#47 How my sister conquered an Ironman

Welcome back to Plane Thoughts, an extended edition where I analyse and draw out learnings from an individual’s success. It’s an experimental format, so please hit reply and let me know what you think!

This time last week, I was in Barcelona watching my sister Stephanie (@nuttyfoodiefitness) compete in her first Ironman. The Ironman, widely deemed one of the world’s most difficult one-day sporting events, consists of a 3.9km open-water swim, a 180.2km cycle, and a full 42.2km marathon. The cutoff completion time is between 16 and 17 hours. Steph finished in 11 hours and 45 minutes - tenth in her category - and qualified for the world championships.

What makes her achievement even more extraordinary is the context of her journey. Just a year ago, she had never properly swum or cycled, and until the age of 20, she displayed minimal athletic prowess across any discipline.

So how did she do it? I examine the routines, processes and principles I have observed her implement in the past year, with takeaways for success across any facet of life. I’ve made links to previous posts where I explained the underlying principles.

But first, some context

It is very difficult to unpick individual success and accurately identify all the factors that played a role, let alone attribute the right amount of weight to each. These are my observations based on what I know and have seen, and importantly, have yet to be discussed with her. (if you find a conversation between myself and her interesting, hit reply and let me know!)

Whilst I am focusing on decisions and behaviours taken in the run-up to this event, many of the seeds of success will have been sown many years ago in terms of her genetic make-up. Her father’s side of the family are runners; her great-grandfather ran daily in Uganda. Her father has continued to do the same and is highly invested in her maximising her athletic ability, and I was a strong competitive runner during school. Her mother’s side is naturally athletic, and she has inherited a speedy metabolism. She came into the event as a strong runner, but none of this potential was evident until a few years ago, and potential alone is not enough if it is unmet.

1. Mindset

My sister firmly believes that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. She even has ‘you’ve got this’ tattoo’d on her forearm, which has become her personal mantra.

Over recent years, she has set progressively more challenging goals, and the Ironman was the biggest one yet. The challenges have been overwhelming, have scared her, have added vast amounts of pressure and stress to her life, and have made her doubt herself. But, throughout, she has always believed that it is in her mind.

A sceptic might say this is a naive view and would mean little without the underlying physical ability. However, the power of mindset should not be underplayed in the face of significant challenges, as self-imposed limitations can be the biggest obstacle to peak performance.

(Overcoming self-imposed limitations - link)

2. Automating behaviours

To prepare for the Ironman, Steph worked with a coach due to her lack of experience in triathlon. The rigorous training program demanded hundreds of hours of strenuous exertion, and little was left to chance on the day; it was a case of executing the plan. She knew her target speeds and times and consistently stuck to them for almost twelve hours.

Following the coach’s program had a key benefit, somewhat automating the training. Steph provided feedback after each session, which influenced subsequent programming, but the sessions were given to her, so she ‘just’ had to focus on completing them. Of course, the mental and physical strain of the training was immense, but she simplified the process and reduced the cognitive cost associated with training sessions.

When forming habits, being able to design our environment so that many of the decisions we have to make are taken away, essentially automating behaviours and removing the need for willpower makes it easier to stick to the required behaviours.

(Using rules to eliminate willpower - link)

3. Ruthless prioritisation

Elite athletes typically share a trait: an almost singular focus on performing at their best. Their teams will handle virtually everything possible to delegate so the athlete can focus on performing at their best on the day of the event.

Steph’s boyfriend played a significant role in preparation for the event. Steph has minimal knowledge and understanding of bike mechanics and servicing, which would be critical to many competitors, so she outsourced that aspect to him, allowing her to focus on just performing on the bike.

Steph's commitment to ruthless prioritisation extended to all aspects of her life, necessitating significant sacrifices like time with friends and family over many months.

4. Identity

During the marathon, Steph passed us, took off her sunglasses and shouted, ‘Today I’m going to become an Ironman’, with absolute conviction. It was a key moment for me because I knew at that moment that she would finish the race, irrespective of any challenges that could still present themselves. (My dad called back, ‘Come on!’ In the loudest voice I’ve ever heard him speak).

She was thinking about her new identity as an Ironman instead of just her present self finishing the Ironman race. When we build goals and habits around an identity over an outcome, we are more likely to undertake the behaviours associated with that identity. The positive reinforcement loop helped with the training and on the race day. An Ironman would not give up in the face of any obstacles on race day.

(Building habits around desired identity instead of desired outcomes - link)

5. Positivity

In every one of the sixty photos taken of Steph during the event, she is smiling, which is remarkable under the intense physical strain. Her focus on enjoying every aspect of the day embodied an "I get to" mentality rather than an "I have to" mindset. She had given everything to the training and was now focussing on enjoying the experience, over worrying about what she had to achieve. She called it the best day of her life.

(From ‘Have to' to ‘Get to’ - link)

6. Socialising the goal

We are social animals, and sharing a goal with others is an effective commitment mechanism and a source of encouragement. Steph had a powerful support network on the day, with her boyfriend, my parents, and her best friends there to cheer her on.

Her support was magnified by the fact that she is a full-time social media influencer who documented her entire Ironman journey online. With hundreds of thousands of followers, the thousands of messages of support she received in the lead-up to the race made her feel like they were all with her during the event, both online and in person.

Congratulations, Steph, you are an Ironman.

Best, Alex Joshi.

On my bedside table:

• Audiobook: Ultra-processed people by Chris van Tulleken (link) - Spotify premium now includes 15 hours per month of audiobook listening, so I’m testing out the experience of listening to a non-fiction book.

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