Going the full distance

We have now gone the full distance. 2.4, 112, 26.2. We are not going to invent splits we do not have in front of us, and we are not going to turn a finish into a brand. The useful writing is what the week actually looks like when 140.6 is on the calendar.

Training for a full Ironman in Honolulu is a heat problem, a marriage problem, and a calendar problem. The swim is the ocean you already live next to, which is a gift until it is chop. The bike is hours you have to steal from a workday. The run is whatever is left after you have already been a person for twelve hours.

What we would tell a friend who is thinking about it: do the Olympic. Do a 70.3 on a hard course. Do a standalone marathon so you know what 26.2 feels like when you are not already cooked. Then decide. The full distance is not a personality. It is a season you have to fund with sleep.

If you want the official race, date, and time on this page, we will add them. Until then this stands as the honest version: we did it, it cost a season, and we would still rather write down the do’s and don’ts than sell you a plan.