I’ve started training for triathlons again after taking a year almost completely off. I’m in my first week of a full training load during a full work week, having started training during some time off. As I often do when trying to push through the fatigue of 5:30am wake up times for training, I find myself reflecting on why I do triathlons.

So why do I spend so much of my time training?

Some of it is for my health. I want to steward my health the best way I can, so that I can live as well as I can for as long as I can. I want to have longevity in life and leadership, and to be able to present myself before Lord as a ready instrument for whatever he calls me to, whether seen or unseen. To begin now, in my 30s, living in a way that gives me the best chance I can have to be able to finish well when I am older.

But it’s also about choosing each day to remember the biggest lesson triathlons have taught me. I started training for triathlons during a time in my life when I was struggling to believe I could still do hard things after a rough season. That year, I didn’t even care if I crossed a finish line, I just wanted to attempt something hard.

While it was even harder than I expected, I did complete a couple of sprint triathlons that year, and although it took 9 months, swimming technique finally clicked. Then, the next year, after putting in a lot of training hours, I went on to complete a half Ironman.

So why do I do triathlons?

I do triathlons to remember that things that seem impossible are sometimes less impossible than they seem.

And often the path from seeming impossible to being less impossible than it seems is paved with the faith to simply take the step in front of me.