How to Become an Ironman: My Triathlon Story

Author: Yiyang Ma

www.dhirubhai.net/in/yiyangma | https://www.healthtechnologist.org/blog

After 13 hours and 40 minutes of fight, I completed my first full Ironman: Ironman Maryland (IMMD, 9/18/2021). A full Ironman requires 2.4 miles swim, 112 miles bike, and a full marathon under 17 hours. 1 grey hair, 2 big blisters, 3 lost pounds, and so many emotions. Before I dive into the details, I want to thank those who supported me during this LONG journey - my family, friends, colleagues, and fellow athletes Ying, Yinghua, Fang, and Dan. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.

The Beginning

Accomplishing the Iron distance has been a dream since 2020. I signed up IMMD right after New Year’s Day, also the March Rock n Roll Marathon, and the June Ironman Virginia 70.3 to steadily build up my fitness and confidence. For obvious reasons, all races were cancelled in 2020. I deferred my entries to 2021 however wasn’t sure which race(s) will still happen. Only after my inoculation in April 2021, did I formally commit to the deferred 70.3 Race. I only had 8 weeks to prepare for the race so I put together a training plan to self-coach. I completed the race with 6 hours and 44 minutes, 709th place out of 1,380 finishers. It helped me gain much confidence and connect with a couple triathletes. I also decided to join Team Z so that I can train for IMMD with a group. Looking back at both races, the 70.3 was a somewhat unexpected 8-week “meeting engagement” and IMMD was a well-planned 15-week Campaign. The 23 weeks were hard however extremely fulfilling. I gained fitness and changed my mindset: no matter how difficult it gets, you should always keep your proud chest and lean forward. This is true for running and life.

Swim 2.4 Miles

Swim is a relatively short part of a full Ironman but challenging and fun. Since freestyle primarily uses your upper body, the training helps triathletes develop full body fitness and coordination. Swim also has psychological benefits: my COVID “sanity strategy” has been "eat well, sleep well, exercise well, close to nature, and practice positivity". Swimming is the perfect workout that check all boxes - you can’t possibly make a 530am group swim if you can’t put down whisky bottles. The moment my chest touches the crispy water is the moment I forget the work from home “trap” and remember our human origin from the deep ocean. My L4 swimming?teammates are chill, carefree people - “You don’t swim backstroke? I suck at that too!” Laughing at my mistakes and improvements has been fun, though swimming can be frustrating at times. It’s a process of much patience and persistence. I take notes of coaches’ points and my own intuition on Strava. After weeks of practice, my freestyle got smooth - 1 hour 36 minutes for 2.4 miles. Not fast but good enough to save my legs to pass people on my bike and run.

IMMD course is in the Choptank River, close to a wildlife conservation and the Chesapeake. The beautiful Heron bird on the medal is common in our area. On the flip side, there is a HUGE jelly fish population in the water. I took allergy pills and used Vaseline/ Safe Sea as protection. However the 20+ stings on the face and arms weren’t too fun: numb, hot, stimulating, and a bit painful. Can’t remember how many times I swore at those little demons, but thankfully I shook off the discomfort when I started my bike. If I race IMMD the 2nd time, I will switch to a long sleeve wetsuit. All is well when it ends well.

The course map includes two rectangular loops. You won’t be lost if you follow the red buoys. My overall swim strategy is to preserve energy for the bike and run through efficient and relatively slow strokes. My biggest fear before the race was water panic: it was uncommon but possible- especially when I got sleep-deprived and under much work pressure. The symptoms were difficulties in breathing, broken strokes, and overreaction when people pass me. Luckily, I was able to intentionally train my sighting through drills such as Alligator drills taught by Ed/ Mark. I also swam open water in Lake Arrow Head and National Harbor. To not overreact to passing swimmers, I self-seeded to a slower group. It wasn’t fun to be the underdog however beneficial. Good mental preparedness and race tactic allowed me to finish the swim in a reasonable pace and started my bike strong: I was able to pass 6-7 people every 10 minutes or so in the first few hours of the bike race.

For those who haven’t done self-seeding: you join a wave (group) based on your planned pace and start when your group is called. Some “dog fight” in water isn’t a big deal. Keep some distance if needed and have an extra pair of goggle.

There will be photographers at the swim finish. Somehow I was not lucky with my swim pictures (IMMD on the left and Virginia 70.3 on the right). There always was someone to share the lens lol. When I rushed to the transition, the person next to me looked so chill. Maybe he knows this better: sport is for life; sport is for fun.

?Bike 112 miles

I believe that bike requires most investment in time and gear. Firstly bike is the longest discipline for most Ironman athletes, including myself in IMMD: 6 hours and 16 minutes, about 17.9 miles per hour. Given its significance, bike requires tactics. Triathletes should remember the goal is to get you to the run start safely and reasonably fast. Staying in the right heart rate and pace is crucial. Many triathletes started the bike leg too fast and too enthusiastically. They ended up dropping speed in the 2nd part of the bike and the overall race. Find your sustainably fast pace and heart rate -you will crush the bike and run courses like a pro.

Secondly, bike training can be time consuming. There are many aspects to train such as cadence, observation, endurance, and strength. Observation and endurance can be steadily improved through long rides (70 miles to 120 miles for Iron distance) preferably in a group setting. Not only are group rides safer, they also are a good way to get social sometimes with a glass of beer. Cadence and Heart Rate require self-control/ tactic. Most people can be trained to maintain an efficient, 80 Revolution per Minute cadence.

Strength training isn’t necessarily done in the race season. When you aren’t racing, leg workouts like squats, compound lifts like deadlifts can help you grow your power to climb those difficult hills.?

Last but not least: bike gear investment. I have seen a few impressive $4,000+ bikes. They can be reasonable investments if you are in tri for the long term. It is like having a good car, whose cost spreads out over the time. I have also seen triathletes do quite well with $1,000 bikes. Price of your bike is not as important as loving your bike and continually improving it. My Pinarello is a mid-tier road bike and has been with me for 2+ years. Gradually I replaced aerobar, water system, seat, crank, and did bike fitting. Now the bike fits me like a glove lol. I doubt another person will feel the same comfort riding it. Looking back at the pandemic, my bike is a great friend to help me stay fit and sane. We have crushed many miles together and seen mountains and flowers. Fitness and nature - no wonder many people started biking during the pandemic.

Now let’s summarize IMMD bike course: the map is mainly two large loops and a few extra miles in the north. It is flat, windy, and without road closures. Wind might be the most challenging aspect of this course: it takes extra energy and tests your core power. It would be smart to have a bike fitting a few weeks before the race so that you are in the most natural position. In comparison to the hilly Blue Ridge Mountain (Virginia 70.3), IMMD course has less flavor. However you need to stay mentally sharp because the police did not close the roads. In the middle of the course, I heard a gunshot from distance. I looked over and found a group shooting targets near the wildlife conservation. I sped up since Ironman isn’t really made from iron!

Run 26.2 Miles

The marathon course has three loops. The scenery was gorgeous – you can watch the Colonial-style houses and the dawn near the lake (though you will miss it if you are a super-fast pro). Road condition is generally good, except the bricks near the pubs and restaurants (on the Eastern/ right side of the map). Because there are three loops, you will run into athletes of very different paces. Like all marathon races, you must have your own pacing strategy.

Since IMMD is my first full Ironman, I decided to set both conservative and stretch goals and err on the safe side. My running heart-rate was targeted at 130-140 BPM in average. However I was unsure at what pace I could sustain. I decided to experiment with 10 min/ mile pace. First three miles went well – I was able to enjoy the scenery and the road. Miles 4-6 were OK– I lowered my pace to 12 min/ mile which was my conservative pace. However my stomach started giving me issues at mile 7 – I had to rush to the porta potties. I ended up going 5+ times in the race. As a result, my miles 7 -20 were lowered to 13 min/ mile.?

In miles 21-26 I decided to get things back under control again. It was getting dark but the course was well lighted. I started repeating two words to myself: 11 (min/ mile) and 175 (strikes per minute) to nudge my mind and my body! With some chicken broth from the aid station, I was able to finish the last 6 miles without stomach issues.

I didn’t have much fuel left in the tank, but I decided to sprint to the finishing line because I wanted to hear the magic words: “Yiyang Ma, you are an Ironman!”

The result: Swim 1 hour 36 minutes 20 seconds, Bike 6 hours 16 minutes 28 seconds, Run 5 hours 28 minutes 43 seconds. 2,900+ people signed up, 1,692 finished, I made 851. I felt I could do better on my run if I didn’t have the stomach issue however nutrition is really the 4th discipline. Overall I am quite satisfied with my first Ironman.

?After the storm

The next morning my friend Fang and I went to Ironman village. I also watched the award ceremony. My eyes were moist when I saw men and women 18 to 81 year-young winning their hard-earned medals. Life is hard during COVID, but your smiles were beautiful. Run, walk, or crawl - don’t give up until you cross the line.