Introduction

Hello and welcome to my 2022 journey. As the title of my blog indicates I am registered for the 2022 Ironman Canada in Penticton, BC, Canada on August 28. I also have Rheumatoid Arthritis. I was diagnosed in May 2015 after nearly 2 years of on and off unexplained symptoms. However, I don't let my diagnose define me or hold me back. 

I have been teaching group fitness since 2007 and have been a certified personal trainer since 2019. I love working in the fitness industry and I find it very rewarding. I have been working with others with chronic illnesses and I feel I am a good fit because I can empathize with the struggles they have. I know what it's like to be tired for no reason, or to have your joints ache with a change in the weather.

So why Ironman?

I have finished this race twice. The first was in 2005. I was working full time and I remember the stress of training around a job. I would swim in the morning and then go straight to work as a lab technician. Once a week I would ride the 20km there in the morning and then home. I was taking spin classes and swim club and loosely followed the 13 weeks to a 13 hour Ironman, which was a pretty tall order. I finished in 15:47. 

Training for this race I really overestimated my fitness. I had done a few smaller triathlons, and completed my first half Ironman the previous year. I assumed the energy of the day would help me get through, and to some extent it did. But while on the climb to Yellow Lake on the bike I realized that I didn't do enough specific training, and 145km long ride wasn't going to cut it. I knew I would want to train differently next time.

The second was in 2012, 18 months after having my third child. I had a different approach to this race as I now had to balance time with a family. I no longer was working full time, but instead teaching group fitness classes and working towards being a personal trainer. I still made it a priority to spend time with my family and one day that stands out to me is when I was on a ride by 6 am, clocked over 140km and then took my oldest child to the midway for the rest of the afternoon.

I followed a training plan from Triathlete Magazine: Essential Week-By-Week Training Guide. There are 10 levels of intensity for the Ironman and I picked level 4 because I thought it would give me a good balance of everything and not too many double days. Some days were hard and one standout is when a 3h trainer ride turned into 4h with stoppages to fetch snacks or stop fights. 

I had an amazing training cycle taking a huge chunk of time off all the events I raced that year and the full hour off my Ironman was the icing on the cake. 

It was also nice to have my family cheering on at both events and the energy is like nothing I have ever experienced at any other event  that I have done. 

So why now?

I am wanting to do this race one more time. I have always said that having a chronic illness doesn't define me, and although I don't have to prove that to anyone or myself, I want to check this box. A lot has changed since my last finish and I want to see if I can do it. 

My training will be similar to 2012 quality over quantity, and will be working around what we will be doing as a family. Training for a  late summer race is challenging, but I look forward to the long bike rides, early morning runs and hopefully some outdoor swimming. Follow along!