Category: Journal Entry

5 Miles in 112 degree heat

I was recently in Dallas/Fort Worth for work and was able to run 5 miles after a few meetings. Nothing too special as I love going on runs when I travel. However – it was 112 degrees out. Seriously.

I had a camelback type thing (backpack with built in water that holds 50 ounces). I felt that I had plenty of water, even with the heat.

Well – the run was fun. It was indeed hot. And I drank the whole 50 ounces in about 45 minutes. I couldn’t believe it (since I don’t have a stomach, I don’t have the space to chug water). I suspect it was a mixture of how much I was sweating and with a higher heart rate, it’s easier to consume food/drinks.

Anyways – just another cool story that things become pretty normal over time. It’s been 18 months since my TG. If I don’t overeat and I get enough sleep – my energy levels are similar to before. Thanks for reading a feel free to tweet me any questions!

How I Raced IRONMAN Florida 70.3 with No Stomach

If you are reading this, you are probably thinking, “How did you get nutrition during the race”? Great question! I feel like I got lucky. What worked for me, doesn’t mean it will work for you. But – It might!

Prerace:

I treated my days as normal before the race. I did take one GU Hydration Drink Tabs with a G2 Gatorade two days before the race and the day before, I took two GU Hydration Drink Tabs with two G2 Gatorades. I sipped on these between meals.  The evening meal before the race was pad thai – not spicy.  I did spike my sugar a bit (expected with me) and caught it on the way down at 58, and then ate a few gummy packs to bring it back up. But – no major issues.

Pre-race: wake at 4:00 – 3 oz of Espresso

Eat a “One Protein Bar” at around 5am (takes about 45 min)

7am: start sipping on First Endurance EFS: Lemon Lime and water (two separate bottles)

7:55am: last sip of water. Race Time!

On the Bike about 42 min later. I have water up front with one GU Hydration Drink Tab, 4 GU Energy Gel (tri-berry) mixed with water on the frame, and Hammer Perpetuem on the back.

I sipped all these every few minutes, mixing it up as I went. I grabbed water at the water stations and refilled my front water container and dropped one more GU Hydration Drink Tab at around mile 45.  I also had a bag of ruffles that I started eating around mile 30 because sipping sugary drinks becomes boring. Dang – those chips taste amazing.

In transition from the bike to the run (T2), I put an ice filled water bottle (smart water bottle) down the back of my tri-suit – and took a bottle of Hammer Perpetuem on my fanny pack and 2 extra GU Hydration Drink Tab in my pack.  Those were extra should it get hot. Well – it got very hot. 91+ degrees.  The ice melted around mile 5, then I drank that.  And I popped those extra GU Hydration Drink Tabs with water at mile 5 and 9 and got more GU Gels from the volunteers on the race to mix with water when I refilled the water.

I really expected to blow up or cramp or “fail” or something during the run. But – this plan worked very well. I walked the transitions when I needed to refill, but beyond that – I had a great race and didn’t have major issues. It was hard – but it was so rewarding! Thank you, for everyone who cheered me on along the way and tracked me live. I felt like I was getting energized by the support!

Love ya’ll. Would love to do a full IRONMAN soon. But the primary challenge is scheduling the training around family, work, etc.

Tweet me at @GoWithoutYoGut if you want me to blog about specific topics.

Race Pictures

I’m still very sore from the race. Basically – from head-to-toe. Like – my upper neck, all the way to my right big toe. But – it was worth it. I earned the pain! And I did it for you all!

IRONMAN Florida 70.3 Finishing Time: 6:05:05

Swim: 42:09

Bike 2:59:52

Run 2:12:29

Overall, I’m very happy with the race. No major issues. The wind was bad at times (20mph) and it was hot (91) but rained for about 5 minutes at mile 8 which helped for a bit. Thankfully, the IRONMAN staff was fantastic and had ice and water along the run.

 

IRONMAN Florida 70.3 Race Day Information – Sunday 8am ET

Race Day Information – Sunday 8am ET
  1. You can track me live on Sunday starting at around 8am/9am (ish) ET via the website or Ironman tracker app.
  3. Ironman Tracker App: IRONMAN Tracker by Dilltree Inc https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ironman-tracker/id1183983404?mt=8
  4. Look me up using name “Dylan Davison” or my bib number “1369” under the IRONMAN Florida event.
  5. The tracker updates every few miles so you can track the entire day.
  6. Race should take about 6 hours or so depending on the Wind and the Heat (20 mph winds on the bike and 90 degree heat on the run will both make the race challenging).
  7. During the race, I’m raising money for No Stomach For Cancer! So please consider a donation of any size to: https://give.everydayhero.com/us/support-no-stomach-for-cancer-and-join-me-as-i-race-ironman
  8. You all encourage me so much. Thank you for following along and donating to this important cause. ❤️❤️
I’m including some extra details for those of you who are new to this campaign!

10 Months Post Total Gastrectomy

Things are going as expected. I can’t believe it’s been 10 months since my total gastrectomy.  I have lost a total of 45 lbs. However, I can still race Triathlon and beat my old times! Next stop – IronMan and Marathon.

However, I haven’t been training as much as I hoped due to soreness after workouts. I also have lost a bit of weight so I’m trying to figure out how to keep the lbs on. My goal is to run the half marathon in January for the Charleston Marathon event.  I’ve run it before (with a stomach) and really want to beat my old time but the lack of training certainly will impact me.  We will see.

If you want to hear about certain topics, request them via Twitter –  https://twitter.com/GoWithoutYoGut

Stay tuned!

Stomachless Ironman 70.3

Hey Ya’ll

I have an exciting announcement! I’m going to be racing in an IRONMAN 70.3 Triathlon.

Event Details:
IRONMAN 70.3 – Wilmington, NC 10/13/2018
1.2 Mile Swim
56 Mile Bike
13.1 Mile Run
Goal time – sub 5:30:00

Today is my birthday and I’m really excited about this race and the support of all my family and friends as we try to raise money and awareness for No Stomach For Cancer. I have yet to do a race like this without a stomach and I’m sure it won’t be easy. Please join me in fundraising efforts and share this page!

Donate Here

Or the link below:

https://give.everydayhero.com/us/support-no-stomach-for-cancer-and-join-me-as-i-race-ironman

Keywords:

Ironman 70.3 triathlon cdh1 hdgc stomach cancer

No stomach for cancer

Total gastrectomy

6/21/2018 – Twenty-Four Weeks Post Total Gastrectomy

Ya’ll – I did another Triathlon.  Here is a picture of around mile 2 of the run.

June 17 2018 – Charleston Sprint Triathlon Race 2

This sprint triathlon is a 600-meter swim, 12-mile bike, and 3-mile run.

I hope you don’t mind the dorky picture. I get a bit loopy during these events.

It was hot and I couldn’t catch my breath on the run. I felt like I had nothing left to give.  I wanted to quit but fought through it. My goal was to post my best time ever but I came up 20 seconds short of my personal best. I DID, however, improve my time by 23 seconds from last race. I was motivated to fight for a personal best after I met so many sweet people in Tampa that encouraged me to keep improving and fighting to get better.  They told me it encouraged them seeing me doing triathlon and improve my times. The next race is July 29 and I’m already excited!

I’m trying to increase my training, while not losing weight.  It’s not easy. I weigh 161 lbs and my body fat has to be in the single digits. I weighed 202 prior to surgery. It’s pretty crazy. I don’t want to go any lighter because I know my training load will increase if I do the Ironman 70.3 in Wilmington in October.  I have until July/August to figure it all out – assuming they don’t sell out the event.

The Ironman 70.3 is exciting, but I’m hopeful I can also run a Marathon by the end of this year and hopefully a full Ironman (140.6 miles) in November of 2019. I want to use those events to fundraise for No Stomach For Cancer as they help fund research for CDH1 gene mutation.

I hope you will stay tuned and keep reading along as I figure this all out. I need to focus on staying healthy and fueled so I can keep training.