Ironman Athlete to Bodybuilder — Week 1
Since my last Ironman race, I’ve been battling with injuries, cost blowouts, bike crashes and swimming challenges.
The universe was telling me to take a break — so I did.
I joined my local gym to embark on a new journey of weightlifting.
During endurance sport training it’s important to maintain strength and conditioning work. I would still factor in a gym session or two into my training week. However, the priority, especially leading up to a big race was swimming, cycling and running.
Most workouts would be a full body session with light weights, and high reps. Avoiding any strain or risking any injury.
If you’ve ever tried swimming after a tough upper body workout or attempted a run after leg day…you know it’s going to hurt and your performance gains will be impacted.
Ironman -> Bodybuilder
The shift from Ironman training to bodybuilding has involved selling my sleek, aerodynamic triathlon bike, and top-of-the-range wetsuit plus cancelling my coaching subscription. No more early morning 4km swims, lunchtime interval sessions on the treadmill or gruelling 150km+ bike rides. It’s now about pumping iron, achieving that muscle definition, and, dare I say, embracing the art of the ‘flex’.
