From Overcoming Obstacles to IRONMAN Triumph: Jake Lynch's Journey 💪

In the annals of personal achievement, Jake Lynch's journey stands as a testament to resilience and determination. On June 18, 2023, he achieved a milestone that was once a distant dream: completing an IRONMAN. But his story isn't just about crossing the finish line; it's a tale of transformation, from shedding over 50 kilograms to finding his passion for triathlons. Join us as we delve into Jake's remarkable odyssey, where challenges were conquered, motivation was rekindled, and a special, custom-designed FOHER Co suit played a part in honoring a loved one's memory. Jake's narrative is a reminder that every finish line is a beginning, and with the right spirit and support, one can achieve the extraordinary. 

x Kylie and the FOHER Team

--------------------------------------------------

The 18^th of June 2023 will go down in the books as one of my proudest accomplishments, not necessarily because I smashed out my goal race but more so because it was the end of what was a huge journey for me physically and emotionally. Now there is always another journey that starts when one ends and I’m excited to see where that takes me but for now, I want to reflect on this achievement and all the steps that lead me to this point.

To set the scene at the end of 2018 I had tipped the scales at over 135kg and had tried 1000 times to get back into fitness but never followed through with it, so in 2019 with support of the family we made some big changes to nutrition and overall wellness in the house which was the lightbulb moment that sent me on this path. I had always known of Ironman racing and had told my self that was the end goal, to finish an Ironman.

Pic: Jake Lynch at 135kg before his transformation.

Late in 2019 after dropping over 30kg I found my love of running and riding and entered my first triathlon, the Mooloolaba Tri it was at this point I was hooked and had the “Tri bug”. I slowly kept building and eventually signed up and completed a handful of half distance triathlons post covid lockdowns before deciding to go all in and sign up for the big show, IM Cairns.

Pic: Jake Lynch finishing his first ever triathlon at Mooloolaba.

At this point I’d lost around 50kg plus and felt it was finally time to give it a crack, so I signed up initially to complete it in 2022 but due to an early season hip injury had to defer a further 12 months. No biggie, it was an extra 12 months of training! Little did I know our family would embark on an adventure to the tropics, moving to Cooktown in Far North Queensland.

I remember thinking she’ll be sweet I’ll get acclimatised to the heat so if anything, it’ll be better for me. Well, I wasn’t wrong, but I wasn’t right either! Training for an Ironman in a remote region of Australia posed some hurdles for sure. Training 15 plus hours a week solo just added to the difficulty of the journey but when you add in all the weekends of travelling 4 hours or more in one direction for the kids to play sports or to do a shop at a Woolies or Coles as living remote limits your grocery range significantly, or squeezing in my uni studies I quickly found the motivation levels were falling.

I had never really had issues with motivation since I’d changed my lifestyle in 2018 and here I was going into the biggest one day challenge of my life and just not feeling it. Luckily it was at this point I was reminded of how important it is to not take any of it for granted when a family member announced they were planning an event in Brisbane in memory of my late Aunty Marianne who passed away in 2022 after a tough battle with lung cancer. I had raised roughly $15k over the previous three years for the lung foundation, I was grateful to see someone else use their skills to take it to new heights and that was certainly achieved with the “I Wish” fundraiser!

Pic: Jake on his way to IRONMAN Cairns and fundraising for his beloved Aunty Marianne and the Lung Foundation.

The only problem was this event was the week before Ironman Cairns and I couldn’t be there in person, so I decided if I couldn’t be there in person, I would do the next best thing and represent in the tropics. I wanted to raise some money to go towards the overall fundraiser, but I also really wanted to race in a kit that paid tribute to my aunty and wouldn’t be missed during the race. My aunty Marianne was known for her kindness and love of dressing in bright colours no matter the occasion, this led to me to reach out to Kylie at FOHER Co as I knew if anyone could nail the memo it would be FOHER Co!

I went in a little undercooked, I was very realistic to the fact that I was running heavy and had missed a number of key training sessions and weekends due to all the life commitments, so when I say I had a really tough day in the office anyone that has tried an Ironman under prepared would know how I felt. I suffered a leg cramp in the swim, I remember thinking “Well that’s not the start I was looking for” but quickly jumped on the bike and got back into rhythm and back on pace. Roughly 90-100km in started to cramp in both legs and I knew the day had gone from hitting a goal to getting over the finish line. After soft pedalling for the final couple of hours I got off the bike and into T2 with locking up of my hamstrings and quads when attempting to get my shoes on I suddenly thought how on earth am I going to finish but as quickly as I had the negative thoughts they were flushed out with a sense of joy as my kids were cheering me out of the tent, suddenly I was running and somehow I kept it together for the 10-12km before cramping up again. This was the story of the remainder of the race and an experience I’ll never forget as I jogged across the finish line and rang the iconic first timer bell!

Pic: Jake Lynch with his IRONMAN Cairns finishers medal.

After spending some time eating chips and pizza I was able to catch up with Kylie and thank her in person for getting the suit perfect for what ended up being a mammoth day out!

Pic: Jake and Kylie catching up after Jake's first IRONMAN Cairns finish.

The custom design process was super easy I marketed my ideas to Kylie and she gave me straightforward directions to take it to the next step, I honestly was stressed initially as I’d left this all until the last minute but Kylie and the FOHER Co team whipped up the designs and put it the wheels in motion and as you can see for yourself, it was an eye catching piece that served me well all day and into the night! I couldn’t have been happier with the suit in the way it performed during the race and how it paid tribute to my aunty while raising awareness to the Lung Foundation.

So, for now my Ironman appetite has been met… (Kind of, I do have some unfinished business at this distance and know I’ll be back! Maybe in a new custom suit, we’ll see.) but something that I do know is I can’t wait to throw on this suit again and continue to wear the best kit on course and perform while doing it!

Jake Lynch