You are an Ironman

I am still processing the completion of the 2025 California Ironman. Seeing the finish line at the 15:59:58 hour mark and hearing “You are an Ironman” made me realize that I did it.

I want to share what I learned from my Ironman California 2025 experience. I hope that the lessons I share can help you iron the wrinkles out of some areas of your life regardless if you are already an Ironman, you will do an Ironman event one day or choose to never do it. I’ll break it down into the pre-event, during the event and post-event.

PRE-EVENT: MINDSET IS EVERYTHING

Before the race, it is about physical strength and, more importantly, it’s about mental preparation. Whatever stage of life you’re in with your health, relationships, career, or finances, you may already be an Ironman or well on your way. This event may just be a mirror and may reveal the truth about where we stand in all areas of our lives. And truth, as tough as it can be, is the beginning of transformation. The hard questions I asked myself pre-event were:

1. “WHY” do I want to join the Ironman event?

2. Health: Am I healthy and fit enough to train to hit my goal?

3. Relationship: Are my wife and kids in support of my time away to prepare for Ironman? Do I have the right support from friends/coaches?

4. Career: Do I have time away from work to focus on training?

5. Finances: Do I have disposable income to fund the event (it’s not cheap)?

Those 5 questions needed to be answered truthfully and in that specific order. For example, without the big “WHY”, it’s very challenging to deal with the ups and downs of the physical, emotional and mental pains during training, during the event, and to find satisfaction after you’ve achieved your goals.

The “WHY” for me was I wanted to find out where I stand physically, emotionally and mentally. The event may be a way to confirm and reveal the truth like a mirror does. Also, “why now” was supported by the “yes” to all the four questions about health, relationship, career, and finances. I was in good fitness shape to endure the training and the event. I had the support of my wife (Maggie) and my two boys (Jaden and Aiden). I had great tips and wisdom from Andrew Kaven — a real deal Ironman. He suggested me to read “David Goggins: Can’t Hurt Me” and discussed the challenges he faced in his first Ironman California. The combination of David Goggins’ book and the firsthand experiences from Andrew toughened my mind. My career was at a break so I had time for training and the Ironman event. Lastly, I was lucky to have enough to fund the Ironman event. So it was up to me to put in the work and finish!

DURING THE EVENT: SWIM, RIDE and RUN THE HIGHS & LOWS

The actual Ironman day is all about the “ups, downs, highs, and lows,” and the truth assessment of my health, relationship, career, and finances. The key to my completion of the Ironman and feeling fulfilled at the finish line was that I believed in my preparation (training, reading, and absorbing advice), goals, and adjusting when the unexpected things happened.

The Swim:

At the swim start, I was excited, nervous, and scared all at the same time. I couldn’t tell whether it was excitement or nervousness and then the negative thoughts slammed into my mind:

1. What if I get into the water and drown like I almost did when I was a little boy?

2. What if I can’t stay afloat long enough to the finish line, just like I did when I did not pass the swim test for the pilot experience while I was in the Navy?

3. What if I won't make the cut-off time and won’t finish? Talk about letting everyone down and most importantly, letting me down.

Those doubting thoughts came up during my training too but it was easier to get rid of them when the reality was not nearby. In front of me wasn’t a narrow, clear, and warm pool. It was a wide muddy cold river with many other competitors. I had never swum in the open water for more than 100 meters and 2.4 miles seemed like I was setting up for failure. I had great support from family and friends the night before the event but the doubtful thoughts killed those encouragements really quickly at the swim area. I had no cell phone to call anyone to get some last-minute encouragement.

A couple of uplifting moments came. First, I caught Andrew walking towards the swim area. We tapped shoulders with a strong handshake. He said, “I can’t believe you’re doing this…you got gut for doing this”. I don’t know if it was the physical shoulder tap or the strong handshake or his words at the moment that shook the negative thoughts out of me. Second, I tapped into my “WHY”…which was to see where I stand physically, mentally and emotionally. The only way to know where I stand was to do the test so I need to do the swim. I immediately knew I would get through the swim and the worst thing that could happen was I wouldn’t finish but I was not going to die by drowning — there were lifeguards everywhere.

During the swim, a couple of challenging moments came up. First, at the turn from the American River into the Sacramento River, there was a Red buoy that I had to go around. The buoy was being pushed upstream so fast that I and many other swimmers were swimming upstream to get around it. I spent so much of my legs energy and went upstream side by side with the buoy for a good 2–3 minutes but felt like 5 minutes. Eventually, the officials allowed everyone to go under the turn of the Red buoy because the Red buoy moved so far away from its original spot. Then, after a few strokes beyond to Red buoy, my right leg cramped up. My panicked thoughts, “Oh snap…I’ve never cramped in water and cramping in water equals drowning”. I panicked and immediately lay on my back to float while waving for a nearby guard for her paddleboard so I could hold on to rest. A nice and athletic-looking young lady in her short (looked like a Baywatch star) came to me quickly by lying on her longboard and moving effortlessly with just her arms. I held on to the paddleboard and talked to the guard and realized that she was shaking more than me as she was feeling the cold wind and current pushing downward. I dug deep again and told myself, “The current is in my favor (downstream from here) and at least I am not shaking because of the cold water, and I can just lay my legs straight back and just move my arms like the lifeguard on the longboard”. So, I floated and moved forward with just my arms instead of using legs. I took advantage of the downstream river, and after 100 meters of swimming, my leg cramps went away. Then, it was all nice and easy strokes to the swim finish line. For me, I got through my biggest challenge of the event, childhood fear and past failure. There were no medals at this point and no friends/family members were cheering. Although we had the wonderful strangers cheering at every stage, they didn’t really know or couldn't feel what I felt. However, it did not matter. While some people may understand that Ironman is tough, the incredible and fulfilled feeling of completing my swim could never be felt by anyone except me. I was very proud of myself and there was NO external validation can compare to what I felt when I got through with the swim.

For my readers:

If you are dealing with anything really hard and figuring things out in your life — health, relationship, career, and finances — you will get through it. The fulfillment that you’ll get for yourself will be incredible. Believe me — the better you is waiting for you, will be proud and be with you forever. You got this, Ironman!

The Ride:

When I hop on my bike after the transition from swim, I felt good physically, mentally and emotionally. I didn’t need to worry about cars, traffic lights, other riders and just prayed that no bike mechanical issues. For most of the bike event, there were a lot of highs such as many groups of people cheering along the way, incredible athletes flying by on their TT bikes and the sunny weather with manageable wind speed. Until I got close to the 70-mile mark, I started to feel fatigue with my neck pain and left thigh cramps. Again, Andrew’s story about his experience at the 70-mile mark and “it’s a loooong day” came into my mind. I got off my bike at the rest station and took a long 5-minute break to eat, drank pickle juice, used the potty, and cooled down. Then, I continued until the 90 miles when I really struggled due to fatigue so I slowed down even more. For a good 10 miles, I was the only one on the road as the fast riders had started their runs and a few slower riders were not close behind me, and the observers had left the side of the road. I was alone but for some strange reason, I did not feel lonely. I felt incredibly at peace, the entire beautiful road with no cars was for me to ride and enjoy the scenery. Overall, the riding part of the Ironman event was enjoyable and the challenge was just physical because my riding fitness was not great.

For my readers:

Sometimes our health and fitness may not be where we want to be. If we listen to our body and slow down to enjoy little things such as the outdoors, the food, and the drinks (maybe not pickle juice), our mental and emotional strength will get us through the tough times.

The Run:

I felt great when the run begins because I have done 26.2 miles a few times. I did not need to be fast although I didn’t want any chance to miss the cut-off times. So, I started at the right pace and was moving great for 8 miles. Then, fitness weakness took over, my mind said to run but my legs walked. I walked for a very long time (probably a good 5 miles) although I was walking at 14–15min/mile. The longer I walked the more I didn’t want to run. People were cheering on the side because they thought I was on my second round of the run which would have been the 16–17 miles mark like many other athletes. While the intention of the cheerful bystanders was absolutely good and amazing, the timing of those cheers was not what I needed at that stage because it solidified how behind I was. Then, the sun was setting faster and eventually a complete darkness. I saw fewer and fewer athletes on the opposite side of the trail and heard fewer and fewer footsteps behind me. The only thing I could hear around me at some point was the mosquitoes (yes, I got bitten 4 times). I took in food and drinks at every aid station (every 1–2 miles). I tried to run 1 mile and walk 2 minutes but eventually my legs were so tight and I had the feeling of cramping like I had when I ran my first marathon. I had to walk more. I got to the 19-mile mark at around 10:30pm and the walking pace was slow at 14–15 min/mile. I asked a fellow athlete for the cut-off time and he told me that the cut-off time was 16.5 hours starting when I start my swim. I remember that the Athlete guide has 17-hour cut-off from the time of the athlete’s swim start. Regardless of whether 16.5 or 17 hours, I didn’t want any chance to miss the cut-off time. I calculated my pace and the time to midnight and if I was going to walk the entire time, I would miss the cut-off. So, I panicked and ran. A couple of miles in (~ mile 22–23), the feeling of major cramps on both legs was coming up so I slowed down. Then, David Goggins came into my mind — “when your mind tells you that you are done, you are only 40% finished”. Also, I remembered a video of David running and how he moved his hip. So, I kept my legs straight, leaned forward, eyes straight, chin up, and used my hip to run. Knowing the history of my body and legs, the last 3–5 miles were supposed to be a walk with cramps but instead I was running and I was running well. At around mile 25, I noticed a man by himself in the middle of the road with his phone camera and calling “my brother…my brother”. My thoughts, “No way…can’t be Hieu…” but it was Hieu, my brother. Then, a rush of energy kicked in, and I felt like I could run another 10 miles at my normal race speed. Hieu ran along the side and recorded me, while cheering out “you got this..my brother…my brother”. Imagine this: past 11pm, an empty quiet street, and the only sounds were the traffic lights, my footsteps and my brother running along the sideline with his phone camera and shouting “my brother, my brother…you got it.” He drove 2 hours with his wife and waited for hours to surprise me. It was incredible and it was one of the surprises that I will remember for life. Making my last turn to the red Ironman carpet, I saw the clock and knew I made the cut-off. As I ran on the red carpet, I smiled, waved at my brother and his wife, I got goosebumps, I had tears, and I turned around and looked at my name showing up on the Finish Line digital display. It was an out-of-body experience — I was looking at “Hau Le” with tremendous pride.

For my readers:

Sometimes when we are in the midst of hard times, we feel stuck, confused, or even quit. Just keep moving forward and take it all in — the pain, the noise, the misinformation, the tears, the joy. You will get exactly what you need when you least expect it by just keep moving forward.

Transitions — swim to bike to run:

During the transitions from swim to bike to run, I took my time and did not forget anything. Transition is the time to reset and get out to a good start with great momentum into the next activity.

For my readers:

While I didn’t have much to say about the transitions, don’t underestimate the importance of having a great transition plan for your health, relationship, career or finances. Transition points can have a significant disruption to the flow and process in any situation that you’re dealing with.

POST-EVENT: REFLECT & CELEBRATE

After the event, I celebrated our accomplishments (it took a village to accomplish our success) and re-visited all the highs, lows, ups, and downs of the event. I texted, called and talked about those moments and lessons with friends and family who have supported me throughout my training, during the event and post-event.

As you can see, you don’t have to do an Ironman or Ironwoman event. If you are working on your health, nurturing relationships, showing up at your job, and managing your finances, you are already in your own endurance race. However, I believe that we all need to do something really hard for ourselves every once in a while to assess where we truly stand in health, relationships, career and finances. The events like the Ironman may reveal where we were, where we are and where we want to go.

Wherever you are in your journey — health, relationship, career, and finances: Keep showing up. Keep pushing forward. Control your own endurance race. You’ll kill the obstacles and become an Ironman or Ironwoman too!

Bonus: if you got through with my story, you have endured a lot. Congrats!

My Ironman 2025 journey highlights:

Health — Stayed healthy throughout the Ironman event

Relationship — great encouragement and lessons throughout the Ironman experience from Andrew Kaven. My brother, Hieu Le, and his wife, Duong Lam, waited at the finish line for hours to surprise me. Of course, most importantly, my wonderful wife who supported me during my three months of training and took care of a lot of things at home and my two boys who were so proud of me for doing the Ironman event.

Career — A long break before Ironman became a transformation point (i.e,I see it as a pivotal transition point from swim to bike)

Financial freedom — I was lucky to have enough to fund my first Ironman experience. Worth every cent!