Jeff and I were greeted with pouring rain, heat, and intense humidity when we arrived in Orlando. Jeff was just a little nervous that it would continue through the day of the race. Fortunately, it eased up later that evening, so we ventured out and bought a few groceries to stock the refrigerator at the hotel. Our brother, Dan, was scheduled to arrive the following afternoon from Fort Worth, Texas. Being on an airplane most of the day left me pretty tired, but I had decided to get up early and make the most of my unexpired Disney World Park Hopper Pass from 10 years earlier. A year ago, if you had asked me if I would ever do something like that by myself, I would have said you were crazy. Today, 10 months after surgery, I have a completely different mindset, and have no problem at all feeling comfortable in my own skin. I am certainly not at my ideal goal weight, but I have matured in so many ways emotionally, that I love where I am in this journey. I now feel like I blend in more with others I would consider to be a more “normal” weight, and I don’t feel self-conscious, or that anyone is staring at me. I can just be “me”.
The next morning, I had Jeff drop me off at one of the Disney resorts, and took the Monorail to the Transportation & Ticket Center, where I boarded a ferry to the Magic Kingdom. I was so excited just to be there! I spent about 5 hours there, then took a bus over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, where I spent the next several hours. The lines were short, and I went on every single ride I had wanted to go on – some even several times! It was such an amazing feeling not to worry about fitting on any of the rides – it just wasn’t even an issue!!! By the end of the day, I was pretty exhausted. Just for kicks, I had decided to wear my pedometer to count the number of steps I took that day. The goal is to try for 10,000 steps – that day, I had over 24,000! I guess I burned a few calories between the walking and the heat…
While I was at Disney World, my brother Dan arrived, and was with Jeff to greet me when he picked me up after my adventures of the day. It was so good to see him! He and Jeff had already been to pick up their race packets for Sunday and had done shopping for supplies they needed to fine-tune their bikes. The next morning, they had to take their bikes to the race site, so they would be ready to go the following day. We got up early and parked at the Magic Kingdom, where we parted ways.
They headed to the Fort Wilderness Campground (the race site), and I headed back over to the parks. This time, I took a bus to the Animal Kingdom and spent several hours there, then headed over to Epcot for the rest of the evening. Again, the lines were short, and I was able to do everything I had wanted to do. I put some serious miles on those Disney Passes and definitely got my money’s worth! Jeff and Dan picked me up that evening, and we headed back to the hotel. They had so much nervous energy, since the race was the next morning. I don’t think one of us got more than 2 hours of sleep, since we had to leave the hotel at 3:30 AM to get them to the race site and ready to go in time.
The sun was barely coming up when the National Anthem was sung and a cannon was fired to start the race with the first wave of professional athletes. Altogether, there were 24 waves, each starting 3 minutes apart with the swim. Jeff was in the 21st wave at 7:04, and Dan was in the last wave at 7:20. There was such a feeling of excitement among the family and friends of the athletes who were there to cheer them on – it was truly an amazing thing that I had never experienced before. One of the things that inspired me the most was a group of disabled athletes that were in the 3rd or 4th wave. Many were missing limbs and were assisted into the water without their prostheses. It really started me thinking about my level of commitment to being more physically fit. For so
many years, I have made excuses for myself because my back would hurt after exerting very little energy. What excuse do I really have, if people with far more challenges than I can do something so much more intense than I would ever dream of doing?
The day continued on with the end of the swim and the beginning of the bike ride. I watched as each of my brothers came out of the water and headed to the transition area to get ready, and as they finished their ride and headed in to the transition again to get ready for the run. I was so proud just to be there and to cheer them on. It was nothing like I’ve ever experienced before, and I was so thankful that they had invited me to be there.
I made my way over to the edge of the course for the run, so I could get some pictures when Jeff and Dan came around from the first of 3 laps.
By that time of the day, it was about 89 degrees and 90% humidity. I was miserable just standing there, and couldn’t imagine what those athletes were feeling, after so many miles of hard work! While I waited, I was again struck with awe as the athletes with physical challenges would pass by, wearing their prosthetic limb, and giving all that they had to complete that race. What I really loved was that the crowd showed so much support – even when they didn’t know that person from anyone else. There was such a feeling of camaraderie that’s hard to explain without being there. By the time I thought Dan should be heading toward the finish line, I made my way over, to make sure I didn’t miss that moment. He finished in 6:15, and was physically exhausted and in pain. His knee had decided to give him trouble during the run, and he had finished 45 minutes later than he had anticipated. No matter – just finishing the race is an amazing accomplishment, and I couldn’t be more proud of him. Having lost 200 lbs in just over a year, and now being an amazing athlete in that amount of time, should be an inspiration to anyone.
Once Dan collected his finisher’s medal and got something to eat and drink, we sat down and talked for a while. He told me that he had met up with Jeff on the run. Jeff was discouraged with his progress, and was in a tremendous amount of pain, as he had sprained his ankle 5 days prior. Dan had spent some time with him, rather than racing ahead, and had given him some encouragement and support that he had needed. He could have easily given up, but instead, walked a good majority of the run until he finally finished. His time was about 7:45, and was physically spent. Even so, they are both tremendous athletes, and I can’t wait to hear about their training and results when they both do a full Ironman in Louisville, Kentucky in August.
Shortly before Jeff finished the race, there was a single athlete that came through.
The announcer stated that he was a 6-time cancer survivor, and that it was his 70th birthday that day. I couldn’t believe it! I have not yet committed myself to training for such an extreme sport, but just being there and witnessing that event made me more determined to get fit. If people with disabilities, missing limbs, and cancer survivors can do it, I can certainly challenge myself to do something more…
Jeff and I set a goal of losing our last 45 lbs. by the time he competes in the Ironman at the end of August. If I increase my exercise to even a fraction of what he is doing, and commit to eating what I know works for me, there is no reason I can’t accomplish that goal. So… Here’s to recommitting myself and testing my limits to get physically fit!
One last thought: Between myself, Jeff and Dan, we’ve lost a combined total of 500 pounds. Here’s to keeping the success going and inspiring the rest of our family to be healthy...
