One Foot in Front of the Other: A Triathlon Journey Back to My Self (ePub)

Ever been so unmotivated or depressed that the idea of setting a goal, let alone reaching one, seemed impossible? This story follows the author through a full year of trials and tribulations, as he set his mind on a cold, drizzly Fall 2020 day, to not just practice a sport, like when he was a child, but to become a triathlete. Whether or not you are athletic, or your goals are sports-related, you will be inspired by this story of self-re-discovery. You will laugh, you will cry, but most of all, you will be inspired. This book is one more healthy and respectful way to destigmatize mental injury and focus on mental health and the role of endurance sports in helping achieve it.

Confined alone in his house, during the global Covid-19 pandemic and on the edge of depression after the sudden end of his marriage, his story is one of not only courage but of gratitude and how it helped him "re-wire his brain" to focus on the positive. It is also one of steadfast determination to just put one foot in front of the other. He shares with vulnerability the challenges of his childhood. Of learning to swim, bike and run from scratch, as an adult in his late 50s, with rebuilt knees and following major shoulder surgery and how, rather than avoiding or dismissing his fears and doubts, he welcomed these and other emotions by his side throughout his one-year triathlon journey.

With his own tongue-in-cheek, self-deprecating humour, he recounts training for and racing not one triathlon but three Ironman 70.3 events in 2021, with virtually no experience in any of the three disciplines. He shares how he picked up triathlon lingo; managed race transitions; mastered grabbing bottles of Gatorade from aid stations while biking; faced desert heat as a cold-climate Canadian, and swam in alligator-infested Florida lakes.

His embarrassment of learning to swim again as an adult in the children's pool and his fear of open water made him question whether or not he would ever become a triathlete. This is a story about how in life, anything truly is possible. And that if you set a goal high enough, the path towards it may not only lead to discovering what you can do but rediscovering who you are.