I tear up and get chills just thinking about it! Crossing that finish line and hearing the announcer say those words over the loud speaker is something I’ve fantasized about for years. And now, I can finally say that I, Lynne Tye, am an Ironman.
I first heard about Ironman races when I was in high school. I was 17, training for my first marathon, and went to chat with the boys’ soccer coach because “he knew about marathons.” He certainly did. As an Ironman athlete, he offered amazing advice that helped me realize my dream of completing a marathon. He also planted the seed for a new dream: to some day become an Ironman.
I figured there was plenty of time in my life to do an Ironman, so I set the idea aside where it stayed and collected dust for almost 12 years. Then, exactly one year ago, two of my friends became Ironmen here in Cozumel. Hearing LaNae and Danny talk about their journey of sweat, sacrifice, and –– at last –– sweet glory revived my own Ironman ambitions.
There are 7.6 billion people in the world, and likely less than 0.001% of the population has completed an Ironman triathlon. I’ve been hearing from a lot of old friends, classmates, and coworkers this week, which makes me think that you too have fantasized about crossing that finish line, and joining this elite group of Ironman finishers.
If that’s the case, I’m telling you right now that you can and should.
LaNae and Danny not only inspired me to do an Ironman, but they also supported, advised, cheered for, and even trained alongside me throughout my journey.
Now, I want to pay it forward.
Whether you are just learning about Ironman races now, need nudging to revisit your bucket list, or have questions about where/when/how to start your Ironman journey, let me know how I can help. Who knows, maybe we can race side by side one day! 😉
Until you make that decision for yourself though, here’s my story:
I decided to do an Ironman 8 months ago in March.
I can’t explain why, but March was a very weird month for me. A lot of things were happening around me, which created the perfect storm for a mini life crisis.
My mom had just visited me in San Francisco and she, at the age of 70, was essentially peaking in her career as a molecular biologist. My friend, Courtland, had started a company 9 months ago, and it was being acquired by Stripe. San Francisco was finally transitioning from winter to spring and then my 29th birthday was coming up, adding more fuel to the fire.
I was so energized and inspired by everyone and everything around me, but I didn’t really know where to channel it! At that time, I was also freelancing as a web developer. I was just about to start a new big project, but at the last minute, my client had to delay it by a few weeks. I now had zero outlets.
I was bursting at the seams with passion, but with no direction, and was suddenly smack dab in the middle of a “what am I doing with my life?” type of situation.
My incredibly supportive friends and family kept telling me, “Follow your dreams!” but this just made things worse because… I wasn’t sure I had any dreams? What does “follow your dreams” even mean? How on earth am I dreamless?! Usually, my life crises (yes, I’ve had a few) slowly build up before erupting. This one came so unexpectedly that I was legitimately manic for a few days.
Eventually, I came up with a list of things that might qualify as “dreams” for me. Things I’ve always envisioned myself doing at some point in life:
- Become an Ironman.
- Raise a family.
- Start a business of some kind.
My boyfriend Oliver was not super thrilled about #2 (😂), so I decided to commit the rest of 2017 to chasing #1 and #3.
On March 10th (thanks Strava!), I went on a run and decided mid-way that I was going to do an Ironman before the end of the year.
On March 22nd, after brainstorming many terrible ideas, I landed on the concept behind Key Values, and began a parallel journey towards launching my first product. (I wrote all about it here.)
For a long time, I followed other people’s dreams, confusing them for my own. I then spent a few years finding my way out of the darkness. This year, 2017, is for sure the first time I have fully understood what it means to follow your dreams. They don’t need to be big, or clearly defined, or even related to one another in any way, but the very first step is giving yourself the space to articulate them.
How much time do you really need to train for an Ironman?
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer here, but 7–8 months was plenty of time for me. Oliver only trained for ~6 months. (It took him a few weeks of watching me swim, bike, and run before the FOMO finally took over him. 😂)
There are lots of excuses you can make about why it’s not a good time, or why you can’t do an Ironman. Trust me, I rifled through all of them too.
Parents with multiple young children and full-time jobs do it. In fact, they make shirts that say “Ironmom” and “Irondad” on them. You’re probably not any more busy than they are.
Grandparents do it. We met a 65-year-old woman who was doing her 20-something-th Ironman race. She said she injured her knee and would sadly have to walk this one. She ended up qualifying for Kona (again), and actually finished before Oliver did. Most likely, you’re not older than her (or as badass, but that’s okay).
College students who can’t afford fancy gear do it. Equipment can be pricey, as is traveling for races, but you don’t need the most expensive bike and can find local races. You can cut out some of your other expenses, and figure out how to make it work.
The last two barriers keeping Ironman-hopefuls from just going for it are injuries and the idea that you need lots of triathlon experience.
I won’t claim to know your body or what ailments you have, but I can pretty much guarantee you’d be embarrassed to tell a room full of Ironman athletes that that’s why you haven’t tried. I have ITBS and terrible knees, but stopped complaining about it as soon as I watched this movie/video/documentary I found on YouTube (linked at the very end of this article). I can’t wait for you to watch it.
As for needing triathlon experience? You don’t. I’m proof of that.
My Timeline of Firsts
I wanted to do an Ironman by the end of the 2017 year even though I had never done a triathlon before. I didn’t even know if I’d enjoy doing them! However, I knew I could make myself do just about anything if it was only for half a year. The riskier option would have been giving myself a longer timeline, increasing the likelihood of my losing interest, focus, or motivation. #knowyourself
March: first ride clipped in.
I bought new pedals and my first pair of bike shoes, and rode with my feet attached to the pedals for the very first time! So terrifying. There are a lot of cars in San Francisco. I am proud to say that I still haven’t crashed on my bike yet. 🙌 (Though I’ve come close many times…)
April: learning to swim and my first-ever triathlon race.
Even though I grew up in Ithaca, NY where we all spent lots of time in water (gorges, dams, lakes), I never learned to properly swim. I took my first (of 7) swim lessons with Tammy Choy (who is absolutely phenomenal), just in time for the Napa Valley Olympic tri.
Well, almost.
I was so cold, miserable, and confused by everything that I ended up doing breast stroke the entire time with my head above water. 😂 I was such a noob, I actually put my borrowed wetsuit on backwards too, making everyone around laugh at me.
May: new bike, who dis?
I was pretty much brand spankin’ new to cycling. Sure I knew how to ride a bike, but I’d never taken it up as a way to exercise (I’ve never even been a fan of Soul Cycle).
My “cycling experience” was essentially two long rides that Oliver (very irresponsibly) convinced me to do when we first started dating. One was a century ride on a cheap commuter bike and sneakers. He did the entire thing in flip flops. It took us well over 14 hours, and I seriously injured my leg and couldn’t get full range of motion for days. Yet, for some reason, I kept dating him. 😂
Finally, I bought myself a real bike (on Bikes Direct for $1200), and got it properly fitted (by Pedro 😉). I also went to Shift for the first time! Shift is an indoor cycling studio that I cannot say enough good things about. It’s a game changer. Plus, it’s where many of the Ironmen and Ironwomen of San Francisco go to train.
July: first time in aero.
I learned that unlike other cycling races, triathletes are not allowed to draft. This is where aero bars come in. I finally ordered some (on Amazon, for $140) and had them installed on my road bike. It took a little while for my body to adjust to them, but no time at all for me to fall in love with speed! 😍
August: first half Ironman!
Oliver and I flew to Boulder for our first Ironman 70.3 race. It was tough stuff. LaNae and Danny were supposed to race too, but couldn’t make it. It was a very baby-bird-leaves-the-nest moment when they told us they weren’t coming, but we survived!
The elevation was no joke, and I was terrified I’d DNF (did not finish) on the swim, but I totally DF-ed (did finish –– I just made that up).
I also just dug up this Insta-story from after that race. 😂
October: first sports massage.
I’ve suffered from “bad knees” ever since my first marathon in 2005. I thought it was from over use, or maybe healing improperly after tearing my medial meniscus many years ago. My friend Evelyn (who works at Strava and is my running inspo) said it sounded like a common problem many runners have: ITBS.
She was right.
Most people who tell me about their knee problems are describing this exact issue. I genuinely believe that sports massages and more informed foam rolling “cured” me. It was a Thanksgiving miracle I didn’t have any issues with my IT bands or knees the entire race. In fact, I have never recovered so fast from a race before.
November: first Ironman 140.6! 🏊 🚴 🏃
You get the picture: I squeezed a lot of firsts into the last 8 months.
My goal was to finish under the 17-hour cutoff (as in 16:59:59 was looking mighty fine), and I ended up finishing at 12:54:00! I’m still kind of shocked by how well things went.
Training Summary
Honestly, training to complete an Ironman was less stressful and less physically demanding than trying to PR my marathon time.
I never did any of the full swimming, biking, or running distances before race day. (In fact, we hadn’t run farther than 13.1 miles this entire year until Sunday.) I didn’t have an Ironman coach or adhere to a training program, and everything worked out.
Training does take a lot of time though (even when you skimp on your workouts. 😁)
I cut out most of the social life I had. BBQs, birthdays, housewarmings, happy hours, and anything that involves “going out” was no longer important. (For those who know me: I didn’t even go to Burning Man this year, and it would have been my 8th burn.)
While this might sound pretty intense and unappealing, it’s actually wonderful. I love that my social life is now centered around exercise and being outdoors. I love surrounding myself with people I admire and respect.
You’ll replace all of the awesome things you used to do for fun with a bunch of new awesome things that are just as (or maybe even more) fun. You’ll join a new community of like-minded folks, find new social activities, and make new friends. If you’re lucky, you’ll also end up reconnecting with and growing closer to a bunch of old friends too, like I did.
I promise you’ll have at least one old friend that you can do that with (🙋🏻).
Parting words
I would love to be the person who planted your Ironman seed, or encouraged you to take your Ironman dreams off the back burner. Once you do decide to go all in, tell me! I‘ll do my best to provide you with the same guidance and support that LaNae and Danny gave Oliver and me.
Crazy enough, we’re already thinking about doing another Ironman in 2018.
Do you want to do it with us? 🤗
Cozumel Race Report
I also wrote up a more “traditional” race report about my Cozumel Ironman 140.6 race experience! It’s the play-by-play of how we swam, biked, and ran the course, and highlights include barfing, jellyfish stings, and an epic decision to pee (😂). Oliver asked me to include him in it too, so you can read about how things went for both us.
[Spoiler alert: things went better for me. 😜]
Last, but certainly not least, I highly recommend that you watch this documentary (or whatever it is) the next time you want to be inspired, moved, and blown away. I mentioned it earlier when I said that whatever injuries you have aren’t that serious.
It’s an hour long, which might seem kind of long, but it’s actually way too short. It’s so good I’ve watched it multiple times.
Dang, maybe I’ll watch it again right now! 🤓
You’re welcome.
