Author: Cecily

I pride myself on being a pretty positive person. I make a point to see the good in people, the silver lining, the excitement rather than the fear. I’m also a real person…and a girl. I’m emotional and passionate. A dangerous combination. On most days, I wake up excited and with a plan to live. Maybe that sounds like an exaggeration, but if you know me, you know that as much as I love spontaneity, I also thrive on making some sort of game plan. So, what happens on those days when I wake up feeling like this?

Well, I’m still trying to figure that out.

If you talk to anyone who has completed an Ironman, they’ll tell you three things:

1. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done.
2. It’s addicting.
3. It will take over your life.

Since I have yet to complete my first Ironman, I’ll refrain from speaking to the first two statements. All I will say is that simply committing to train for an Ironman is by far one of the best things I’ve ever done, and I can only imagine how I will feel once I cross that finish line. I can, however, speak to the third point. Training for an Ironman will take over your life.

For the past seven weeks, I’ve been eating, sleeping and breathing my training plan. I consult my training schedule and goals when deciding whether or not to go out drinking with friends, go on a trip, eat that candy bar, or stay up an extra couple of hours to watch The Bachelor. I get down when a training session doesn’t go well and I obsess about how I can make things better.

Basically, I’m dating the Ironman – and he is the neediest boyfriend I’ve ever had.

I apologize in advance for the randomness and fragmented nature of this post, but since registering for Ironman AZ back in November, that is exactly what has been happening in my mind. All day, every day, a continuation of fragmented thoughts ranging from “OMG I’m so PUMPED. Cecily Fuller YOU ARE (ALMOST) AN IRONMAN!” to “OMG I want to cry, where do I go next?”

The thought of Ironman is always there. That M-Dot symbol is there when you wake up in the morning; you chase it during each training session; it’s the seasoning on your breakfast, lunch and dinner; and it’s that bitter flavor you taste with each sip of an IPA. Friends of mine who have completed an Ironman of their own warned me that once you take the plunge and officially register, it’s all you will think about for the following year. The reality of this hits me as I sit here with a pile of anatomy flashcards to study and it’s all I can do not to break into the stack of Ironman/tri training books I just borrowed from a friend. The inner turmoil continues. So, instead, I will do neither and I will sit here and pour my feelings into my Ironman blog. I call this a happy medium.