Hello everyone, I feel very privileged to know the author of this next story. Her name is Katherine Wills, the wisdom she shares with you is all about never ever giving up on your dream of who you want to be. Katherine doesn't share all of why what she has achieved is so amazing, I am hoping she will do in the future. For now though please read and share with your fellow women, and remember to send me your story so we can celebrate who you are and what you have come to know.
Dee
How I became an Iron Woman by Katherine Wills
Picture
this: I've spent 12 months training hard for a once in a life time event. It's
a 70.3 Ironman triathlon in celebration of my 50th year on this planet. In 4
days time I’m supposed to be on the start line waiting to complete a 1900m swim
followed by a 56 mile bike straight into a half marathon run of 13.19 miles.
The previous 12 months has seen me juggle the demands of a busy life and
struggle with injures - knee and hip problems and 2 months before the event a
neck injury which has trapped nerves causing pain and weakness down my left
shoulder and arm. I’ve just flown in from the UK and I'm sitting in a cafe in
the picturesque town of Zell am See in Austria. I'm riddled with pain despite
having taken a cocktail of prescription drugs and I'm feeling extremely
pessimistic about that looming start line date. On the window of the shop
opposite the cafe is a faintly written quote and I find myself straining to try
and read what it says
“The only person you are
destined to become is the person
you decide to be.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
I
sat and pondered this. I'd overcome many obstacles to be sitting in that cafe
in Austria, not just over the last 12 months but in the last 50 years. So many
times I’ve allowed negativity and self doubt to direct my actions and thoughts:
that feeling of 'I can't do this' or 'I shouldn't actually be here'.
I
passed that window numerous times during the following days and on each occasion
I took a moment to stand and read the words. I decided that despite all that
had gone on I owed it to myself to be on that start line come what may.
On
the day of the event I banished that overwhelming emotion of ‘what have I got
myself into!’ I looked around at the other women taking part, of the 2500
competitors there really weren’t that many women. They came in all shapes,
sizes and ages. Some looked like Olympians limbering up into positions I could
only dream of, whilst others like me were just normal, slightly apprehensive,
regular women stepping up to the challenge.
I'm
back in the UK now about to return to my busy life making shopping lists,
walking the dogs and getting paperwork sorted for my first aid training business.
Hanging next to my computer is my 70.3 Ironman Triathlon medal. It represents more
than the 7 hours 47 mins and 11 seconds it took me to complete the course. The
Ironman events thrive of the saying ‘Anything is possible’ and corny as it may
seem you are left feeling that with an enormous amount of hard work and belief
we can all become the person we decide to be.
