Ironman Maryland Race Recap 🦀

For much of the past year and a half, I wasn't sure how triathlon would fit into my life in the future. I spent much of the last 5 years dealing with health issues. These stemmed from the pace of my life out running the state of my health. I never thought I would have struggled to stay motivated during the pandemic. I found myself unsure how I would get back into consistent training after a down year with the pandemic.

When it came down to it, I found my love for the sport again. I spent a year working with hormone specialists to get myself feeling better. I did a lot of reflection. And I spent time rewriting my narrative for why I train and compete. I couldn't be happier with how Ironman Maryland played out. We were slated to race Ironman Mont Tremblant, actually. The border remained closed and this event was, again, canceled in June of 2020. At that point, I was ready to throw in the towel and not race this year. But, I made a commitment to my best friend that we would do this Ironman together. There's a lot to say for honoring commitments and being supportive. We were able to select from a list of races, and we chose Maryland. We had 11 weeks to prepare.

To be honest, I wasn't in great shape at that 11 week mark. I was pretty against training for another year not knowing if the race would happen or not. And, to be honest again, I wouldn't have done this race any other way. I found a new balance. I quit putting so much pressure on myself. Back in 2015, Kona came to me so easily. Life was different back then. I know what kind of shape I need to be in to do that again. And, truth be told, I am afraid of being in that kind of shape right now. It wrecked havoc on my body for years to follow. I don't ever want to be in that place again. Maybe someday I will have the opportunity, but that's not in my near future.

Instead, it was up to me to rewrite my reasoning for racing and competing. I realized how much I love the sport. The people it surrounds me with. The challenge. The comradery. It then became pretty easy to fit being a business owner, coach, wife, and training into my lifestyle. I wanted to allow all of these things to work together. Going forward, this will be the narrative I use to write my reasoning for training and competing.

Long story long, the race was great! Ironman actually allowed us to wear wetsuits even though the water temp was above the wetsuit cut-off of 76 degrees. This was due to the abundance of jellyfish. Now, let me preface, this was not a make or break situation. I would still do the race again. But the jellies were out in full force. During my entire 2.4 mile swim which took me 1:06, I was getting stung. It was intense!

All the jellies!

The bike ride (6:01) was scenic and on very good road conditions. We got lucky with little wind and some cloud coverage. I always plan to stop at least twice while on the bike. A good barometer I use for hydration is that I should need to go to the bathroom twice during this long of a ride. Once, at minimum. I knew my nutrition and hydration were on point as I stopped at mile 64 and mile 90-something.

I have done enough Ironmans to know what to expect with my level of fitness. I knew I would slow down on the second half of the marathon (4:23). So my goal was to hold my heart rate at the top of my aerobic zone for as long as I could. I call this, "slow down slower." My goal for any Ironman marathon is to slow down as slow as I can. It's inevitable that it'll happen, it's just a matter of when. I told Drew I was hoping I'd make it through the halfway point without much issue. I had a bathroom stop at mile 10 and then I stopped to refill my bottles at the personal needs station at mile 11. Aside from that, the first half of the marathon went well. Then the fatigue started to set in. I began to walk every aid station. I then needed more rest and so I did a run:walk ratio of 9:1. Then 4:1. I figure, at that point you can crawl to the finish line if you need to!

I exercised, celebrated, and smiled for 11:45:00 on the day. I was so pleased with how the race unfolded. It's by far my most proud Ironman performance. It was far from a PR, it didn't qualify me for Kona, but this opportunity afforded me an experience. I never felt like I was less of a wife, friend, business owner, or coach to be a better triathlete. I felt balanced. Healthy. Motivated. Fulfilled. So often we make a goal. Achieve the goal. Then just move the goalposts further back. I wanted to get out of this habit. I have a new understanding and gratitude for my body and what it can do when I strike balance in life.

Steph and I shortly after we finished. She went 11:33:19 in her first Ironman!