Five Ways Ironman Helped Me Beat Cancer Five Times
Being an IRONMAN triathlete has undoubtedly helped me beat cancer. Five times so far. The lessons I learned from my athletic journey to become an IRONMAN have worked well for me in my cancer battles.
I raced the IRONMAN 70.3 Cancun triathlon five months before my first lymphoma diagnosis. Exactly three years after finishing treatment and being declared in remission, I raced IRONMAN Texas. The 2.4-mile swim started as the sun rose. My 112-mile bike ride ended with the heat index well over 100 degrees. I finished the 26.2-mile marathon run and completed the race in the dark. My MD Anderson Cancer Center Care Team was at the finish line, with my family and friends there, too.
Below are five lessons I learned from IRONMAN that have made a positive impact on my cancer journey.
1) Set big goals and develop a plan to achieve them
For IRONMAN, my goal was to complete the race in less than the 17-hour time limit. To do it, I needed to plan 15-20 hours of training – per week – for 9 months. That is hundreds of miles of swimming and running and literally thousands of miles of cycling. All while I had a full-time job, traveled out of town often, and was helping raise three kids.
For cancer, my goal is to continue to beat it as many times as necessary to live to the age of 93. My secondary goal is to be cured from my currently incurable lymphoma. With medical progress in cancer happening every day – it is true that the longer I live – the longer I will live! Beating cancer is a full-time job, so the planning of the treatments, travel to treatments, and recovery from treatments resulted in a very tight schedule. In just one 24-month period, I flew to Houston, TX from Tampa, FL – and back – 23 times for treatment. Itl takes incredible planning to manage my life with cancer.
The IRONMAN training plan and the cancer plan both worked. I finished IRONMAN Texas in 13 hours and 41 minutes and am currently many more years closer to age 93 – with my 5th cancer currently in remission! My race bib number at IRONMAN Texas – surprise – #93!
2) Expect the unexpected and adapt your plans when the unexpected happens
Five months before IRONMAN Texas, I tore a ligament in my foot while racing a half marathon. I was forced by that injury to change my training and race plans. I wore a boot cast for 12 weeks. I wore it to the pool, took it off, and swam without kicking that foot. I also took the boot cast off to train on the bike. As I could not run during those months of training – I would just walk with the boot cast on. Because I was under trained on the run, I changed my IRONMAN race day plan by running the marathon 1 mile, 26 times. I would run to each aid station, each one mile apart, walk through it, and then run to the next one. I had to break down the big running goal into many small goals.
It is hard to predict what unexpected things will happen during the cancer journey, but it is with 100% certainty that they will happen. Knowing that the unexpected can happen and will happen, staying calm, and then changing course to adapt is critical. Unexpected treatment side effects, changes to the Care Team, insurance issues, treatment working better or worse than expected, travel delays, appointment changes – all can happen. Every one of the unexpected things above has happened to me. So be ready for them and then adapt.
3) Remind yourself every day of your reasons “why”
The reason why I wanted to complete IRONMAN Texas was simple. To teach my kids that despite the challenges I faced with my health, with a plan, focus, hard work, and discipline – anything is possible. My whys got me up and out of bed before the sun to train and got me out the door after I put the kids to bed to head to the pool and swim for an hour and a half. Each day I reminded myself of my whys – and I trained.
I have hit some very low points during my cancer journey. On September 17, 2020, while in the Recovery Room at Mayo Clinic, after surgery, I had an emotional breakdown. Contemplating giving up the fight. I spent an hour talking to the pastor and reconnected with the reasons why I needed to stay in the fight. For my family, for my friends, for my work, and to make God proud. So, now, each day, I remind myself of the reasons why I am fighting to beat cancer. Those whys keep me focused on the job of beating it.
4) A healthy diet, exercise and rest are critical
My diet has evolved throughout my lifetime, and training for IRONMAN changed my outlook dramatically. The amount of food needed to fuel the training was massive. I learned by trial and error the best combination of foods to maximize my training and recovery efforts. Less red meat, more fruits, veggies, healthy carbs, great hydration, the right amount of and sources of protein – all important.
I took these same lessons with me on my cancer journey by soliciting professional help. I hired a nutritionist to guide my diet during chemotherapy - working successfully to minimize some side effects. Then, I worked with a dietician to use my diet to help rebuild my chemo-afflicted immune system.
I have been on the extreme ends of exercise. From more than two hours per day of training to complete the IRONMAN to barely walking the day of a cancer treatment. There were some days after a chemotherapy session that I had to take a wheelchair to the car.
For the cancer journey – daily exercise is good not just for the body – but for the mind as well. Exercise reduces my anxiety and helps my attitude. The doctors agree also that my good physical conditioning, pre-treatment, has helped me beat cancer. Now, I exercise at least an hour per day, with one day a week off for recovery. I will be physically ready when my lymphoma comes back.
Rest! It took me four cancers to learn the importance of rest, which is shocking because rest was such an important part of my IRONMAN training. I am a slow learner! Now, when going through cancer treatment, I rest when my body is telling me to rest. I don’t push through it. Rest is when your body heals, and rest during treatment is critical.
5) You must OWN your journey
Like training for an IRONMAN, owning your cancer journey is important. It means YOU pick your Care Team. YOU get a second opinion. YOU find clinical trials. YOU make the decisions on your care. YOU develop the plan. YOU ask your Care Team many, many, many questions. YOU must understand the meds you are getting, the side effects, and how they work. It is YOUR life. OWN it.
MD Anderson recommended R-CHOP as my first lymphoma’s treatment. I told them “no thank you.” R-CHOP meant I would lose my hair – and due to my job in sales – I wanted to avoid that side effect. The Team was very understanding and then met for two hours upon my request and recommended a clinical trial using an entirely unknown treatment, at that time, called immunotherapy. If it worked, I would keep my hair. If not, R-Chop treatment would be next. It did work and so I accidentally and inadvertently became one of the earliest benefactors of immunotherapy, which has now become a very common treatment for many cancers.
If you are reading this, it is likely you, a family member or friend are fighting cancer. If you are the patient, then I recommend that you develop a plan, expect the unexpected, live a healthy lifestyle, remember your whys and own your journey. While beating cancer is never easy – these five insights from my own journey can perhaps help you in yours.