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Abundant Mind #011

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Hey bud, 

Have you ever had a result that didn’t exactly make you proud? 

The usual knee-jerk reaction of most people is to blame others or outside circumstances for that result. 

Maybe, like most people, that’s also how you react to those kinds of events. 

What if I told you that by blaming others, you’re actually giving your power away to them? 

In today’s newsletter we’ll be doing a deep dive on the value of experiencing pain, taking responsibility, and finding a clearer path to reaching the goals you set. 

But first, let me tell you about a recent experience I had. 

The Hardest Triathlon I’ve Ever Raced In

At the start of 2023, I registered for a triathlon in July called the Ironman 5150 which was held in Bohol. 

It’s a triathlon that consists of 3 legs: a 1.5km swim, a 40km bike, and then a 10km run. 

I had planned to train well for the race since I still had about 5 months to get my training in order. 

And then, life happened, I got happily married, Bea and I started living together, I got sick twice in the span of 2 months, and I shifted focus in terms of my career. 

Health and training became the last of my priorities. 

3 months leading up to the race, I had:

• 0 swim training. 

• Bike training was 1x a week at 30 km maximum mileage. 

• Run training was virtually non-existent (my longest run in this 3 month period was 5 kms) 

At a height of 5’7’’ my ideal race weight is about 145 lbs 

I stepped on the scale before race day almost 20 lbs heavier at 164 lbs. 

I knew I wasn’t in race condition. 

There was even a thought of: “Should I just not participate in the race?” 

But a part of me said: “No, you should experience this. It will be good for you.”

And so I got myself in a good headspace, told myself to just focus on enjoying the experience, and to treat it as a long workout.

I woke up early on race day, got my things in order inside the transition area, and I approached the starting line. 

With every triathlon I join there’s always mixed feelings of nervousness and excitement at the same time, as all the athletes anticipate the start of the race.

When the starting horn went off, I ran with the rest of the competitors onto the beach into the open water. 

The 1.5km swim started with a 200m run on the shallow waters of the ocean. 

At the first 500m of the swim, my left shoulder started aching, as if protesting the trial I was about to endure. 

I swam at a very relaxed pace to conserve my energy for the workout which would last me over 3 hours. 

Now, I’m usually the first one to finish the swim leg in my triathlon team, The Usuals, since swimming is my strongest of the 3 disciplines. 

But with my lack of preparedness and with my teammates having gone through rigorous training leading up to 5150 Bohol, I was unsurprised to see them overtake me one by one in the water.

As I finished the swim, I jogged to the transition area to leave my swim cap and goggles and get my gear for the bike leg of the race. 

In front of my bike, I arrived, breathing heavily. The lack of cardio training was evident to me. 

I took time to catch my breath, put on my gear, and jogged with my bike out of transition area onto the street.

The bike leg was manageable for me as the course was relatively flat, and I rode my bike like I was on a leisurely Sunday ride. 

At around KM 35, my legs started to feel heavy in spite of the light effort I was putting in. 

The thought of the 10km run that was waiting for me at the tail end of the race weighed on my mind. 

As I approached the end of the bike leg, I dismounted my bike at the designated area and started jogging towards transition. 

When I arrived to rack my bike and put on my running shoes, I heard the announcer congratulate our first teammate to cross the finish line.

“Congratulations to… Justin Lu from The Usuals!” 

I found it funny that my teammates were already completing the entire triathlon while I was just about to start the run. 

I ran out of transition and onto the 9am heat of the sun. 

My legs felt like jelly after an hour and 45 minutes of pedaling on the bike. 

I was barely jogging, just trudging forward as I completed the first kilometer. 

At 1.5 kms into the run, my left quad near my knee started to pinch and cramp up. 

500 meters later, my right quad experienced the same which forced me to stop and walk. 

“How am I going to finish 10kms of this?” I asked myself. 

Luckily, I brought some salt vials which had a mix of magnesium and potassium with me. 

As I took the salt, I kept walking forward until the cramps eventually went away. 

I could jog again, but my lungs were protesting after about 150 meters of restarting my jog. 

This caused me to alternate between running and walking throughout the rest of the run leg. 

Each KM marker felt like a small victory, and I reached the 5km mark. 

Halfway to go. 

At one point I was just brisk walking my way towards completing the 10km. 

It was more of a 10km walk, than it was a run for me. 

Eventually I made it a game for myself.

You see, there were traffic cones placed about 50 meters from each other followed by kilometer markers showing how far we’ve gone and how many more kilometers to go. 

I would run until I reached one cone, and walk until I reached the next. Alternating between walking and running. 

Eventually I reached KM 9 where there was a water station with ice cold water being poured over the heads of the athletes to cool us down. 

That shower of freezing cold water was like heaven under the heat of the sun. 

I felt refreshed and like a new man finishing up the last kilometer. 

As I reached the last 500 meters, I saw my wife in the crowd cheering me on just as she was doing when I finished the swim as well as the bike. 

This gave me that extra boost to finish the race. 

I crossed the finish line and a wave of relief washed over me. 

I was done. The pain was over. 

Unsurprisingly, I placed 32nd out of 32 men in my age group. 

Maybe most people in my shoes would feel frustrated, angry, or defeated after knowing this. 

I felt happy and inspired.

Why? 

Because this was the triathlon that gave me the most lessons. 

You see, in victory, you learn very few things about yourself. 

However, in defeat, the lessons pile on one after the other. 

And I was grateful for it. 

So, here are 5 lessons I learned from this grueling but unique experience. 

There is No One Or Nothing To Blame But Myself 

Although I’m not the type to blame others or circumstances, to me—this experience just highlighted how important taking responsibility is. 

I could have easily blamed the adjustment period of new marriage, or the times I got sick twice leading up to the race. 

However, those situations stem from my choices. 

It was ultimately my choice to leave health and training as the last priority. 

It was ultimately my choice to put my body through sudden heavy training in a short amount of time that it led to me getting sick… twice! 

I take responsibility for those choices. 

But, I now know better because of those experiences. 

I’ve reflected enough to know that I have to ease myself back into heavy training, not dive in head first and shocking my body—I’ve reflected enough to know that I need to make my health a priority. 

By taking responsibility, I take my power back. 

Blaming outside circumstances or other people only subconsciously tell me that I don’t have control over my life, rather other people or outside circumstances do. 

So, this really isn’t blaming myself, but rather taking full responsibility for my choices, decisions, and actions. 

Focus on What’s Important 

There is value in having a set of written goals. 

It’s a way to regularly align and audit if the actions I’m doing on a daily basis are bringing me closer to those written goals. 

Because of the physically painful experience of Bohol 5150, I want to avoid experiencing that again in the future—and so right after, I committed to taking care of my health and to start training more regularly. 

Which brings me to the next lesson

The Power of Contrast 

My definition of contrast is the “unwanted” or “undesired” experiences we go through in life. 

I’m learning to welcome those contrasting moments of my life because they make it clear to me what I DON’T want to experience. 

Which makes it even more clear to me what I DO want to experience. 

The value of it is that it brings clarity in what I ought to do and should do. 

Without contrast, I wouldn’t have the clarity that I do now. 

See Things Through 

I could have easily not joined the race anymore or even quit halfway when it got too painful. 

However, what type of person would I be if I did that? 

My identity is not that of a quitter. 

Had I quit, I wouldn’t have learned the lessons I’m now sharing with you. 

By seeing things through, I feel that the path I need to be on has become clearer and I’m more excited now to make progress. 

Have Fun

This may have been the most painful and challenging triathlon that I joined, however, it was also the most fun! 

Why?

Because I decided it to be so. 

I told myself at one point leading up to the triathlon that I’m just gonna enjoy this and have fun. I don’t care about how I’ll perform—but I’ll finish. 

And throughout the race, I had a lot of fun seeing the sights of the race course, smiling for photographers, and seeing how far my body can go! 

I may have been in physical pain, however I was mentally and emotionally in a state of joy and gratitude for the experience I was having. 

It was an adventure unlike any other for me. 

In Conclucion

Perception can be reality. 

And because I decided to have fun and perceive the experience as fun, that became my reality on race day. 

So, my invitation to you is to decide to enjoy life. 

I believe that one of the main reasons we’re here in this life is to enjoy it. 

And always remember, that you deserve it. 

Talk soon, 

Zach

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