It's been over thirty days since the words, "Tom Romnek, you are an Ironman!" were uttered. I say "uttered" because they weren't heard. Not by me, at least. That says something about the state I was in when I crossed the finish line in Louisville.
That's thirty days I've had to consider the impact those words have had in my life. Though it may be sacreligious, I have to say, "Not much." I know, I can hear it now, "Say it isn't so, Iron Pol. Tell us that becoming an Ironman has changed your life." There lies the crux.
So, here's my view, and I believe it's in keeping with past statements.
Crossing the finish line to those words has had essentially zero impact in my life. I am no more fit, today, than I was on August 25th. To be honest, after a month of ease and recovery, I'm certainly just a bit less so. I am no more capable for having completed the 140.6 mile race than I was after completing a 70.3 mile race. And I deserve no more credit now than I did prior to becoming an Ironman.
That isn't to say there haven't been changes in my life. I AM more fit than I was in December of 2005 when this whole journey started. I'm 40 pounds lighter, wear pants with 34 inch waist instead of 38". I can swim 4,900 yards further now than I could the first time I attempted to swim for distance. And I have thousands of miles under the tires of my bike that would never have happened without this thing called triathlon.
I am also more capable than I was two years back. In addition to the obvious triathlon related disciplines, I have learned to balance my life in ways never even attempted in the past. Going from a child-less marathoner to an Ironman with two children required a lot of growth. And true to my Biblical life verse (Luke 2:52), I have grown mentally, physically, socially, and religiously.
Finally, I do appreciate the recognition others have for the accomplishment. Yet the pride I feel in my first triathlon is similar to that of completing the Ironman. In many ways, that first triathlon was more grueling. The 220-yard swim scared the daylights out of me, and I broke my chain less than half-way through the bike portion. Yes, I am proud to have completed an Ironman. But I was pretty stoked after my first race, which was less than 20 miles.
In the end, completing the Ironman had very little to do with the changes I have experienced. Those changes came from completing the TRAINING required to complete an Ironman. There are many out there who, for reasons of their own, were unable to complete the 140.6 mile race required to hear those sought after words, "You are an Ironman." For most, I would bet they have experienced all of the changes any other Ironman experienced. And most have the same "iron" as those who completed the race. All they are missing is the medal and finisher's shirt (and hey, those of us in Louisville didn't even get that).
Consider this, is completing the race required to be an "Ironman?" Does someone somehow become less of an Ironman if the DNF some future race? And since it is plainly obvious that there is likely to be zero change from just before the finish line to just after the finish line, what is the exact point at which someone truly BECOMES "iron?"
For me, it had little to do with crossing the finish line. Yes, being an Ironman is a huge success in my life. I'm just not sure when I actually became an Ironman.
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