Journey to Ironman New Zealand 2023 with Endometriosis

I remember the first time I saw a video on YouTube about an Ironman event. It was 2014 and I was training for a marathon at that stage and had lost 20kg. The first thought when I saw the distances of Ironman, a 3.8km swim, 180km on the bike and a 42.2km run, I was in awe and thought, this is something other people do, it's not something I would ever be capable of doing. Of course, though, the question of what if came to mind. What if I could do this event which I thought impossible.

My journey to Ironman New Zealand 2023 is an accumulation of dreaming, hard work, persevering and some serious setbacks. I have had four surgeries for endometriosis between the years of 2016 and 2022. Endometriosis effects 1/10 women and those assigned female at birth. It is a disabling condition that saw me running marathons to being unable to jog around the block due to severe pain and fatigue. I hope to not need more surgeries but with still no cure, it is not known how long it will be before I have significant recurrence of disease. Unfortunately, it was less than 18 months between my last two surgeries. I was in pain for a long time before I sought help wondering if something was wrong. I went from thinking my periods were normal to when disabled with severe pain I thought I wasn't being tough enough, that everyone else goes through this and I needed to be stronger.

My goal is to use the Ironman and triathlon platform to raise awareness for endometriosis and fundraise for Endometriosis New Zealand who supported me in the lead up and following my third surgery. They helped me with my fears and apprehension. EndoNZ helps support thousands of sufferers throughout New Zealand and also provides education in high school about endometriosis and what to look for. This can completely change the outcome of someones disease if caught early.

You can also follow my training journey on Instagram at meg.chasing_ironman.