A WILL OF IRON
ONE IMPOSSIBLE CHALLENGE.SIX MONTHS TO TRAIN.GO
WHY WOULD ANYONE choose to do an Ironman? Sparing you some choice expletives, it’s what I’m asking myself 24 hours before embarking on my first.
It’s 7am and I’m lying on a hotel bed in Copenhagen staring despondently at a Specialized Tarmac SL7. My mind is all over the place and my body feels tired just looking at the piece of carbon fibre right in front of me. I’ve been resting religiously since tapering my training but still feel niggles, and I can’t quash the barrage of ‘what ifs’ that have been hammering my subconscious. They range from the plausible – – to the out-of-my-control – – with some overthinking – W I wasn’t this nervous when my first child was born. I close my eyes and repeat what Ironman’s global director of training and coaching (and my saviour), Earl Walton, said to me yesterday. “You’ve done all the training. You’ve got this! Nerves are good, so embrace any nervous energy and make
