Overcoming Fear and Failure - Ironman Chattanooga

The nerves were firing heading into Ironman Chattanooga.?Ever since watching the Ironman World Championship in Kona on television as a kid, I had my sights on making it across the finish line one day. As I shared in my last article The Intersection of Sports and Business – My Ironman 70.3 Experience, swimming has been a major weakness of mine and doubling the swim distance for the full Ironman to a total of 2.4 miles was a bit terrifying.?Exacerbating my concern, one month out from the race, I had a pretty bad bike crash that resulted in 11 stitches in my forearm and road rash. It was unsettling knowing that I was transitioning into my longest swim sets while dealing with a large laceration on my arm. On top of that, trepidation existed around the run portion of the Ironman, which is a full marathon (26.2 miles).?Although running is typically a strength, I had a frightening experience the last time a full marathon was attempted.?

In January 2020, I completed the 3M half marathon in Austin without issue and achieved a personal best time.?It went so well I thought, heck, I should sign up for a full marathon in a few weeks and try to break three hours and qualify for the elusive Boston Marathon.?I calculated the splits needed l and rushed my training to prepare.?The 2020 Austin Marathon started out according to plan, but little did I know that a few hours later I would be barely making it across the finish line and dealing with the aftermath.??

I was on pace to hit my targeted time until mile 19.?Out of nowhere, the dreaded “bonk” a.k.a. “hitting the wall” manifested itself.??The bonk is well known in endurance sports and is a condition of sudden fatigue and loss of energy, which is caused by the depletion of glycogen stores in the liver and muscles.?I went from a sub seven-minute mile to abruptly needing to walk.?This was not a mind over matter moment (I could imagine the ultra-tough David Goggins telling me to suck it up); it felt like my legs were made out of concrete and I could barely function.?What felt like an eternity, I spent the next seven miles doing intervals of walking and slow jogging.?I failed. ?

My wife greeted me at the finish line with a concerned look on her face.?I said I needed a beer and a place to sit down.?I quickly went downhill from there.?As I walked by the finisher memorabilia tent located just past the finish line, I started feeling off.?I plopped down on the asphalt, my head started spinning, and I started slurring my words.?Curling up nearly in the fetal position, my body started cramping and I thought I was having a stroke.?My trusty advocate, Sarahbeth (wife), and others nearby yelled for a medic, and I was quickly wheelchaired off to the medical tent to be treated.?As the nurse and medical students assisting the physician took vitals and attempted to unlock my legs through massage, lactic acid spread throughout my body.?Immediately, I went into full body cramping, which probably looked like a scene from the Exorcist.?Before I knew it, I was flipped over on my side, my pants were pulled down, and in went a rectal thermometer.?Ouch!?Apparently, they could not get a good reading from underneath my tongue.??Next, I received a hydration IV.?It felt like a miracle drug- within one hour I was able to stand and walk away from the event.?It turned out that I had an extreme case of exhaustion and dehydration.?I never got that free finisher beer.

As you may now appreciate based on my last experience, I had reason to be anxious about the marathon leg of the Ironman, especially since it would fall immediately after enduring a 2.4-mile swim and 116-mile bike ride this time.?I knew a different approach was necessary to succeed in the Ironman.?I made some mistakes in my last event, yet I was determined to overcome my fear and failures. The well-known Albert Einstein quote certainly applied: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” It was evident adjustments were needed to my training plan, race strategy, and nutrition.

The first major adjustment was ensuring I stayed within myself to achieve the ultimate goal.?How do I push my limits without blowing up??It was a fine line, and I knew I needed support to develop a plan.?By engaging an experienced and trusted Ironman coach, we focused on a new training approach, pacing and race strategy, being prepared to adapt, and the resources needed to succeed. My coach warned that plans typically do not go off without a hitch in a challenging, lengthy event such as an Ironman, and being flexible and adaptable is what sets people apart.?This is also a truth outside of sports.?Second, and clearer cut, I needed to ensure I consumed adequate, useful calories and hydration to maintain energy and achieve peak performance.?

Although we created a good training plan and strategy for the event, the warning about being prepared to adapt proved to be especially useful.?When you attempt to tackle something difficult, there will likely be obstacles along the way. ?And I faced my fair share of challenges along the way of the second and final step of my BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal)- completing a full Ironman.?As I previously described, I had an epic bike crash in a construction zone one month out from the race that earned me 11 stiches in my forearm, road rash all over my body, a broken wheel, a broken rear derailleur on my bike, and a shattered cell phone.?As a result, I had to wrap my forearm heavily in waterproof tape before each swim session to make sure I stuck to my training plan (there was no way I was going to undertrain my weakness).?Also, in the midst of the most demanding training, I tweaked my back and could not bend over to put on my socks for several days.?While checking out the bike course two days before the Ironman, I was chased and side swiped on my bike by an energetic pit bull (fortunately, I avoided a dog bite and a nasty wreck).?During the swim portion of the Ironman, I was forced to readjust my goggles at least four times due to water leaks.?I went on to foolishly crash my bike at mile 72 of the Ironman, sending my tailored race nutrition and hydration flying into the ether and earning fresh cuts on my knee, hands, and the exact area of my forearm where I just had stitches removed.?And finally, my trusty Base salt nutrition, intended to reduce cramping and improve water retention, dumped out in my gear bag prior to the marathon.

Despite the mishaps, I was able to recover, regroup, and employ a new strategy to attempt to meet my goal.?After losing a large portion of my race nutrition early in the Ironman, I knew obtaining sufficient calories and hydration would be critical to escaping the dreaded “bonk.”?So, I started hammering everything at the aid stations, which I must say was a wide variety of items I do not consume often, if ever.?To give you an idea, here is the list of items entering my body between the bike and run: Infinit powder mix, GU gels, Cliff Shot Block gummies, Honey Stinger waffles, Gatorade Endurance, chips, pretzels, grapes, Red Bull, Coca-Cola, bananas, protein cookie, protein bar, pickle juice, water, and I dumped cups of ice down my shirt and ran with ice cubes in the grasp of my hands late in the marathon.?I could not believe I was chugging soda and Red Bull on the course, but it sure did help! The concoction of liquids, gels, and food worked to get me across the finish line. And a package of Tums was a life saver afterwards.

Mike Tyson famously said, “Everyone has a plan until they are punched in the mouth.”?Can you stay calm, cool, and collected enough when your plan is thrown off course and adjust to achieve the outcome you are seeking? It is how you respond that matters.?Being exposed to adversity requires you to think on your feet and practice perseverance.??By proactively placing yourself in challenging situations inside or outside of sports, you may be better prepared to face and overcome the difficult circumstances that life will most certainly throw at you.

Furthermore, pushing through false, preconceived boundaries is powerful and often boosts self-esteem. If significant enough, it may even reframe your worldview.?It does not have to be a physical feat, as there are plenty of professional and personal challenges that may push your limits and take you outside your comfort zone (in a good way).?For example, many people have a fear of public speaking, but when someone is willing to demonstrate vulnerability and participate consistently in a program such as Toast Masters, they can yield huge benefits by overcoming what was once thought to be impossible.?The movie Yes Man starring Jim Carrey comes to mind, where he is stuck in a rut with his negative ways.?After attending a self-help seminar, he starts saying “yes” to everything presented to him, and it positively changes the trajectory of his life.?Although he ends up out of control and the approach is obviously too extreme, it highlights the positive impact of getting out of your comfort zone and trying new things, within reason.?

While I signed up for the Ironman to test my abilities, achieve a longstanding goal, and to overcome my past fear and failures, there were positive byproducts, and I was blessed to complete the final phase of my BHAG at Ironman Chattanooga on September 26th with a time of 10:55:15, placing me 9th and top 6 percent overall in my age group.?Although I was aided by a downstream river swim, I felt strong coming out of the water and the marathon went much better than anticipated (finished 5th in my age group on the run)- the training and race plan, with adjustments, paid off. ?Truly, I was just happy to make it across the finish line without “bonking” and the memory of the support of my wife and son cheering me on is something I will always cherish (it was extra special that the event photographer captured an action shot of my family running with me and providing a quick pep talk at mile 13 of the marathon).?A strong support system made all the difference, and its value transcends sports into business and life. Now, onto the next challenge…