I signed up for Ironman 70.3 race

Almost two kilometres of swimming, 90 kilometres on the bike, and 21 kilometres of running, this was what it takes to finish an Ironman 70.3 race.

Adidas runners Bangalore group run at Cubbon Park in Bangalore, India. I'm in the middle with a blue t-shirt next to the person in the red t-shirt(our coach).

Until 2021, I used to occasionally go for a run, but starting in 2021, I began to engage in consistent weekly training and ran my half marathon in December'21.

Since I started running, I was always looking for a new challenge and wanted to push my body to the limit. So I thought about trying biking. I used to ride a bike all my life for commuting but never rode a bike more than 15-20 kilometres.
so one weekend I borrowed a road bike and went for a ride. I was aiming to ride 50 kilometres to see how it feels to ride bike for long distance. I kept riding and thinking that I will turn back after 25 kilometres but I was enjoying the ride so much that I reached Bangalore Airport that is almost 50 kilometres and I was still enjoying it. I turned back and rode back to my home. This was the first time I rode a bike for 100 kilometres. I was tired but I was happy that I was able to do it.

I used to watch running videos on YouTube on this channel called Global Triathlon Network(GTN), that's where I first heard about Triathlons. There was something about the sport that was very intriguing to me. I was always fascinated by the idea of pushing my body to the limit and see how far I can go.
There was a new video on GTN about preparing for an half Ironman. I was fascinated by the idea of doing a triathlon and started researching about it.

So what is a Ironman? It's a triathlon that consists of 1.9 km of swimming, 90 km of cycling and 21.1 km of running, and it has to be completed in 8 hours. Ironman is the gold standard of triathlons and it's the most difficult triathlon. But more I read about it, more I was fascinated by it.
The only Ironman even I found in India about was Ironman 70.3 Goa that was scheduled in October 2022. It was all set in my mind that I will do it.

But the challenge was that I have been barely able to swim 10 metres, never rode a road bike and only practicing running for few months. I remember my 100km biking experience and I was confident that I can do it.

My biggest challenge was swimming. I have never swam in my life and I was scared of water. I was not sure if I will be able to swim 1.9 kilometres in open water. I went to a swimming pool and consulted a coach. He told me that I will be able to swim 1.9 kilometres in 6 months if I practice regularly. I was not sure if I will be able to do it but I was ready to give it a try.

I started training for swimming, and within a month I was able to swim 50m without stopping. It game me confidence that I will be able to do it.

Finally, I made my mind and signed up for Ironman 70.3 Goa in April 2022. I had six months to train for it. I was excited and nervous at the same time. I was excited because I was going to do something that I have never done before and nervous because I was not sure if I will be able to do it.

I started training for swimming, biking and running. I was training 6 days a week and I was enjoying it. I was enjoying the process of training and pushing my body to the limit.

I will be sharing my training experience in the next post.