What is your ultimate goal? (Page 2)

Keep healthy and fit as long as I can!!!

I was talking to my coach about this this morning actually.  The snobs, typically fast-ish AG athletes who think they are all that and a bag of chips because they are at the top of their AG and begrudge everyone and any one who can't win or have modest goals need a slap in the face.  Endurance sports are about SO MUCH MORE than some arbitrary time goal.  First of all there are so many things that can go wrong on race day esp as you start doing longer races, many of which are beyond our control. 

God bless every single person out their regardless of their size shape appearance or disability who is brave enough to say YEAH I want to do that and starts training.  ANYTHING in our inactive obese country that is eating itself to death that gets anyone off the couch, moving more and embracing a healthy lifestyle is GOOD.  The people who don't think you should bother getting off the couch if you can't win need a wake up call. I'm old and slow and a few pounds over weight but I''ve been at this 10 years now and have completed races of every distance including 6 ironmans.  Go ride your mountain bike, enjoy fitness, get some goggles to go with that swim suit and welcome to the addiction.

my other goal is to keep the slow people in their place so they don't get that "I'm better than you because I don't care about winning" attitude

I don't have an ultimate goal.  I always have a variety of goals from short to long term, and the list changes over time.

Your goals are yours to own, nurture, protect, and grow into reality.  I can't get you through a 140.6 in a way that satisfies your sense of accomplishment. As such, please don't undermine your goals with words like "modest" or "just."  Be proud of whatever goals motivate you to CHANGE in order to accomplish them.  (And if you can do it without changing anything, call it a capability rather than a goal.)  

If you envision yourself crossing the finish line to an iron distance race within the 17-hour cutoff, the challenge is getting to the start line healthy and ready to race.  Attrition during a typical 140.6 is 5% give or take a couple % in normal conditions.  This includes the pro's who drop out so they can preserve themselves for other races rather than pound themselves on a run for an out-of-the-money finish.  Now there are some races where unusual conditions exact a large toll on participants unprepared for the situation or unwilling to adjust their strategy to the situation.  That's all part of preparing for the race.  

I can't say that I've seen any competitors doing IM races on an old mountain bike, but I have seen them race on old, steel-framed road bikes.  My tri-bike is almost 20 years old.  

I think you posted later that you suffer from fibromialgia.  If so, my advice is to hire a coach who understands your condition and will customize a training plan that gets you properly trained.  It won't do you much good to buy a fancy, lightweight bike if you're too sick to ride it!  

If there's one thing I've found out it's that my goals always seem to move. At first it was to run a marathon, then a HIM. That then somehow morphed into qualifying for Boston and picked up some sub 18 5k goals as well. Now I find that's all moved to encompass a sub 16 5k some day before I'm too old and find my way into Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc. Just today I learned you can now qualify to get into Berlin so I'm adding a sub 2:45 marathon to my goal list and one of these days I'll run across the US, unsupported. Who knows what new goals will pop up after all of that.

I think my ultimate goal is to just have fun

That's the great thing about goals - you strive as hard as you can to reach them, and once you do - there's always a new goal you can set for yourself!  Initially mine was to finish a super sprint and now I'm looking at possibly doing two IM's this year (shhhh - don't tell the hubby!), and who knows after that.  I'm also going to try stand-up paddleboarding, aerial silks, do a couple of running races, etc.  

My ultimate goal??  To have fun.    If I'm not enjoying what I'm doing, then what's the point???  

My ultimate goal is forever changing. As my mind and body becomes healthier and I become more confident I find myself inspiring to want more. I guess one of the advantages to this is I may never reach my ultimate goal so I won't suffer from the "What do I do now?" complex. I have a ton of short-term goals, each goal connecting and supporting the next short-term goal. I have a plan. I try to stick to it, do my best not to beat myself up for straying off track, meander back on track and pat myself on the back for recognizing I strayed and correcting the situation. To me, the important thing is to make that first step. Don't let outside influences or your own brain interfere with what your heart wants. Be safe, be mindful of others and listen to your body.