My Husband is an Ironman

Well……half of one, anyways;)

Have you ever heard of a BHAG?? Let me give you a hint, it’s not my nickname;). In business, it stands for Big – Hairy – Audacious – Goal. It’s the kind of goal that is scary and seems unobtainable at times, but boy, wouldn’t it be exciting if we actually hit that target??? It’s not impossible but you need a plan and a vision and most importantly – You have to BELIEVE in it. Total Ted Lasso style!!!!

Nick is going to read this post and cringe the entire time, he will feel uncomfortable and embarrassed but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it? He doesn’t like hearing about himself or having the spotlight on him which is an endearing quality, and that’s where I come in!! The kids and I are so proud of him and feel like his story will help inspire people, not to become an ironman necessarily BUT to help people choose to believe in themselves. It’s a total choice and not an easy one!!

Nick has struggled with his weight most of his life. When he was younger it was a combination of not understanding how food worked, emotional eating and being told that he was just a big guy. As an adult, he was always watching what he was eating and working out, on and off with little results. He tried it all!!!

We jumped on the 23 and me bandwagon and the results had spurred some confidence in his latest choice to eat more of a Keto based diet. The results stated that Nick would respond well to a high fat diet which helped explain his immense success – losing 50 lbs. This was January of 2021 and he has kept it off. He has more of a balanced diet now but has learned that he is excellent at turning carbs into fat so he proceeds with caution;)

In 2020 Nick’s amazing business coach, Barb, invited Nick to join a Tony Robbins online weekend event. He was excited and a tad leery because isn’t T Robbins the leader of a cult? He seems a bit much, doesn’t he? People who love him, like, really love him…..that’s weird right? Having an open mind is what Nick is very good at – so that’s what he had all weekend.

A huge part of the Tony weekend is identifying your Limiting Beliefs, these are the stories we’ve been told or that we’ve told ourselves that make us believe we can’t do something. For Example, I’ll never be fit because everyone in my family is overweight. It’s just the weight my body wants to be at. I’m too old to learn how to swim. I’ve got big bones. Nick was told he was ‘big boned’ his whole life and the power of your mind is incredible – PSA (from Nick) – Please don’t tell your kids they’re big boned!!!

Once you figure out that your Limiting Beliefs are complete and utter bullshit, you have this new power to unleash and realize what you are capable of !!! It’s pretty awesome!! Watching Nick change his entire belief system was incredible, inspiring and annoying allllll at the same time!!!

Let me clarify the annoying part, k;). Nick and I have been married for 17 years and we’ve both been through some crap (I mean, haven’t we all;). We know how to be around each other and support each other and oddly leaned on each other for personal happiness. Watching him transform and change so drastically, in a weekend, was incredible and also made me realize that if I didn’t face all of my limiting beliefs then we were going to find ourselves in an uncomfortable situation.

Eventually, I did my own Tony Weekend and also had the opportunity to change drastically . We still struggle with our limiting beliefs, they don’t just evaporate but we have tools to deal, and that feels pretty cool. The other important lesson we’ve learned is that YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN HAPPINESS!!! It’s not up to anyone else, not even your partner of 20 years.

So, let’s get back to my Ironman;). Nick is a runner – he’s done numerous half marathons and boldly made a goal of completing a Full Marathon, which seemed impossible at the time BUT – was it really? He completed the Houston Marathon in January 2022. It was wild to watch it all go down…..well, as wild and crazy as a long distance running race can get (with 30,000 participants;). Watching him complete this goal, that seemed impossible, was pure elation – we all cried!!! It was incredible.

Life moved on and one day, I was doing dishes and Nick came in the kitchen and casually dropped the idea of him signing up for an Ironman Race. I replied as casually as he, to ask – So, does that mean you’re going to learn to swim?. I guess so, he answered!!! He joined the St. Albert Triathlon Club and started swimming 3 times a week.

Watching him train inspired so many people around him to work just a little harder. I used to sleep while he swam and eventually I decided I should get my tired butt out of bed and work out. Hearing his story, inspired another member of his swim group to sign up for the same Ironman!!

I could go on and on about Nick – he’s my favourite, after all;). BUT I also know if he’s made it this far, he’s dying of embarrassment . So I’ll finish up with THE RACE.

He signed up for the Calgary Half Iron Man and his goal was to complete the 2km swim, 90 km bike and 21km run, in 6 hours!! His finish time was 6 hours, 1 minute!!! This was his 2nd Tri Race – the first being a sprint race in Red Deer. This was also the kids first Triathlon and they LOVED it!! What a ride!!!