I AM AN IRONMUMMY

I have done it and it was the most amazing experience. I loved it all from start to finish, even when I was in pain. The whole trip was fantastic, I got to know the people of my tri club better, I met some fantastic people and the support on the course was just unbelievable.

So my Ironman event started for me at 3.45 am when I got up for some breakfast, which really isn't a pleasant time to be eating especially when I had only managed to fall asleep at approx 11pm the night before. By 4.30am we were in a taxi on our way to transition one, to do our final bike checks and get ourselves prepared for the start.

So an hour before the start of the race I had my first chocolate bar, a biscuit boost I have pretty much lived on these while training and then 30 minutes before the start I had a can of redbull. You have to love the diet of an ironman.

So the start what an experience, I don't quite know how many took to the water, but I do know it was over 2,300 people. So my plan was to sit behind Phil Gray and try to head out with him and sit on his feet. Who was I kidding, that idea went straight out the window the minute it started. So for those of you who have no idea what a mass start looks like, this is the start of my race below. If you manage to get to the end of the clip, it does go on a bit, you actually get to see me on the bike. In fact you can't really miss me I am wearing a bright yellow waterproof jacket. I was instructed to put it on by the coach, think he forgot I am a geordie girl, it lasted all of about 20 minutes till I took it off.

So apart from a couple of smacks across the head, I had a great swim. I swan the 2.4 miles in 1.03. This put me 6th in my age group coming out of the water, 388th overall. I think it must be one of my best swim, I just felt great through out it.

Next was the bike. I was in transition for just over 4 minutes before heading out to cycle the 112 miles, it absolutely poured down for well over 90% of the ride. The hill section of the ride was definitely went on longer than I expected, but I didn't find it too challenging. This is possibly due to the fact most my training is done on the hills of Northumberland and the Lake District. So the two laps went well, on the second lap I started to struggle with the thought of more chocolate which is a first for me. I ended up gelling the second lap, this proved to be a massive mistake, which I will never make again ( I will explain later). I finished my bike in 5.53, which I am delighted with, especially as that time also includes my chain coming off which I had to stop and fix. On completion of the bike I was 12th in my age category and 983 overall.

Finally the run, the part I least enjoy. I had 4 laps to do, which saw us running through the old town then out through a park, which was a lot quieter. The support on the run course especially in the town was unbelievable and it really did make a huge difference when you are out there. So my first 10km lap I felt great, just took it nice and easy. Ran past coach Woody gave him a big thumbs up and took off on lap 2. Not long into lap 2 things started to go horribly wrong. My stomach started cramping up, it felt like it was filling up with gas and it just couldn't escape. I struggled on round, past Woody again I think this time I just glanced at him. Then took off on lap 3, not long into this I noticed my fingers were starting to swell and I was getting the fattest fingers. Then I remembered this lovely bit of information I had read and now quote from Phil Smith (an experienced ironman from our tri club).

'if you start to swell up (scary) its a sign of kidney failure and hyponatremia. noticeable in wrists and hands. you have drank too much water and need more salt!!'

Not to worry is easier said than done when you hands start to look like they belong to shrek....ok slight exaggeration they weren't green but they were that size!! So I continued on with my fat hands and sore stomach passed the coach again, this time I did say something, decided it couldn't make me feel any worse and shouted ' red bull please'. So off I went with my red bull, swallowed some more salt tablets then pretty much jogged and staggered my final lap. The last 3km of my first ever marathon was hard, felt like it was never going to end and then I saw the finishing shoot. I suddenly felt as fresh as a daisy and sprinted the last little bit, for those of you that missed it, here it is, I am wearing the red top.

So I ran my first ever marathon in  4hours 41, to be honest under the circumstances I am now happy with this, the shrek hands really were quite disturbing. I came 16 in my age category out of a total of 48 people and overall I came 1283.

Personally I think the problems I faced on the run was because I consumed too many gels early on with not enough fluid and then I started to take on too much water with not enough salt, hence the shrek scary hands. But I am no expert and everyone is different, but I do know I will do another one and this time it will be chocolate the whole time on the bike, even if I don't feel like it.

So after my first ever ironman you will be pleased to hear after a quick shower I was straight to the bar with my Coach and his girlfriend for some Beer and just for you all I managed this.

Lovely short marks, haha!!

For those who haven't seen it, here is my medal

Once again there is a bigger reason I have been doing all this and that is to raise as much money as possible for 'Tiny Lives'. So far thanks to everyone I have raised £3,743 which is just unbelievable. It would be fantastic if I could get over £4,000. So please repost and share this link to everyone, it really can make a difference in saving a premature babies life. It is my children and your generosity that has kept me inspired to do this and I really can't thank you all enough. To be inspired is to feel alive and to feel alive is a gift in itself, so thank you.

 

http://www.justgiving.com/Joanna-Reed0

I will still be blogging for a few more weeks, got the holiday snaps to show you all from the trip. So get your cups of tea and biscuits at the ready, haha!!