5 Essential Habits That Took Me From Procrastinator To Ironman Finisher
“If you keep waiting until the time is right, you’ll likely never start.”
Courtesy of Author I recently completed the biggest mental and physical challenge of my life. After swimming for 3.8 kilometers (2.4 miles), biking for 180 kilometers (112 miles), and running for 42 kilometers (26 miles), I crossed the finish line and heard the magic words ‘Jari, you are an IRONMAN’.
An Ironman triathlon is considered one of the most difficult physical challenges in the world. I decided to sign up for one because I felt like I needed a new challenge to get me out of a personal rut. To be honest, I was getting a bit too comfortable in my daily life, so I needed to shake things up and push myself out of my comfort zone.
If you had told my 20-year-old self that I would complete an Ironman nine years later, I wouldn’t have believed you. Even though I always had big goals and dreams, I never followed through with them as I was a huge procrastinator. I’ll share the essential habits that helped me complete an Ironman as an ex-procrastinator. These 5 habits can boost your motivation, self-discipline, and productivity in any area of your life (not just when training for an Ironman).
Here are 5 habits that helped me go from procrastinator to Ironman finisher:
1. Start even if you don’t feel ready
When I signed up for an Ironman ten months before the start, I didn’t feel ready at all:
- My swimming technique was terrible
- I didn’t have a racing bike yet
- I had zero triathlon experience
- My longest run in two years was 6 miles (10 km)
Despite feeling far from ready, I decided to start this project anyway. I signed up for the race and told everyone I was going to do an Ironman, so there was no way back. This gave me the accountability and momentum to get into action right away. Now that it was real (instead of a cool dream), I had to begin training for it. This taught me an important lesson.
If you keep waiting to start a new project or goal until you ‘feel ready’ or the time is ‘just right’, you’ll never start. There will always be a thousand excuses why now is not the right time. So, for any goal or dream you think about pursuing, just start. If you want to write a book, start today by writing the first paragraph of the first chapter. If you want to build a business, register your domain name or write a one-page business plan today. If you want to do an Ironman, start your first training session or sign up for an event right now.
Don’t wait until you feel 100% ready. If you keep waiting for the right time, you’ll likely never start. Just take that first step, no matter how small.
2. Chunk a big goal into small, actionable goals
When I just signed up for the Ironman, I was nervous. The distances in all three disciplines are immense, how would I ever complete it? When you’re facing a huge challenge, it can quickly become overwhelming. That’s why I used the ‘goal-chunking’ method. For any intimidating goal or project you have, chunk it into small, intermediate goals. This makes the entire process less intimidating and more actionable.
For my Ironman, I’d set monthly, weekly, and daily goals:
- Monthly Goal: 8x swim, 12x bike, and 10x run sessions
- Weekly Goal: 2x swim, 3x bike, and 2x run sessions
- Today’s Goal: Go for a 13 km (8 mile) run
With every small goal I achieved, I got a sense of progress, which fueled my motivation and kept procrastination away. Instead of being overwhelmed by the entire Ironman distance, I simply focused on completing today’s training as best as I could.
This ‘goal-chunking’ method can be applied to any big, overwhelming goal you have. For example, if your goal is to write a book, don’t think about the hundreds of pages and thousands of words you still have to write. Instead, break it down into more actionable writing goals (such as writing 5,000 words this week or 750 words today).
3. Surround yourself with like-minded people
I simply couldn’t have achieved the Ironman if I had done it all by myself. It’s nearly impossible to maintain high levels of discipline and motivation when you’re training alone for ten months. That’s why I decided to get other like-minded people involved:
- I hired a personal trainer to coach me once a week
- I got multiple friends to train with me a few times per month
- I asked my girlfriend to keep me accountable for my training goals
It’s basic human psychology to perform better when other people keep us accountable for our progress. (And also, it made the entire training process more fun.)
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As more of an introvert, I prefer doing things my way. So, it wasn’t always easy to have social accountability. But I experienced first-hand that you can achieve so much more when you work together with inspiring people who keep you accountable. On those early mornings when I’d rather sleep in than run on the track, my coach was there to keep me accountable. And on those cold, rainy days (we have a lot of those in the Netherlands), my training partners were there to keep me accountable.
So, if you have big, ambitious goals, don’t go at it alone. Surround yourself with like-minded people who elevate your performance. Whether that’s by hiring a coach, joining a community (could also be online), reaching out to inspiring people on social media, or joining forces with a friend, you can achieve so much more when you’re supported by good people.
4. Protect your energy
Training for an ironman requires about 15–20 hours a week. So, if you don’t prioritize your health and energy, you’re going to burn out and feel exhausted all the time. That’s why I practiced the following habits:
- Sleep at least 7–8 hours per night
- No alcohol at least 4 months before the Ironman
- Consume lots of electrolytes every day
- Eat high-carb meals to fuel my training sessions
- Drink at least 3 liters of water a day
But optimizing your energy isn’t just important when training for an Ironman, it’s key for high performance in any area of life. Energy is everything. When you’re tired, you’re not going to feel motivated, you’ll be more prone to instant gratification, and you won’t perform at your best. It will affect you in every area of life, such as work, fitness, family, and mental health. So, whether you’re training for an ironman or not, protect and prioritize your energy. Sleep enough, eat nutrition-rich foods, manage your stress, and exercise often.
5. Manage your time
Those 15–20 training hours per week are a lot to manage. Combine it with running your own business, and things quickly become overwhelming. That’s why solid time management was crucial for me.
Every Sunday, I’d take a few minutes and schedule all of my training sessions and high-priority business tasks for that week in Google Calendar. Not only was this essential in keeping me on track with my Ironman training and business growth, but it also gave me a sense of control and peace of mind. On those rare weeks where I didn’t plan well enough, it was chaos. I would either miss a training session, end my workday much later than I wanted, or be forced to skip some fun moments with friends.
All in all, if you want to be as productive as possible while having more peace of mind, plan your days and weeks. Schedule when you’re going to work on what. It makes life a lot easier to manage.
Jari Roomer is an online creator and entrepreneur. His articles on productivity and entrepreneurship have been featured in Foundr Magazine, Forbes, Huffington Post, and Medium.