Ironman anyone?

[Volleyballchick]

I decided I want to attempt an Ironman race in the next few years. I have only done a couple sprint distance triathlons and I ran 2 half marathons but that was it so far. I am going to train for my first full marathon in October and try to build up to longer distance triathlons but I was just wondering is this a realistic goal or not? I am very serious about completing one and I am taking swim lessons and everything but my dad said you have to be a professional and I am no professional. I have good endurance but little speed so does anyone here think I can do it? Does anyone else train for these kinda races?

:yes: :)

[annabanana]

As long as you train right (which includes building enough endurance, giving yourself proper and sufficient nutrition, listening to your body especially when it complains), I think your goals are realistic. It sounds like you have a great start and good plans with the future marathon. An Ironman is definitely something to build up to, which takes time, as you know.

By no means do you have to be a "professional" to complete an Ironman. Make sure you can get through the race distance for each discipline, keep putting in the time, and train knowledgably. It's an immense distance to cover, but is definitely possible. For future reference, just make sure you sign up before registration fills up :)

[Vegmedic]

I decided I want to attempt an Ironman race in the next few years. I have only done a couple sprint distance triathlons and I ran 2 half marathons but that was it so far. I am going to train for my first full marathon in October and try to build up to longer distance triathlons but I was just wondering is this a realistic goal or not?

Read Dr. Ruth Heidrich's book for inspiration. If you are willing to put in the effort and suffer the pain then I think you can do it.


but my dad said you have to be a professional and I am no professional.

There are more and more pros in the IM. But the vast majority of competitors are amateurs with the possible exception of the Hawaiian event.


I have good endurance but little speed so does anyone here think I can do it?

Finishing the IM is all about endurance. Most IM competitors are competing against themselves. Speed really only matters for those that are really trying to win the race.

[RunsWithFoxes]

Can you? Probably. Should you? My vote is no, but I exercise to maximize good health, not attain arbitrary and artificial goals. Other folks have different goals. Good luck! :hamster:

[Cassiel]

LOL, RWF. Arbitrary and artificial goals? Have you ever run a long-distance race event of any kind? I don't mean to belittle your opinion, but I just can't imagine someone having that attitude who has. Running a marathon is the most euphoric thing I've ever done - and I'm not talking about completing the distance. Most long races have great support, which means awesome camaraderie between racers and volunteers, racers and racers, racers and racewatchers, etc. I've never felt so close to complete strangers. It has given me a lot of faith in other people, to tell the truth. And that's truly the tip of the iceberg. I've never done the IM, but with several marathons under my belt I can tell you that the satisfaction you feel is anything but artificial. Volleyballchick, annabanana said pretty much everything I would have. I will prolly not do IM any time soon since I'm working on ultramarathoning right now, but if I were to train for that I would start by doing each race distance in each discipline separately first and build from there. If you've done a half, you'll be fine in a full marathon (you know by now what it takes to train your body to run distances). Cycling is the same. Swimming I will claim no knowledge of. Train conservatively so you don't get hurt and thereby push your goals further off. But I think if you put in the time, you will reap the benefits. Consider the volume of people who run these races. What % of them do you think are professionals? I doubt the number is large, except, as was said, in the major IM in Hawaii. Have you ever visited coolrunning.com? There's a section on their forum there for tri enthusiasts. Those people can answer a lot of your questions.

[Volleyballchick]

hey thanks a lot for your opinions. I am glad to know I dont have to be a professional to be able to do it because I am far from professional. I just want to cross the finish line of the ironman. I really do not care what place I come in as long as I can finish.. and preferably not last place lol.

[RunsWithFoxes]

LOL, RWF. Arbitrary and artificial goals? Have you ever run a long-distance race event of any kind? I don't mean to belittle your opinion, but I just can't imagine someone having that attitude who has. Running a marathon is the most euphoric thing I've ever done - and I'm not talking about completing the distance. Most long races have great support, which means awesome camaraderie between racers and volunteers, racers and racers, racers and racewatchers, etc. I've never felt so close to complete strangers. It has given me a lot of faith in other people, to tell the truth.

None of what you've said above has anything to do with maximizing good physical health. I meet far more ex-runners who injured themselves and dropped out rather than current runners. I'm not saying that your reasons for running are wrong, I'm just saying that I don't sympathize with them. Diff't strokes for diff't folks, as they say. :bobo:

[Volleyballchick]

well i dont want to injure myself or anything either. I mean I would hope that there wont be a high risk.

[Cassiel]

RWF, it certainly depends on which circles you run in, so to speak. As a runner of races I'll obviously meet more current runners without injuries. And for myself, I've been running for 6 years, currently do 65+ mpw, and am in training for yet another marathon. As you say, different strokes.
You don't need to run a marathon or a tri to maximize your health. But I would definitely not go so far as to say either would be detrimental. Every sidelined runner I ever met made a mistake in his or her training - doing too much too soon, not equipping themselves properly, not educating themselves properly. Volleyballchick, if you are conservative in your training and realize it will require patience and research to reach your goal, you'll be fine.

[veganinohio]

For me, entering a race is the ultimate moltivation.

Telling myself that I should run 5 miles today for maximum health is much less motivating than telling myself I should run 5 miles today so I can be succesful in my race which is a month away. I also enjoy the year long exercise cycle that preparing for a race season provides.

So for some people, entering races is exercising for maximum health.

[dizzymisslizzy]

how you feel after the marathon is a good indicator of how you'll feel during the IM. I haven't done one (yet!) but my coach did, and he's no professional.

[meatless]

There are more and more pros in the IM. But the vast majority of competitors are amateurs with the possible exception of the Hawaiian event.



My coworker and his wife did Hawaii this past October. He's not a pro, but he does it in about 9-10 hours. :)

[Trivegelete]

The pro field in Hawaii is slightly larger than in other Ironmans, but not significantly. The majority of competitors are still amateurs with full-time jobs.

To answer your question, yes, I think an Ironman is a realistic goal for you. My one piece of advice is that you have to really enjoy biking. You need to put the majority of your training hours into cycling, and those 100+ mile rides can really be tough if you're not enjoying it.

As for the post about how you feel after a marathon is a good indicator of how you'll feel after an Ironman, I disagree!! From my experience, I've found those two events to be completely different animals.

-Angie