2007 June - The Nice Iron Man

2007 June - The Nice Iron Man

I started running marathons in 2001 at the age of 29.  My first triathlon was in 2002 and I loved it.  I was even more delighted when I started to finish in the top 10 girls in the triathlons.  I am rather competitive. At the beginning of each race I would tell myself that I was just doing it for fun and my own personal achievement, but as soon as the starting gun goes the adrenalin burst kicks in and my competitive streak starts.

I have done countless triathlons, 9 marathons and swum goodness how many 1 mile swimming races.  Piece of cake.  So when friends started to tell me about the Iron Man race, the excitement of the challenge gave me the guts to sign up.

The crazy thing was, instead of starting gradually and signing up for a Half Iron Man race first, I went straight for the kill and signed up for the Nice Iron Man 2007.  I did not realise at the time that Nice Iron Man is one of the hilliest and therefore hardest of them all.

August 2006 – my entry was accepted.  The race date was June 2007 so I thought I had plenty of time to prepare.  Little did I realise the true extent of the training required.  I was already swimming on a regular basis for the Stock Exchange Swimming Championships, cycling or running 9 miles to work and back and training specifically for the Chicago Marathon in October 06.

I really had no idea how extreme the Iron Man race actually is, but how could you until you unless you have actually done it.  5km swim, 180km cycle and then 42km run (marathon equivalent).  I had swum 3 km before, I had cycled 100km and I had run many marathons.  But suddenly all three had to be extended and completed on the same day. 

Post Christmas 2006 the training diary had to be drafted.  It was only when I started to count down the number of weekends left before the race that it got rather scary, and it didn’t help that  I could not take any time off work during the week to train.

I did look a daily training regime for 6 months that a friend had used and also ones recommended on the web.  In the end I followed my own initiative.  As long as every other weekend I was cycling over 50 miles and or running 20 miles with a swim included I was happy.  It helped having friends living outside of London, so suddenly I found myself cycling to Oxford and Goudhurst to see friends and family.  The crucial aspect of the training was to learn to combine the swimming, cycling and running.  I was not too worried about transferring from swimming to cycling because I had been swimming a mile in the Tooting Bec Lido for years and then cycling 9 miles to work.  But I had very rarely cycled and the run apart from in Triathlon races.

My 2 main training days were scheduled for February and April.  Plan one, to cycle down to Brighton (57 miles) and then do the Brighton Half Marathon.  Very happy to finish the half marathon in 1hr40mins.  The next and major training day was the London Marathon.  One regular Iron Man competitor had warned me not to even take part in the London Marathon because it was too close to the Nice Iron Man.  But I thought that was daft.  Instead I found my local pool opened at 7am so I swam a mile in the pool and then cycled to Greenwich and then did the marathon.  Cycling to Greenwich felt rather eery, cycling down the marathon route back to front, but with the roads totally free of traffic and police giving me directions to the start.

My one big error that I was quick to learn from.  I did not eat enough.  It is difficult to comprehend eating a minimum of 200 calories an hour, but that is what is recommended when doing an Iron Man.  I am never very hungry early in the morning, so have never eaten before exercising in the morning, and then tucked into a large bowl of porridge after exercising.  I therefore only had a glass of orange juice before I went swimming.  I had packed plenty of lucazade gels and energy bars which I intended to eat after the swim and before cycling to Greenwich, but for some reason I was still not hungry after the swim.  By the time I arrived at Greenwich my nerves were buzzing and the thought of food had totally disappeared.  I therefore started the race having only eaten one energy bar, but having already swum a mile and cycled 8 miles. 

By the 8^th mile of the marathon I was already feeling tired.  As soon as I saw my pace decreasing and my finishing time getting nearer the 4 hour mark I just relaxed and started stopping and concentrating on drinking energy drinks and eating energy bars.  I crossed the line at 4hours02mins,  over half an hour longer than my usual time of 3hrs 22mins.  Looking back I must still have run at relatively the same pace as usual because the extra 30 mins was taken up going to London Ambulance for plasters for my blisters, stopping 3 times to walk and drink, and stopping to go to the toilet – something I have never had to do before during a marathon.  And yes, I did use a public toilet rather than do a “Paula Radcliffe” on the street!

Lesson learn – you must ensure you have eaten enough  and always keep your fluid intake up, although you can drinks too much.  Trust your initiative.

May – count down.  Principle training routine now was to keep up my strength and keep swimming and cycling. 

June – the final weeks.  I was starting to feel tired and I could only put it down to the extensive training I had been doing for the last 5 months.  My period was late but I put it down to the over training.   In 2002 when I was running around 50 miles a week my period stopped and it was only 1 and a half years later that it started again.  I was told that this can often occur to female athletes, and I certainly enjoyed the break.

The final day – My parents and I flew out to Nice on Thursday as registration was taking place on Friday and Saturday.  The race started at 6am on Sunday morning.  Seeing and listening to the other participants at the opening evening on Friday night made me even more nervous.  The Iron Man races are not called “Man” for no reason.  90% of the race were men, and men who looked like they were frequent Iron Man participants, and very competitive as well.  My appetite completely went again and I was feeling sick. 

I remember telling my Mum that I had not had my period for 6 weeks and I was feeling sick, but put it down to training and nerves.  I would never have imagined I could be 6 weeks pregnant.  Our daughter, Holly is now 4 years old and I can't wait to read her this story.