2024, it’s a wrap!
Needless to say I don’t do well with consistent ‘content’.
I created this blog to create some accountability and push myself to write more but I’ve found myself refusing to get started with a post ‘unless I have something to say’. Even though I know that all I have to do is open a blank page and start typing, then it starts flowing.
I also find that I am more inspired and likely to have an urge to share thoughts when I’m experiencing things for the first time and hence, naturally, in a more intense way. I really admire people I follow in social media that are able to go back to sharing messages and experiences over and over again (within reason) with the same tenacity and persistence. For me, sharing is a true reflection of my feelings, so if it’s something I’ve learnt 5 years ago and experiencing it again and again I hardly make a point in my mind, let alone writing about it. There has to be a spark… otherwise I mostly dismiss things thinking ‘what’s the big deal anyway?’ or ‘why would anyone be interested in this?’. Again, even though the promise to myself is to not write because someone would be interested, but because I want it, I still fall a bit short and can do better I think.
Anyhow here I am, celebrating 5 years in the sport and I thought to share some thoughts on that, coupled with a compressed update on the build to 70.3 Marathon (Greece) to end the season and the race itself, all-in-one!
Build to 70.3 Marathon
As I mentioned in my previous post, after the Ironman I dwelled quite a bit on what to do next until I signed up for 70.3 Marathon Greece embracing the challenge of increasing the intensity of my training. That’s one thing that is very pleasant with Ironman training, despite the long hours, the intensity is lower so it gets quite comfortable. It’s ‘easy’ to want to stay there but I don’t thin kit’s the right time or me to settle this way. So I branded this build ‘Embrace the Intensity’ and decided to be brave and give it a go!
This materialised quite well on the bike with some sessions I didn’t even think were possible in TT position before. This followed from some good efforts done in the Ironman build and was very happy to see some progress after a long period of plateau. I was quite excited for the bike leg of the race!
The swim didn’t seem to come together until the last few weeks but I kept at it trying to be brave and not be afraid to go hard. Towards the end it felt like ‘clicking’ which, again, was nice since it hadn’t really been the focus of the season and coupled with my shoulder injury which lasted for months, it was nice to be able to push again. I definitely enjoyed the extra energy to put on bike and run though and I am convinced it was the right choice.
The run (as ever) was a bit more bumpy, at least at the start which really affected the whole build as it was already compressed in time. As I’ve had no issues after the Ironman I thought I was all done with the issue on my shin. I took 2 weeks off completely and then brought it back slowly but unfortunately soon enough I felt it again, ever so slightly but enough to alarm me. I had to pull back on intensity before I was forced to and re-introduce some strength alongside the training. It turns out (I think) there was some de-conditioning with so little running in the weeks leading to the Ironman and the break after that didn’t allow me exactly to ‘jump’ into what I set to do. We went from there and steady but surely completed the training, just without any nice surprises. There was no one session where I felt I was flying or that the target race pace felt comfortable… so going into the race I had the most doubts about the run!
The race
I flew to Greece on the Wednesday and surely enough the talk of the week was the crazy wind that had hit the area around Athens. Only a week before we were concerned about the heat as the temperatures were still in the 30s! End f October is the time of year where the season can change any week I suppose. Needless to say, I was not excited for what was coming. Another battle with the elements, another copy swim and power through the bike against the wind… Testing both in the days coming up was key and in the end you just accept it and get ready to fight with all you have…
Other than that, I was in good headspace and all had gone to plan. Stress was low and even my cycle was aligned for once.
Starting the day with cheering a friend doing his first triathlon (the short course 4:18:4) was refreshing and helped the nerves before getting in the water.
I knew what to expect with the chop, and was prepared to fight it in all four directions as we turned around the buoys. We all had significantly slower times which was off putting as I glanced my watch on the exit.
Transition was long and let uncarpeted last-minute due to the strong winds, apparently. Having anticipated it somewhat, and based on previous experiences with long transitions when the balls of my feet would ache for days, I brought an old pair of shoes and left them at the swim exit (after asking if I was allowed to), which proved a smart move and allowed me to run a bit faster that section.
I jumped on the bike and warmed into my race power which felt pleasant so got my head down and started working with the wind. All was good and speedy until half- way; when picking up a bottle that was left closed threw me out of balance, I tried to open it with my mouth which delayed the whole process of refilling my front bottle and I ran out of space as I approached the end of the littering zone before I was done refilling. I had to stop briefly so I could then throw the bottle in the designated area.
For some reason, right after this point everything fell out of balance. Very soon after that pit stop I felt a cramp on my left quad (familiar one for me) that surprised and scared me so I pulled back a little. I tried to stay calm and work my way back up to race power only to end up in actual pain all over the back of my legs. By the time I turned around against the wind for the final 25km, I was in a dark place. I tried everything; ignore the sensation and push through, go softer, everything. The pain wouldn’t go away. Had I overdone it? I literally had to drop to a spin and fight my demons as I crawled to transition almost with tears in my eyes. It had been the lowest of lows I’ve ever experienced in a race and was only dreading what was expecting me on the run… all a bit too early!
Coming off the bike was first a relief as I was suffering, but at the same time I could barely move, let alone bend down to put on shoes and start running. I felt sorry for myself, thinking, what was even the point. To top it, I realised I was missing two gels; how could that be? The only thing I could think of is my morning brain picking the pre-swim ones for my running bundle… I am religious about these things, how could I have been so stupid? Anyhow I started putting one foot in front of the other and headed straight into the worst section of the run, against the wind by the lake. I saw Ale right outside the transition area and said one thing: ‘my legs are f*cked’.
As I was dragging myself through the first kilometres, I got busy doing the math to resolve the gel situation. I knew I could do with 60g per hour instead of 80g so I could space the ones I had out a bit longer and only take one from the aid stations which I would take at the end to avoid it affecting my stomach as I had never tried it.
As I turned around the end of the lake and with the wind on my back now, I gave myself a pep talk, just trying to open my mind to the possibility of this not being the end. I remembered Alex Yee in the Olympics, saying that someone (was it Alistair Brownlee?) shouted to him ‘Anything is possible mate’ right before he found the strength to sprint to the Olympic gold win. So I told myself the same… I remember it was very hard to believe it; but somehow, during that process and while going over a mini hill over a little bridge by the lake and taking the downhill, I started running, real running. Soon enough my watch beeped the third kilometre and I was in my race pace. I was feeling good. How was that even possible I didn’t know, I just told myself to hold steady.
I started enjoying the run and kept focused on fuelling and cooling myself. Ale was on a bike meeting me in different points along the course giving me splits. From first AG on the bike out I had dropped to third. But the second was not out of reach and I was running faster. ‘There’s nothing I can do’ I told him as I always do, splits don’t mean much when you’re at your limit… but they do provide some focus. All I had to do was keep the same pace and I could get second.
The run was beautiful. Flat as a pancake, going through the National Park of Schinias lined with pines all along, until it dropped by the sea to a section I had never been before. AS the kilometres ticked by I was getting excited and really enjoying it. A pace I had struggled to keep for 3x10 minute sessions during training was now comfortable. I believed I could keep this for 30 kilometres, let alone 21. Elongating the course in mind I find works wonders sometimes as typically the brain will tend to adjust the effort to the length it knows it has to tun… but we always have more.
I started planning my ramp up to the finish, I knew I could pick up the pace, I just didn’t want to risk it so I decided I would do it for the last 2K. At this point I had basically secured 2nd place (a minute ahead) and could not believe that this race was going to end with a smile. I was so happy to have turned around from a lowest of lows to one of the best runs I’ve ever had!
I soon enough heard my name and crossed the line happy with the outcome and the result, not so much with the time which I honestly thought would have secured better given is being the flattest 70.3 I had ever done (both bike and run for the first time), only to get a PB by about 50 seconds… I’m not being ungrateful, especially given the dip I had, but I just couldn’t’ work out the math… I think that the slow swim together with the long transition and the sub-optimal performance on the bike had somewhat thrown it all out.
Anyhow, it didn’t matter all that much, the overall result was ‘mixed feelings’.
I enjoyed post-race celebrations with family and teammates, closing the season with feelings of gratitude on how far I had come but also the support I have had from family and coach. I had one goal starting that year and it was to gain confidence. And that was certainly achieved.
Santorini
We flew to Santorini and enjoyed a nice holiday there. It was my third time on the island but naturally it all felt very different after almost 18 years! I went back to my love for photography and what a place to do it!
Despite the soreness of the first few days, I was so craving a trail run along the caldera so much… This happens to me pretty much everywhere I travel, let alone in this gorgeous place; it’s like once you’ve run somewhere, you’ve conquered it.
I focused on recovery and soon enough the legs were ready to get going so I managed to make it happen a week after the race. Despite the temptation, I tried to keep it reasonable and not go too long for a first run back. It was a good test after racing too, nothing seemed to hurt which was a relief. I can say this is one of the most beautiful runs I’ve ever done or will ever do. It was very hilly, with challenging terrain, mostly rocky and I didn’t even have trail shoes with me. But nothing could top these views!
It was a great way to end a successful season, moving further and further away from a traumatic 2023, with the main goal of re-building confidence which was certainly achieved. And I can only thank my amazing coach for that; I can’t believe it’s already been a year or partnership now, and how far we’ve come!
5
…and ‘just like that’ it’s been 5 years in this crazy triathlon life. That’s half a decade and I don’t know if there has been anything outside my teenage years that I’ve consistently dedicated myself to for that long. Sometimes I ponder on how I ended up here in the first place… me, who for a big part of my adult life did not own a pair of trainers! Who hated running and swimming, who would make fun of my brother for keeping bikes inside the house, spoiling the decor! But it’s all a journey that certainly doesn’t happen overnight. More of a chain of things that lead to something, with the main driver being curiosity, coupled with a good amount of stubborn determination…
It is definitely good to have all this experience now, as the stress of many processes is so much less. The perspective of time also helps a lot. It’s basically the same principle as the time perspective you get while growing up; your first years feel quite long because in fact they are long compared to all you’ve lived, and then they keep going faster and faster as each year is a smaller percentage of your life up to that point... so your first race or first season is all you know and it’s like the end of the world if something goes wrong, but if you’ve been through this cycle a few times you just know it will all pass and good times will come and it’s all cyclical. And you tend to stress a bit less… not that things matter less but at least you have that perspective.
And so then it becomes more and more important to stay mindful and enjoy the process and be grateful of the simple joys of being able to go out for a run, or build to a race and go and do it! Even if the intensity of the experience may be a lot more subtle, but it doesn’t mean it has less to offer. It is just more down to you to perceive it and receive it. At least that’s how I feel!
I can’t wait for what’s ahead and already have in mind some curiosities to follow… stay tuned!