I Doubted I Could Do It

A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post titled, “Why You Should Push Your Physical Limits.”  I shared how I signed up for the Triple Bypass bike ride which covers 120 miles and over 10,000 feet of climbing.  I signed up for it because I didn’t know if I could do it.  Well I did it.  I finished the ride in nine hours and thirteen minutes.  It was the greatest feeling to accomplish something I didn’t know if I could do it or not. 

I want to challenge you to sign up for something you doubt you can do and then train your butt off.  It will be worth every second of the journey whether you “succeed” or not.  The way I see it is the only way you will fail is if you don’t get in the arena.  If you sit on the sidelines watching.  That is a horrible way to live life in my opinion. 

LIFE IS MEANT TO BE AN ADVENTURE

Our life is meant to be an adventure.  That’s why I quit my six figure job, because I was bored out of my mind.  It wasn’t my calling.  What an adventure I have been on ever since.  I never know what day it is because I love every day of my life, not just Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. 

My vision is to make a living writing, speaking, podcasting and coaching.  Am I making a living doing these things yet?  No!  But I will.  If I stay in the game, if I stay in the arena I will.  If I rely on God’s strength and wisdom I have no doubt in my mind I will have a successful fitness ministry. 

My measure of success is going to be determined by the amount of lives I change and nothing else.  God will take care of the rest.  I am not worried about paying my bills or putting food on the table.  God wouldn’t have put this dream in my heart if he wouldn’t help me see it through.

I know it won’t be easy.  Its’ not supposed to be easy.  If it were easy then I wouldn’t have to rely on God to make my mission a success.  Just like on my bike ride I will just turn the pedal crank over one revolution at a time. 

THE ADRENALINE RUSH

Back to my bike ride.  It was an early morning wake-up call at 3am.  I was excited as soon as I woke up.  A little bit of coffee and breakfast and I was out the door.  Upon first arriving and getting everything ready for my ride, my heart rate was at about 115.  My normal resting heart rate is about 50, so clearly I was pretty amped, nervous and excited.  Another words, I was fully alive.  Nothing better than that pre-bike ride adrenaline rush. 

My ride officially started at 6am on the dot.  I was greeted with 15 miles of steady climbing.  No time to warm up, just into a long steady climb.  It was exciting to be a part of a large group of passionate cyclists.  I am estimating there were about 3,000 of us tackling the Triple Bypass. 

I felt strong up the first climb and then came the descent.  I can’t say I love descending.  I am not fearless by any stretch of the imagination.  When I get up over 40 miles per hour is when the nerves start to kick in.  I also didn’t know the course at all and there were quite of few blind turns.  I managed to descend without any mishaps.  

One of the highlights of the ride was going through some small towns along the way.  There were lots of people cheering us on.  Some even had signs and cowbells they would ring along the way.  It got a small taste of what it feels like to be in the Tour de France.  What a cool feeling. 

JUST KEEP GOING

Now it was time for the 35 mile climb up Loveland pass.  I felt strong until the last four miles ascending up to 12,000 feet.  My lungs were searing and my quads felt like they were going to blow up, but my mantra was just to keep turning the pedal cranks over just like we have to do in life.  Just keep going, just keep showing up.  I was going at a break neck speed of about 5-6 mph.  Just fast enough to keep my bike from tipping over. 

The scenery was amazing.  The beauty of God’s creation was all around me.  I was overwhelmed with the scenery on the whole ride.  There is no better way to see God’s beauty than on a bike.  There definitely was some suffering involved, but when you crest a mountain pass it is breathtaking. 

The hardest part of the ride for me was around mile 80.  I actually ran out of water for about 30 minutes of the ride.  The previous aid station for all of the cyclists ran out of water.  How does that happen?  I knew it would be tight on hydration, but I had to keep going. 

FINISH STRONG

My quads were completely fried, I was a little dehydrated and it was blazing hot at this point.  I had two goals for this ride.  One was to embrace every moment of the ride no matter how tough it was and the second was to finish strong. 

Even though I was pretty whipped at mile 80, I knew I had some more climbing to do, so I decided to embrace suffering.  I decided to go into the pain of my legs and appreciate the fact that my body is capable of biking this far. 

I got a surge of energy around mile 100.  At this point I knew I was going to finish strong.   Twenty more miles to go.   One of the best things about this ride was my daughter being there at the finish line to greet me.  What a great feeling to know my daughter will be sharing this milestone with me. 

Nine hours and thirteen minutes later I crossed the finish line of the Triple Bypass.  I was exhausted and exhilarated.  I think it really hit home when we drove back to Fort Collins and I realized that the mileage we just covered in my car, I covered on my bike.  Wow!  What once was doubt is now confidence and a great sense of satisfaction. 

So what do you doubt you can do?  A 10k?  Hike a fourteener?  Run a marathon?  Do a triathlon?  Drop 50 pounds?  Run a mile without stopping?  I say do it!  Get in the arena!  Get sweaty, get dirty and maybe even a little bloody.  I guarantee you that you will feel fully alive when you reclaim your inner warrior. 

Don’t go on this journey alone.  I would love to partner with you on your journey of reclaiming your inner warrior through physical fitness and adventure.  Please reach out to me at troy@troyismir.com to start a powerful conversation. 

Troy Ismir, MS

Spiritual Warrior Coach