When Will We Stop?

Often, when I limp my way across the office floor (a day after a hard training session) colleagues tend to ask me: ‘When will you stop doing all these triathlons and marathons?’ It is incomprehensible to them to spend an hour or more swimming, cycling and running. There are surely better things they could do with their time.

I have no answer to this reasonable question. It is a complex combination of choice and circumstance. This endurance journey began for me with a few simple goals (finishing my first biathlon and half-marathon), and the goals have changed and increased through time (completing multiple Ironman races and ultra-marathons across the globe).

Perhaps, I will stop when significant injuries beset my body. I may stop if something life-threatening happens. Some of our best professional triathletes had to quit permanently from competing due to medical issues. That is, probably, one of the most painful ways to quit. It is like dropping out of a marathon because of an injured foot, busted bike, or gastrointestinal problems when you are doing well.

Competitive athletes have this mindset: Winners never quit. Quitters never win. There is certainly a limitation in this form or thinking, as it does to enhance one’s capability. I suppose that the psychology and psyche of the serious athlete has been tweaked to not accommodate failure or give up readily and easily. Mainly, it is a personal matter to finish in poor time, or to call it a day.

When will you stop?