A bit about my journey to health, fitness and a 70.3 triathlon
Back in 2011 I had my second child. Both my pregnancies resulted in gestational diabetes and weight gain. I felt terrible, sluggish, my clothes didn’t fit, and I just wasn’t at my best. I had been diagnosed as insulin resistant, and now had pre-diabetes, which is the step right before type 2 diabetes.
My GP at the time had an interest in running and he suggested I learn to give it a go. He thought it would help not only my physical health, but the fact that I was feeling really down also. I had also been doing a lot of research into nutrition and focussing on whole foods and nutrient timing as much as possible. I saw great results with my weight, and decided at that point that I wanted to embark on my journey to becoming a nutritionist. I also took my GP’s advice and started learning to run with the Couch25K app - it got me started, but I didn’t really stick with it as a few months into my running journey I broke my ankle.
After a long recovery, fast forward to 2015 and I thought I’d give running another go. A friend at the time actually suggested I give triathlon a go with the goal to one day complete a half Ironman - the thought really scared me as I had no idea how to swim and had never learnt as a child. I also had never ridden a bike on the road. I enlisted the help of a triathlon coach and after a couple of months I was running 10km and riding regularly on the road. The swimming hadn’t quite clicked, and that was yet to come. At this point nutrition-wise my pre-diabetes had been reversed and my blood sugar and insulin levels were looking great.
After a year of struggling and fear, I could swim 1500m in the pool - though with breaks and quite often with fins. Fast forward again to the end of 2016 and I was consistently riding about 50km on the road and running half marathons. I was fit and happy, though I still struggled with a fear of open water swimming.
In 2017 I gave triathlon a break and focussed on running and cycling. I completed many more half marathons, and a multitude of 10km races and also was riding up to 80km in my long rides.
Once 2018 rolled around I decided to give triathlon another go. I really put so much effort into my swimming with my longest open water swim of 3km! I was so proud of myself - going from not being able to put my face in the water due to a childhood trauma - to swimming 3km! My running and riding was consistent, nutrition on point and I was feeling great. So I decided I was going to do my first 70.3 in 2019.
Training went as well as it could and I was nothing but consistent. I was not fast, but I got the triathlon completed. I also then went on to complete an olympic distance the following month. I have since completed other endurance events and marathons.
Fast forward to today and I am helping clients with their own endurance and or health journeys through their food and lifestyle. The lesson of this story is that consistency is key. Whether it be in training or nutrition - consistency, a good thorough nutrition plan, and of course a bit of faith in yourself will get you to your goals. If you have a goal and you’re not quite sure how to get there, drop me a message - I’d love to chat.