I’ve been competing in triathlons for fifteen years. Â Part of my mental health plan is taking part in routine exercise, and having a goal of competing in triathlons gives me incentive to exercise.
I’ve learned so much about perseverance and resilience through this sport.
The first year I competed I didn’t train very much and my performance was reflective of this.
In fact, because of a total lack of training, I almost died during the second triathlon I ever did.
It was a 1/2 Iron Man in the heat of the summer in 2003. Â A 1/2 Iron Man means I had to swim 1.25 miles, bike 56 miles and run 13.1 miles…all in the same day…one after the other.
I was completely humbled by the entire situation as I “figured” I could do anything since I was a pretty decent athlete with a tremendous amount of will power. Â I barely trained for this event and the results were reflective of this.
The highlight of the day was finishing the race ahead of four other participants (there were over 500 participants), and making it to the local Dairy Queen after the race in order to consume two foot-long chili-cheese dogs, two large orders of french fries and two jumbo Cokes…the lady at the drive-thru window thought I was placing an order for two people. 🙂
I’ve come a long way since that race. Â My training now begins in January and ends on the last weekend of September when I run my final race. Â Over those nine months I log about 400 hours of training time which includes a lot of short races that prepare me for longer races.
I can totally relate to the opening quote.
Those with the ability to persevere are usually the ones who are able to break their “race” into shorter races.
Are you facing a life challenge that has taken on the looks of a grueling marathon?
Try breaking the challenge into small segments…things will go a little bit smoother for you.
Romans 5:3-4, “More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.”
P.E.A.C.E.
Jay@EagleLaunch.com
