7 days to go
So in 7 days I will be attempting to push my body further than I have pushed it before.
The goal is to travel 140.6 miles under my own steam in an iron distance triathlon and in doing so raise some money for HHHO, if you're feeling generous please visit my Justgiving page to donate and help fund much needed research into cancer.
I have hinted before into what is driving me to complete an iron distance triathlon in this blogpost. In that post I left out one important fact which I will divulge now.
When I was growing up aged 14 I suffered from a chronic slipped upper femoral epiphysis.
A chronic slipped upper femoral epiphysis occurs when the femur moves away from the ball joint along the growth plate. This can be seen in the diagram below.
The diagnosis of this took approximately nine months to transpire and during this time I walked with a limp despite numerous trips to the hospital. According to the Consultant at the time I had put a lot of pressure and wear on my ball joint and had a 90% chance of developing arthritis of the hip by the time I was 30.
So here I sit aged 31 and 11 months and there is no sign of arthritis yet but I don't know how much longer I can say this for and this is the reason I have decided to go long so early into my triathlon journey. This could be my only chance to complete an iron distance triathlon, I hope it isn't but unfortunately I do not have a crystal ball.
Training recap
Have I done as much training as I should have done?
The goal is to travel 140.6 miles under my own steam in an iron distance triathlon and in doing so raise some money for HHHO, if you're feeling generous please visit my Justgiving page to donate and help fund much needed research into cancer.
I have hinted before into what is driving me to complete an iron distance triathlon in this blogpost. In that post I left out one important fact which I will divulge now.
When I was growing up aged 14 I suffered from a chronic slipped upper femoral epiphysis.
A chronic slipped upper femoral epiphysis occurs when the femur moves away from the ball joint along the growth plate. This can be seen in the diagram below.
To prevent this condition getting worse the femur is pinned to the ball joint through the growth plate.
The diagnosis of this took approximately nine months to transpire and during this time I walked with a limp despite numerous trips to the hospital. According to the Consultant at the time I had put a lot of pressure and wear on my ball joint and had a 90% chance of developing arthritis of the hip by the time I was 30.
So here I sit aged 31 and 11 months and there is no sign of arthritis yet but I don't know how much longer I can say this for and this is the reason I have decided to go long so early into my triathlon journey. This could be my only chance to complete an iron distance triathlon, I hope it isn't but unfortunately I do not have a crystal ball.
Training recap
Have I done as much training as I should have done?
- Erm in a word no. I have been unlucky with numerous illnesses during the previous 20 weeks, I've suffered from laryngitis, a pulled muscle in my neck and a severe case of diarrhoea. I have made the best of what I have been dealt and trained as much as I think was possible.
Am I ready for the Outlaw?
- You bet I am. I can't bloody wait to push my body to the limit. I know I will complete the swim, I know I will complete the bike (it will be a struggle but I'll get there) (unless I suffer from a mechanical problem or a crash) and I know I will have enough time to rulk (run/walk) the run. BRING IT ON.
- I've swum over the distance by completing a pool swim of 4km.
- I've biked over 1000 miles in the last 20 weeks with the furthest single ride being 85 miles. I should have completed the 100 mile ride to prepare better but I am where I am now.
- I've run the longest scheduled run from my training plan which was 18 miles so think I have done as much preparation as possible. The run won't be pretty but I will get the job done. I am sure the support form the crowd and my family will play a big part in getting me to the finish line.
My race number is 288 so if you see me make sure you say hello. I will be wearing these so you have no excuse for missing me.
See you all when I am an Outlaw.
Thanks for reading,
Michael
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