HOUSTON – The IRONMAN World Championship Triathlon in Kona, Hawaii, is less than five months away and KPRC meteorologist Eric Braate is deep into his training for the event.
He is competing in it to raise at least $140,600 for a great cause, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. He will be spending a lot of time in the water to get ready for the first leg of the race, a 2.4-mile swim in the Pacific Ocean.
It’s difficult to mimic the open water of the Hawaiian Pacific Ocean while he’s training in Houston, so he has to focus on building his endurance in the pool. To do that, he’ll be heading out to 24 Hour Fitness in Midtown several times a week between now and the race, which is in October.
Travis Schultz, fitness manager at 24 Hour Fitness, said building strength is a key to conquering an Ironman triathlon. In addition to that, he says that there are four pillars to any successful training program:
1. Get Moving.
2. Get into the right mindset.
3. Eat right.
4. Build recovery time into your workout schedule.
In addition to training in the pool, Eric has been racking up the miles on his bike and in his running shoes. That’s because the Ironman World Championship isn’t just a 2.4-mile swim. After the swim, he has to bike 112 miles and then run 26.2 miles, a full marathon. That’s a total of 140.6 miles.
Now back to the purpose of all this. Eric has committed to raising $1,000 for every mile he completes in his Ironman. That’s where the $140,600 goal comes from.
And every cent goes to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, which invests tens of millions of dollars annually into research to fight blood cancers and to provide financial aid to blood cancer patients and their families.
LLS believes all patients should have access to the latest, cutting-edge treatments.
To reach his goal, we need your help! Please go to team in training to learn more about his journey and see stories of blood cancer patients and survivors.
There is also a link Eric’s donation page, where you can make a direct, tax-deductible donation to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society that will be counted toward his campaign goal.