
He’s right.
The journey to get here, even this week, feels like nothing short of a miracle.
One of the only things that got me here was this.
You are so much more capable than you think.
Can do so much.
Accomplish so much.
Push your body so much more than you believe.
Don’t limit yourself.
Even when it’s hard.
Even when you want to quit.
Even when you’re body is screaming at you to stop.
Just keep going.
This week in training - (Follow me on Strava here):
Swimming - 5.6k. 1 pool session and 2 open water sessions. Happy with the pool session as it was an hour without stopping. Open water was tougher. First session was brutal, felt like I was barely moving. Second one was much better and felt like my triathlon swim. If I can have that happen race day, I’ll be happy.
Biking - 178k - another big biking week, including my longest ever ride at 142k. Nutrition was much better this time around. Legs felt decent and had more left in the tank.
Running - 40k - big run week. Another solid tempo run off the bike, including another sub 5 minute kilometre then had my long run Sunday. Surprisingly went well, even though it was super hot and I had the big bike ride and a Coldplay concert the night before.
Notes from Week 27 of training:
Last huge training week with 15 hours of training, longest ever ride and longest ever training run besides the marathon. All in all, went surprisingly well and really happy with the effort.
Nutrition was decent this week. Felt better on the bike. Also finished my sweat rate test, which is a test you do to see how much fluid you lose during your race. After an hour run, lost 4 lbs so need to have 1.5L/hr during race day. For the bike, lost 4 lbs after a 6 hour ride but had almost 6L of fluid + 5 fruit bars so need to have 1L/hr on race day. Crazy because that means I’ll be having 14-16L of fluid on Ironman day, which is INSANE. Who knew I sweat that much…
Swimming was up and down this week. Really happy with my effort in the pool swimming for an hour straight. 2 open water sessions; 1 was great and the other was tough. Definitely not underestimating the swim and how difficult it will be.
Huge bike week. Felt really good. Especially considering what I had to endure the last 50k, I’m really happy with the effort. Know I had more in the tank too so will be good for race day.
Huge run week. Really happy with the long run Sunday doing 30k at a good pace. Ankle/achilles a bit sore but know that’s normal and should recover soon.
Movies - watched Fight Club (awesome) and Memories of Murder (great Korean serial killer movie; reminded me of Zodiac). Finished the final season of squid games and it was decent; worth watching if you’ve seen the other seasons. Also started the new season of the Tour De France show - man those guys are actually insane.
So happy with how far I’ve come. Hard to believe how much progress I’ve made in such a short time. Was a huge week for me and felt nervous going into it. However, had a good week and accomplished all the things I wanted to. Know I had more in the tank too so good to know that for race day. Have a trip to Jordan this week for a friend’s wedding so super excited about that with the extra rest, but not too far away now. Only 3 weeks left….
For Sachit:
In honour of my dear cousin Sachit, my role model who sadly lost his battle to leukemia a few years ago, I’m taking on the ultimate challenge – an Ironman triathlon! This grueling race includes a 3.8 km swim, a 180 km bike ride, and a 42.4km run, but it’s more than just a test of endurance. I'll be raising money for the Canadian Cancer Society and Ottawa General Hospital where Sachit was treated. My goal was to raise $10,000 and recently accomplished this. THANK YOU to everyone who donated!!! I’ve now increased the goal to $16,000 and all money will be split between the two charities.
Your support will not only help me cross the finish line but also create meaningful change for those in need. Every donation counts and brings me closer to my fundraising goal.
Thank you for your support and join me on this incredible journey to conquer the Ironman!