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“It’s not the destination, it’s the journey”

It’s Saturday night, with just about 13 hours until the gun goes off. Today, I did a short ride and a shorter run, checked in the bike and walked around town a little bit. At the bike check in, I randomly ran into Todd Colby, another tri-blogger from Brooklyn. He’s an IMLP veteran. It was great to meet him in person and see his pretty black Guru Crono!

I can’t believe that it’s tomorrow. After eleven-plus months of consideration, planning, preparation, training and writing, it feels funny that this will be my last post before the race. I’m sure it’s going to feel a whole lot less funny in a few hours…

I vividly remember the day that I decided to sign up for Ironman Lake Placid – I had just come off a great race at the New York City Triathlon and was in JackRabbit on 14th Street. One of the employees, Sue, was there talking about her final preparation for Placid, which was just a week away. Even though I’d never even raced a half ironman, something sparked something inside my head and I decided, then and there, that I would do this race.

The title of this post comes from a saying on the back of a T-shirt that we saw in town. It rings really true as I reflect on the last year. The training has been a blast. Twelve months ago, I really had no idea what I was getting myself into. I knew that I enjoyed racing triathlons, but at that time I only had five under my belt. I’d been semi-serious about my fitness and training, but wasn’t following any structured program. I never thought too much about nutrition or hydration or or heart rate training or stretching or recovery. I knew that all of that had to change – and that’s what I did. I’ve spent the last 12 months learning about triathlon and fitness and fueling the body and, most important, about myself. How far and how hard I can go; how to push myself when I feel like quitting; and where my drive and determination come from. My friend Matt put it perfectly when he said that “Tomorrow is my reward for a year’s worth of kicking my own ass when there are no photos or cheering crowds or Gatorade stations.”

I’ve received tons of emails from friends and family congratulating me on my training and wishing me a great race. And I just got off the phone with Coach John, who re-assured me that I’ve done just about everything I could do to prepare for tomorrow. And I agree!

Again, thank you to everyone. This was a team effort and I’ll be thinking about all of you tomorrow during the lows and highs.

Now it’s time to put it all to the test. Getting here has been a great journey, let’s see what it looks like from the other side!

I’ve been posting training updates at the end of every month this calendar year. Below is the summary of my training since January 1.

Swim: 195,149 yards (equals 110.88 miles)
Cycling (outdoors): 1,441.25 miles
Cycling (indoors): 75:31 (hours)
Run: 499.75 miles
Strength Training: 17:18 hours
Approximate monthly total training time: 310 (hours)
Weight: 167.0 pounds (weighed yesterday)

Pretty impressive! (If I do say so myself!)

Bike – July 21
Distance: 8 miles
Time: 38 minutes
Average heart rate: 117
Course: Around Lake Placid
Conditions: Sunny, cool, beautiful

Run – July 21
Distance: 1.5 miles
Time: 14 minutes
Average heart rate: 138
Course: Saranac Avenue
Conditions: Sunny, warmer, clear