Your opinion matters less than the story...

 Today I was running. 

It is Sunday, my long run. 

The run that builds endurance. 

It builds stamina and everything I need to complete my marathon. 

I am not a fan of these runs, they are never less than an hour and a half at this stage, and any demons you have to wrestle show up right on time for a chat. 


This week while hitting that hour mark, I thought back to the book I wrote when I was 24 and became extremely disheartened. It covered my first-ever adventures across South Africa on my bicycle. 

My stories from the first trip were heavy, riddled with opinions, telling the reader what I was thinking and almost attempting to influence them how to think about me and my adventure. 

I cringe reading a lot of it. 

My second trip is funny, it is light, but streaks of depth and sadness sprinkle the pages occasionally. It was written more as a blog and thrown together. 

I like it more. 

 The second trip was with a friend. We rode for ten days and shared the best memories. I wonder how it could read so differently. 

It dawned on me this morning. 

I tried to tell the reader what happened daily instead of telling them what I was thinking. 

I was having so much fun, I didn't have time to over ponder everything.

Instead of lessons, I gave them events. 

Instead of an insight into my mind, I allowed them to draw their own conclusions. 

I gave the reader enough to imagine, they were on the bicycle with us. 

The reader could imagine, create and think whatever they wanted to. 

The best lessons are the "ah ha" moments we realise for ourselves, not the commandments of what life is and should be. 

Create it for yourself. 

You first Ironman? Why you should consider these 5 things.

 The sun hasn't risen yet. It's dark, looking down, there is a sea of bare feet. Some bounce up and down, some wiggle their toes and others are still. Everything seems like it is in slow motion when your senses are hightened.I look up as we shuffle towards the red banner overhead. To my right arms swing on the choppy ocean as they disappear into the darkness. We turn the corner and face the ocean, the barrier is now above me "Ironman Cork.' A Marshall holds his arms in front of me like a gate holding back a row of racehorses. "I must hold back, keep it slow.." I tell myself. 3...2...1...
I sprint towards the ocean, the sun is now creeping over the horizon, it's both the cold water and the beauty of what's in front of me that takes my breath away. 

29 Mins out of the swim

Mentally and physically It hadn't been a great year for me so far. As a personal trainer actively in the fitness industry I was preaching one thing, but doing the complete opposite. My health had deteriorated, I wasn't sleeping and I hardly had any time with my wife. I was burning the candle at both ends. My voice was lost, I felt I was losing everything that made me unique. 

Changing jobs was like a breath of fresh air, but not at first. It was scary taking the leap, people will always make you second guess your decisions but luckily I had supportive people around me, always encouraging me, reminding me of what was important. Having more time to train again, I needed to calibrate the compass, set a goal, and do something for myself. Ironman 70.3 naturally appeared in my social media feed. 

I had wanted to do it for years. I had friends who had done as many as 5 and had even coached many of my clients to successfully complete their own bucket list race. I signed up, paid and committed to the Youghal Ironman 70.3 Ireland 2022.

The training plan, to construct was simple, I had drawn up so many, it was a matter of adjusting my pacing strategies and copying it to my training calendar. Executing on the other hand, I quickly discovered was near impossible to stick to. This stressed me out to no end. As a perfectionist in my training, I soon had to let go and was only getting down to around 75% of my total plan. After an amazing family holiday and a not-so-amazing covid experience, that dropped down to 55 - 60%. My goal of a sub 6 hour seemed to be slipping out the window. 

So you planning on doing your first Half Ironman, here are some tips I would give you

Tip 1: Plan for disruption in your training plan. 

Work in the hours when you can, and be smart. There are 3 disciplines. You should know which is your weakest. If it is the bike, make sure you don't miss to many biking sessions, if it is the run, don't miss your runs. This gives you the flexibility to do the minimum work required to set you up for success. 

90km bike: 3 hours 

Tip 2: Running is the highest impact discipline...manage your volume. (If you dont know what that means, get a coach!)

Its easy to panic! "I have nnt done enough running, I need to increase my runs!" The total amount of work done in a week when it comes to running cannot be sighnificantly increased the next week without some risks. This is why making sure you have a coach to manage your loads and to adjust your training is key. I have seen so many atheltes injure themself in the followin way: hitting 2/3 runs in a week, saying to themselves next week they need to hit 3/3 and not realising that a 10km increase could be to much for the body to handle. Knees, ankles, tendons, ligaments and muscles take time to adjust to work loads. If you are a heavier athlete you increase this risk significantly more, dont be silly with your running load. 

Tip 3: If you can't swim, add a year to your plan. 

Swimming takes alot of time to learn before you can even consider getting fit! If you are planning an Ironman, add 365 days onto your plan to give yourself time to master the swim! Set a goal of doing small open water swim events that are supported by your local club. Confidence in the open water is different to being able to complete the distance in the pool. 

Tip 4: Your wetsuit is your secret weapon and the salt water is your best friend. 

Train as much as you can in the pool without training aids. If you have the confidence in the open water, trust yourself. Train as little as you can in the wetsuit and the ocean and I promise you, you will be pleasantly suprised how easy the swim will be. Having said that, you must be comfortable in choppy conditions to harness this effect fully. 

Tip 5: Under no circumstance neglect the brick run after your bike training. 

How do I know this? Well because I did the exact opposite. I did no brick sessions as I simply didnt have the time and the run absolutely destroyed me. The 21km run was my slowest half marathon by over 20 mins! Even if it is a 2km run after yoir bike sessions, 8 weeks out, try do this atleast once a week! 

The event is special. It is a day that thousands of reasons stremline into 1 goal for so many people. For somebody it is for a sick relative, for another a charity close to their heart and for another its something to prove to themselves. Standing at the start line you are bound to the course, it is a great feeling. 

Enjoy the ocean because when it's hot you are going to do anything to be bakc in the water. Enjoy the bike because on the run you would do anything to free wheel down a hill and rst your tired legs. Enjoy the run because in a months time you would do anything to have that feeling in your legs again. The opportunity to feel what you are going through on race day is a damn priveledge that the majority of the population will never feel, enjoy it!

Is Ironman worth it?

Can you imagine crossing that line? I think becoming an Ironman is an incredible feeling! Im hoping, or toiling with the idea to give it a go some day. 31 Years old now, Time isn't slowing down, it may be time to start putting a plan in place. 

Since moving to Ireland for my wife and I, it has been go, go, go from May 2021. The biggest challenges where sorting out the things we hadn't really thought about. Electricity bills, car insurance, road tax the list goes now. Having figured those things out and getting a general feeling of what salaries need to be made to keep food in the belly, we now feel as if the dust has settled. 

I quit my job in April 2022 to search for something new within SaaS, if you have no idea what that is, dont worry that was me 6 months ago. All the software you use to make life easier, better, more productive or just more fun has a team behind it. From Sales, to customer success and designing, these companies do some incredible things. 

After reaching out to some friends in this industry I decided to brush up on my CV and start applying. A 9 - 5 as opposed to a 6 - 10am and then 16:30 - 20:30 and sometimes 21:00 started to appeal a little bit more for the sake of many things. Besides not seeing your wife besides one day on Sunday is surely not how a life is meant to be lived. He work hours are 8:30 - 17:30 so it just made sense to be off at the same time. 

So that 9 -5 life starts on Monday with a really cool company! i won't say to much and will update you guys as it goes. Lets just say I'm looking forward to it. 

How is this all relevant. Well now, its time to look into some events. 70.3 Seems like the natural first step. 1/9km swim, 90km bike and a 21km run. I have done all of these in isolation. The goal would now be to throw them all together in a single event. 

So perhaps I should start getting my butt in gear and get this show on the road. Perhaps Ironman 70.3 will be a great goal!

Book Review: 21 Lessons for the 21st Century

 Life is going to leave us behind if we keep thinking the way we do, acting the way we have and living like we did even a decade ago... 

Don't like it? Well neither did I until I started reading: 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari. At 30 Years old, and as Yuval explains, we start to become more stuck in our ways. We begin to form permanent ways of thinking and ideas about the world. I have always said, as I get older, its seems more difficult to grasp some of the adventures I tackled in the past. I can feel that happening in my life. 

If this is in anyway you, give this a read, we need to start exploring how to live as the future presents itself at our front door. 

An incredible book by Yuval Noah Harari, best book I have read in a about two years. 

Click HERE to see what other books I have read this hear. 

Yuval presents some of the oldest arguments to humankind. What will ware be about and how can be position ourselves to see objectively. Terrorism may take the form of technology in a way we have never seen! How do we recognize fake news? 

We have the opportunity to slow down and think about what the future holds. The jobs that existed 10 years ago do not exist today and the jobs that are going to exist in 10 years time haven't even been thought of. This book presents some crucial strategies to thinking about how we can position ourselves to succeed when these daunting challenges come. 

Instead of being frozen by fear, stuck in thinking and acting the ways we always have, we can take steps to recognize how we need to adapt. 

"You think you already know who you are. But once you realize "Hi, these thoughts aren't me. They are just some biochemical vibrations! Then you realize you have no idea - who - or - what - you are. This can be the start of the most exciting journey of discovery any human can undertake." Yuval Noah Harari 

Give this book a read! check this video if you are not convinced: "Why Data is so important" 

Why you will probably fail this year, again...

Theres 100 smarties in a jar, 92 will kill you, 8 won't, would you take one? If you dont any your chances in this scenario, why would you, when it comes to New Years Resolutions. 

8% of all New Years Resolutions come through, succeed and are seen to the end. What makes you feel yours will succeed? The chances are they wont, again, and let me tell you why. 

Your habits have been created over years if not decades. The things we do are so ingrained in who we are and by focusing on more than one thing to change at a time, its extremely difficult to get it right. Not because of your weak will power but because you still need to look after the kids, cook food, go to work, deal with all sorts of other issues and on top of that, you want to change your life. New you. In stressful environments we revert back to what we know. 

So, what do we do: 

1) Set 1 goal for this year: Set a goal that will change a habit forever, rather than setting extrinsic goals that often are left out of your control at a certain stage. For example, I want to loose 5kgs this year, rather say. "Instead of eating until I am full, I want to eat until I am 80% full for the entire year." What I like about this is that it is easy to see when you have failed at this, and getting back on track the next meal is easy. But the game of 5kgs is so up and down every single minute of every day. More so it can lead to completely disordered eating habits. 

2) Change the environment: If you are going to try drink coffees in a bar, you are setting yourself up for failure. If you are going to "not drink" with a fridge full of beers for guests, you are setting yourself up for failure. Triggered moments lead to a habitual way of reacting to things. for example, I get stressed out, I walk to the fridge, I grab a cupcake, I eat it, before I know what I have really done its to late. Whats the problem? The freaking cupcake in the fridge, if there was none there and you need to drive to the shop, its an opportunity to think about the decision. Set your environment up for failure. 

3) Get support around you: Your partner needs to know where you stand. Peer pressure is the major killer of resolutions, nobody wants to go down alone. If you can successfully overeat on foods that are making you feel terrible and leading to weight gain, along on the coach every night while your partner is eating an apple looking great with full energy each day, chances are you may change some habits. The problem comes in, when a partner can seemingly eat whatever they want and not gain weight. The other partner then also justifies why they can eat whatever they want to. In the end we need to take responsibility for our actions and sharing wit our partner what our "habit" changes are for the year. They are more than welcome to indulge in what they want, its their journey, but to "offer you" to join them is not okay, they need to know they are disrespecting you. Would a wife offer her alcoholic husband a beer after 3 years of not drinking? We should see everything like this. " The more support you have around you, the easier it will be. 

Good luck, write down 1 goal that is a non negotiable for this year! And stick to that. Because 92% of your resolutions will fail! You are not immune to statistics that have been looked at for years, so be clever about your planning! 

Raise others up

Reached out to somebody the other day when it came to training to offer some assistance. They are a pretty good athlete and a leader in the fitness industry. I admit, the assistance wasn't asked for at all, was really just putting in some input. The person was so incredibly rude justifying how great and how right they were when it came to their training.

Sat there and was quite upset at first because why intention was to help, then realized:

1) I was wrong for trying to help, it wasn't asked for. Not everybody wants input sometimes people just need their ego stroked

2) Not everyone has a teachable attitude when it comes to things and when we reach out to help we should be aware of that

3) Those that dont want help, usually dont help and assist those around them either, that I found to be very sad

If you are a leader when it comes to anything, business, training, life anything, you are being looked at from people hungry to "be like you" instead of seeing that as an attack on your ego, realize that them getting better, is not taking away from the many things you have in your life. Nobody cares about your spiritual hash tags and holy you are, they care for your ability to "be" something you say you are, not "pretend to be" something you say you are.

The Power of Enduring in our lives: Sabie Bicycle Experience

 In a culture set up for for rewarding results over effort, lets be the people to make the change. 

A quick example. A student studies 4 months, day and night for his matric final maths exam, he takes extra lessons, misses some parties and just digs into the work. He has struggled the whole of high school, scraping through with 45 - 50%. Student B is coasting through the work, usually a straight A 90% student. 

Exam day comes and goes, both wait anxiously for the results. Student A lands a 58% passes and is able to now attend a course he wanted to take after school. Student B 83%, passed with flying colors, A! 7 Percent left than he usually gets, with little to no effort. At prize giving, student B stands on the stage, student A gets nothing, is never rewarded for his effort. We can debate for ages on who actually wins in 10 years time, but that is not the point. 

This weekend I attended a 3 day bicycle race through the toughest routes South Africa has to offer. The town of Sabie, in Mpumalanga South Africa.  360km on tar, over passes with over 7000m of climbing. I was out of my depth! Seeing cyclists rock up on the start line with their skin tight clothing and hundreds of thousands rands worth of bike, you could see these ladies and gents had invested a lot of time and effort into this sport. I was about to be destroyed. 

I had entered this to test myself again to practice my patience, endurance, my efforts in the physical and mental side of sport yes, but also life. I was so nervous. I hadn't done a bicycle multi day event in years and the training build up had not been ideal. 

"This is a Tour, not a race." that was the motto of this event. Comforting but still scary. 

Me and my bike, best friends...sometimes.

I coach many clients whose goals vary from looking good to completing Ironman. Some have 50 years of exercise left in them some 20. Some young, some old. Some perform at a high level and some simply want to be healthy and prosper, but a common theme for all of them is consistency and endurance. When results are extrinsic (getting 80% and being called on stage, seeing a 6 pack in the mirror, or your friends noticing your weight loss) many fall off the bus, become unmotivated, even become despondent with training. But for those who grasp the result and make it intrinsic (how you feel about yourself, being able to do something you couldn't before, comparing yourself to yourself) these clients have no end! They go on consistently for years, chipping away at the "Tour". Its not a race, its a tour people. 

A tour of your life, to forge the best human being possible, in mind, in body and spirit. How do you want your life to look, what do you see yourself doing? Its important to ask those questions because the road to ill health and diseases is paved with no intentions. Its important to be intentional about our exercise and eating because it is the fuel that will lead us to live these large lives where we are able to function with full energy at a high level in what ever we chose. 

You results of your previous years of exercise count for nothing if you are going to ride on the back of your results. Yesterday doesn't count. Today does. If we can start rewarding effort and intention over results perhaps we will be less judgmental on ourselves over our results and more consistent in our efforts. 

Day 1 was the pits. I finished my 105km day with cramps, pain and suffering. I was straight to the physio for a rub down and into a cold pool wondering if I had bitten of to much. I had spent the day trying to keep up with people, pushing up the hills until eventually I cracked and was extremely spent by the end. During race briefing for the next day I remember thinking, "If tomorrow is 150km, Im not going to finish," and thats not really what I came to do. I had to stop racing. 

Day 2 begun and my goal was to go slow, be persistent and finish the day. Everybody left me behind, I was by far the slowest. In the heat, I dragged myself over 2000km at 90km and was about to begin the final climb, the mammoth Long Tom pass. I cannot explain how slowly I went, pacing myself slowly but surely getting to the top. When the top came I was ecstatic, I had done what I had come to do. I rolled into the finish after a long descent, hours after everybody had eaten their lunches and had their naps. It was 4pm about, only the race organizer waiting for me, possibly worried one rider hadn't come back. The joy in me was one that I had everyday while cycling across Africa, moment I had long forgotten. I had these feelings flooding back to me, relishing in the hard moments and knowing that on the other side it always built a little bit of self belief. 

Day two: 3000m of climbing and a tough day out, 38 Degrees. 

Day 3. Rain. Mist. Cold. Scary downhills and shivering bodies. A whole new challenge had arrived. The cold. Get in a car, get comfy, crank up the heat and coast to the end. Along with that option comes no reward in my mind. I was freezing, my hands cramped up on the brakes down every turn trying to hand onto the handle bars while also trying to avoid skidding round the slippery corners. Was it worth it? In my mind of course it was. To feel the cold is to feel alive, to realize how fragile we are but also to discover how resilient we are. The more we seek out discomfort the more we are able to adapt to difficult situations. 

After all the time on the bike. I eventually crossed the line with some friends I had made on the trip. A great feeling, conquering what you had set out to do. I came home last again, slowest but extremely happy that I had learnt a lot more about myself. 

For those looking for things to be easy I encourage you to seek out discomforts and put yourself in situations that are hard. To slowly turn up the difficulty to teach yourself to be more resilient. Walk 5kms, the next month do 10, build it up but try always to challenge yourself. If we can do this in the physical it will teach us to do this in the mental and emotional. The challenges we face in our daily lives are perhaps and extension of this. 

Get out there. Challenge yourself. Endure! 

"Through endurance we conquer." Ernst Shakelton