Why I Signed Up for a Marathon and a Triathlon

I've just signed up for two races: a full 42K marathon and a triathlon. One of them should be manageable. The other is going to force me to learn something I've put off for decades.

The marathon

Running 42 kilometres has been a goal of mine for a long time. I don't need to do it every year. I just want to do it at least once.

I'm already an avid jogger, so this one shouldn't be a big deal. The base is there. It's a matter of building up the distance and showing up on race day. It's a goal I've carried around for years, and now it's on the calendar.

The triathlon

The triathlon is different, and it's the one that matters more to me.

I now have no choice but to learn to swim properly. Not just splashing around in a pool, but swimming effectively, swimming long distances, and being comfortable in open water for an extended period of time. That's a very different skill from going for a jog.

I've thought about doing this for decades. Thinking about it never got me anywhere, because as long as it was just an idea, there was always a reason to do it later. Next year. When things calm down. When I have more time.

By booking the triathlon, I removed the optionality. The date is set, and I have nine months to figure it out. There's no "maybe" anymore. Either I learn to swim well enough to finish, or I don't, and I'm not interested in finding out what the second option feels like.

That's the real lesson here, and it applies far beyond sport. When you leave yourself an exit, you'll usually take it. When you commit first and figure it out after, you find a way. The commitment does the work that motivation alone never does.

Why having a goal matters

There's another reason I did this. It's simply a great thing to have a goal to work towards and strive for.

I've noticed something about people who retire. The ones who retire without goals are the ones who seem to get depressed. They don't have something to do, something to work towards, something to strive for. The work gave their days structure and purpose, and once it's gone, nothing replaces it.

I don't want to wait until retirement to learn that lesson. Having something hard on the calendar gives every week a direction. It gives me a reason to get up and train, and a clear way to measure whether I'm making progress or just talking about it.

Nine months

So that's the plan. One goal I've wanted for years, and one I've avoided for decades. Both are booked, and the clock is running.

If there's something you've been thinking about for a long time, it might be worth asking yourself whether the problem is really time or ability, or whether it's just that you've never removed the option to keep putting it off.