By Jayme C.

After finishing my first half Ironman in August 2015 and having a fantastic race year overall, I herniated a disc playing touch football with my kids Thanksgiving morning.  Anyone who has had such an injury will instantly know the level of pain associated with this type of injury.  In my case, the sciatic pain running down my leg was debilitating.  I was determined to heal this injury naturally and after one year and at least a dozen treatment options, I decided to go under the knife.

My surgery was painful and recovery was slower than most according to my doctor.  I was determined to return to triathlon and worked slowly toward my goal.  My coach, Jim Riga, was a major part of helping me keep my sanity and talked me off the ledge on several occasions.  Although the pain has never fully subsided, he helped me listen to my body, so we didn’t push too hard, and helped keep me focused and patient as progress was slow.

Almost two years to the date of my last race, I completed the Escape Lake Geneva Olympic Distance Tri this past weekend.  Coach Jim and I set a strategy for training and then for the race.  We established a goal time as well as a stretch goal time.  The weekend was hot and humid with the daytime temps reaching into the 90’s.  The water was so warm that wetsuits were not allowed in competition.  With my family and Coach Jim there to cheer me on, I overcame many of the demons we all face during the course of a race and proudly completed the race at my goal time of 3 hours.

Thank you Coach Jim and ET Personal Coaching Services for helping me get back into the game!

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