In 2012 I answered these common questions to give you some context about my athletic background and mental state heading into my first Ironman triathlon.
Now, about four years later, I thought it’d be fun to answer the same questions as I gear up for my sophomore Ironman effort.
Sideline Reporter: You just finished your masters and spent the last two years killing yourself in business school – what’ll you do now?
Me: I dunno, work out?
[Airhorn]
[Confetti falls amidst laser light show, fireworks and white people dabbing]
In 2016 I aimed to get back into endurance sports – hard – and committed to complete my first ultramarathon in December of that year.
I laid out my Ultimate Ultra Plan and felt good to go for 50 miles. Then, after a routine 20-mile training trail run, my left foot developed a disturbing bruise on the inside arch.
With my history of Posterior Tibial Tendonitis (PTT), I decided to act like a grown-up and avoid escalating a mild bruise into another major injury.
I backed out of the 50-miler and prioritized starting 2017 as healthy as possible to gear up for the next big race:
Three years ago – almost to the day – I crossed a huge goal off The List and completed my first Ironman triathlon: Ironman Arizona 2013 in 13 hours and 30 minutes.
After the race, still high from one of the best experiences of my life, I wrote:
As much as I’m tempted to keep basking in my Ironman glory, I need to keep moving if I want to make this experience truly last…I can’t wait to build on this momentum and launch into new projects and races on the horizon.
Since then, projects ended up taking priority over races, and I spent most of my free time and energy outside of work in business school pursuing my MBA.
Now that I’ve graduated, I’ve shifted gears back to endurance racing and set my set my sights on tackling my first ultramarathon: the McDowell Mountain Frenzy 50-miler, on Dec. 3.
That’s two weeks away.
My Foot Fight began in 2012 when I suffered my first running injury. I was on a six-mile pseudo barefoot run in Vibram FiveFingers, at night, on a dirt path, when my left foot slammed on a rock. It shook me up, but I pressed on – like an idiot – and finished my run.
A few weeks later I completed the Lavaman Olympic Triathlon and then finally faced the music: a stress fracture of the second metatarsal.
Since then – despite the upsetting prognosis, and later a collapsed arch and Achilles tendon issues – I’ve kept the faith in minimalist running, committed to getting back to barefoot and trudged along the slow road to recovery.
Even though I’ve made a ton of progress, I’m still dealing with foot issues from those injuries – four years later. Namely: posterior tibial tendon (PTT) dysfunction.
As I mentioned in my anti-“new year, new you” post, I’m planning to ramp up my running in 2016. I’ll be focusing on improving my time and strength in the half marathon distance while running 12 half marathons in 12 months.
A lot can happen over 12 months: Changes in diet, new training approaches, and (in Colorado) the impact of varying seasons. So, I’ll plan to share with you a race report for each new race I run, filled with the training approach I took, goals going into the race, most memorable parts of race day, results, and key learnings that I’ll use moving forward.
First up: Polar Prowl Half Marathon – Lakewood, CO – January 9, 2016
