Often when I am in need of some
motivation to get me training I will turn to some publications of a genre that
is quickly overpowering the school driven pharmacy collection. These are the
books that I read in my down time and draw inspiration from the stories they
tell. Some are fact, like Macca’s I’m
Here to Win, and the latest Iron War,
the true story about two great triathletes that battled it out on the lava
fields of Kona. Other books are less factual and more entertaining, Once a Runner and the sequel, Again to Carthage, is an excellent read
that I would recommend to any athlete, or avid reader for that matter.
However my latest spark of
motivation came from an article in the January edition of Outside Magazine. In
an article titled “Heavy Mettle” the author, Elizabeth Weil, dives into the
lives of some of the most prolific Ironman athletes that competed at the 2011
Ironman World Championships. In her first paragraph she introduces the topic
talking about the event, the typical ‘hard bodies’ you would find there, and
why some athletes choose to compete in such a demanding event. And, to me, this
is where she hit the nail on the head…
“Because marathons have been ruined by people who think it’s fine to
walk. Because life is too easy and Everest is too far away”
This is what it’s all about, triathletes
are people who are willing to push their body to the limit and see how far it
can really go. Hopefully you can take away form this what I did and push
yourself during your next training session, maybe you haven’t even begun to
push your limits yet, lets see.
