Ironman Jacksonville is on May 16, 2027. I started structured training in the last week of August 2026 with a coach, a full-distance goal, and a body that had lost 71 pounds since February but had never trained three sports.
The numbers
| Week | Total distance, swim + bike + run |
|---|---|
| Aug 24 to 30 | 38.00 mi |
| Aug 31 to Sep 6 | 49.68 mi |
| Sep 7 to 13 | 50.57 mi |
| Sep 14 to 20 | 51.13 mi |
| Four weeks | 189.38 mi |
- Weight on September 20: 249 lb (320 lb on February 1).
- Longest run: 11.2 miles in 2:40:04, 14:17 per mile average.
- Run pace on base runs: from a 16:00 mile with stops in week one to 13:30 to 13:40 held for more than six miles.
- Source: Garmin Fenix 8 with the HRM 600 chest strap, weight from the Garmin scale every morning.
What the month felt like
Week one was survival: a 30-minute swim with as many breaks as I needed, a 45-minute run, a one-hour ride, and a body that did not understand why it was doing all three in the same week. The pool was the low point. I was gassed inside a few minutes and had genuinely forgotten how to swim. By week two the volume settled at around 50 miles a week and it has stayed there, with a rest day on Monday, a brick on Saturday and the long run on Sunday.
The runs are where the change shows. The first one was a 16-minute mile with stops. A month later I hold 13:30 to 13:40 for more than six miles, and the 11-miler on the last weekend was the first run that felt easy from start to finish. Running more than ten miles without stopping hit harder than any number on the scale ever has.
What worked
- The 10,000-step floor stayed in place under everything else.
- Half tights instead of shorts. The chafing stopped the day I switched.
- The breathing pattern my coach gave me for side stitches: two short breaths in through the nose, one long breath out through the mouth.
- Lighter shoes. ASICS Superblast 3 and Megablast replaced the Nike Vomero Plus, and 30 to 50 miles went on them in two weeks without complaint.
- A real rest day. Monday is off, and lifting once or twice a week is now recovery, not the main event.
What did not
- Sleep. Still 4 to 8 hours. It is the weakest link in the whole week and I know it.
- Eating enough. After a year of eating little I have to carb-load on purpose so I do not bonk on long rides and runs. Tailwind in the bottles and a carb mix before long sessions are the current answer.
- The swim. Better than week one, still the sport I am furthest from.
October
A 10K on October 31. The plan for the month: keep the long run growing, get through two swims a week without hanging on the wall, and move sleep in the right direction. The next report comes at the end of October, with the same table and whatever the numbers say.
The medication and the compounds I have used this year are disclosed in What losing 71 pounds actually changed. Nothing here is advice; talk to a doctor before you copy any of it.