Our Perform instructor Jack recently completed an incredible challenge - in an Ironman. We caught up with Jack as he reflects on the experience.....

Jack, congratulations on your first Ironman! Talk us through what an Ironman entails...

Thank you so much, it's been a long time coming with all the delays of the pandemic, I actually booked it for my 30th birthday as a BIG goal to kick off a new decade.

An Ironman is a ultra distance triathlon that consists of a 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and a 42.2km run (marathon).

What made you want to complete an Ironman?

What motivated me to do it was firstly the challenge of putting myself outside of my comfort zone and really seeing what I am capable of.. But also to teach me discipline, resilience and dedication in a new form so that I can use the skills in other areas of my life.

Talk us through a couple of stand out moments...

The highlights were in a sense the whole day! I made a promise to myself that I would never go into a 'pain cave' and start hating the race. The training, sacrifice and hard work wasn't worth that feeling, so I made sure when I felt a bit low, I would stop and just remember how lucky I was to be competing but also what an honour it was to be in an Ironman race.

The best moment was driving in at the start, closely followed by the 45km of downhill at the end of the cycle.

Crossing the line was pretty special too!

There must have been some incredibly challenging moments to. How did you get through those?

I broke down 3 times in the race, once half way up the climb between 15km and 80km. It was due to the sheer size of what was to come but I pushed through it by reminding myself to break the race down into small chunks and just keep going.

At the end of the day, it will always come to and end, it's how you enjoy the process which depicts the length of the journey.

The other 2 moments were emotional tears of joy. Stepping off the bike was one and crossing the line was the other!

What advice would you give to anyone who is perhaps lacking motivation at the moment? 

Motivation is something that comes in Ebbs and flows. The most important thing is you need to enjoy your training.

For me, it's about finding the right environment, people, time of day and also what you do before the workout.

Food, sleep and water make all the difference and will ensure you can give 100% everytime.

When I am feeling demotivated, I listen to my body and take a day to do something for me. It's amazing how much more you want to get into training once that happens.

Were your Perform classes useful?

Perform is the perfect class for anyone looking to do an endurance based event. It tests your power in your legs, it pushes you on your CV system and ultimately gives you accurate data to improve on every time.

I would not have done my Ironman if it had not been for 2 years of perform 3 x a week!

 

 

 

 

Ben Davie
BEN DAVIE
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HEAD OF HIIT AND RUN