From Newborns To The World Championship: Focusing On What You Can Do Instead of What You Can't

This year I’m racing in Romania for TeamUSA at the Multisport World Championships, mainly because I made the choice to focus on what I do have instead of what I don’t. Back in 2016, I decided that I was going to race an Ironman in 2017.  I had just completed the Chattanooga Half Ironman (70.3 total miles) so a full Ironman (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run for 140.6 miles) was up next.  Then, in the spring, my wife and I made the crazy decision to adopt 3-day-old twins.  

(I'm also using this race as a way to raise funds to help Ukrainian refugees. If you want to help, you can go here to donate: Just select "Ukraine")

Our twins are amazing and I’m so glad we brought them into our family, but holy-freaking-cow those two were a lot of work. Newborns need to be fed every two hours and I got the night shift almost every night. I would start feeding our son at midnight for 30 minutes, then I’d have 30 minutes ‘off’, then I’d need to feed our daughter from 1AM-1:30AM, then I’d have 30 minutes ‘off”, then I’d feed the boy at 2AM and the process would repeat itself.  To stay awake, I would drink cans of Coke and eat Nature Valley Almond Butter Cups. In short order, I got up to almost 200lbs. 

Obviously, when you have twins you know your life will change, but it doesn’t really sink in how much until after you’ve done it.  I was frustrated that I had gotten so out of shape. I knew I couldn’t race an Ironman that year or even the next.  I knew I couldn’t go on long Saturday morning rides with my friends.  I knew my schedule wasn’t going to be normal anytime soon.

Then something clicked- probably from listening to motivational speakers all these years- and I said to myself, “OK, Lord, suck it up and quit whining. Don’t think about what you can’t do. Think about what you can do.”

First, I can get better at eating. I didn’t get rid of Cokes altogether, but I did make two changes.  One, I got those overpriced mini-sized cans instead of regular-sized cans. Two, I would keep them in the fridge after opening them instead of keeping them right beside me, so that I had to walk to the fridge whenever I wanted a drink. I also got those soda can lids so the Cokes would stay fresh. I realized that sometimes I would finish Cokes so that I wouldn’t feel wasteful, which added on calories. Even if I cut back my Cokes by 20%, that was progress.

A friend of mine recommended that I get a food tracking app called “Lose It”.  “People are on their phones all the time, so it’s not like they can’t put in what they eat,” he would say.  What was so helpful to me was learning how much certain foods cost in terms of calories.  Could you imagine going shopping at a store and never looking at the price of what you’re buying?  I realized that I’ve always done that with food.  Within a few months, I dropped fifteen pounds, although it happened in shifts.  I’d lost five pounds really fast, and then even though I was keeping at it, nothing would change for a month, then all of a sudden, I’d lose three more pounds.  I learned that sometimes it takes time but you just keep at it.

I would put the baby monitor on near our stationary bike in the basement. I had no idea if I had a ten minutes or an hour before they'd need me, so I'd pedal as hard as I could until they started crying. I read Dean Karnazes's book about running all night, so if I was up and couldn't sleep at 4AM and my turn was over taking care of the babies, I would go for a run. I really never knew when I could work out, but I knew I just had to do something when I got the chance.

When they were two, I raced in the Music City Triathlon. Shockingly, I cut 15 minutes off my previous best and finished 4th in my age group. I didn't realize that the race doubled as the state championship, and I got an email saying I had qualified for the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championship for 2020!

Then COVID hit and it was canceled so I couldn't race in the National Championships. "OK, I can't race. Don't focus on what I can't do- focus on what I can do" So on March 15, 2020, I committed to either biking or running every day. Even with COVID or the flu, I managed to get something in, no matter how slow.

In early 2021, I connected with Sue Reynolds. Sue was a non-athlete who as a 335 lb grandmother who couldn't walk to her mailbox without stopping, decided to run a triathlon. Within a few years, she had lost 200 lbs and finished in the top six in the world in her age group. She filled me in on the Multisport National Championships and told me I should give them a try. Just like track and field where everyone knows the 100-meter dash but there are a bunch of other events, triathlon and multisport have the same thing. With gyms and pools closed, I decided to race the shortest duathlon, which has no swimming. It's just a run, bike, then a second run. Everything around it kept canceling, but I trained in faith that it would happen. Between two age groups, the top 18 in each age group would qualify for the World Championships.

Amazing, the Duathlon National Championships stayed as scheduled, although the temperatures jumped 15 degrees the week before the event and there was no way to prepare for the heat. I had a really good first run, but I had a major cramp in my calf on the bike. I had to stop pedaling and coast for nearly a minute. Several people passed me. Eventually, I got back to pedaling. Despite the pain in my calf, I finished and set out on the run. Something clicked and I was really able to pick up the pace. I passed a few dozen people- many wearing the USA Triathlon race uniform I was hoping to earn- without being passed a single time on the second run to the tune of a 6:40 minute mile pace to the finish.

Some veterans welcomed me at the finish line. They pulled out their phones, looked up the times and let me know I had finished 18th. They all raised their post-race Gatorades and congratulated me on making TeamUSA!

In June, I'll be heading out to Romania to compete with my TeamUSA teammates against athletes from all over the world. I'll also be using this as an opportunity to raise money to help Ukrainian refugees (you can go here to donate: Just select "Ukraine").

Four years ago, if I had focused on what I didn't have rather on what I did, I would be in a completely different place. If you find yourself in the same situation, ask yourself what you can do, instead of what you can't.