I Dare You To Dream....

Today I Dare You To Dream...Look to the stars and the sky and take a deep breath and really dare yourself to dream the biggest dreams you can. Don't think about the logistics of money, time or anything else, I just want you to dream...

What comes to mind, is its spending years travelling around the world and do things you have never done? Is it trekking to the Summits of the highest mountains? Is it visiting a particular place? Is it making something out of wood or metal? Is it learning to paint? No matter what it is write it down. Now take to the computer and research your dream to what it would take to do. Now still don't think about the logistics or the dream (money or time).  Would you need to take lessons? Do some form of physical training? Would you take a loved one with you, would you go on your own, or in a group?

Now continue with dream and plan it like you were going to do it. Don't put a time frame on it now, but just think about how you feel about doing this dream and making it come true and feel the feelings of that moment it comes to fruition. Are you scared? Are you excited? Are you deliriously happy? How is everyone else feeling that is with you? Are they proud of you? Are you proud of yourself for making such an achievement?  

I did this today, I sat and thought about the things that I would love to do and didn't think of what it would cost, or the time it would need to make this happen. I dreamed that I could travel the world and swim in different long distance events. I looked at swims in Hawaii, New Zealand, Italy, Japan, USA, and Spain. It would take me about seven to fourteen years and a bit lotto win if I wanted to do this in one sweep of time off of work. The thought of travelling and being able to do the one thing I love so deeply would be totally amazing, thrilling and even scary. I would love to share this with my husband, even though swimming ins't the most spectator friendly sport. To have some of my closest friends be apart of this adventure as my support crew would be amazing as well.

 Could I still make this dream come true? Yes I can! By taking time off each year from work and spending some time in each location at the time of the swim and making sure arrangements are all in place before leaving home so by the time we touch down at the location I am ready to take on the long distance and the conditions that I face, plus the experience of swimming in so many different locations and seeing so much marine wildlife would be incredible.


So what is it going to take to make this dream come to fruition? I would be continuing my swimming fitness and general fitness at the gym. I would have to look at the cost of locations and the cost of organising support crews in the particular country. I would have to make such detailed plans for each event, as they can be dangerous with weather and water conditions, but also the risks of hypothermia  are big in these events, as the water temperature can drop suddenly and the water can become rough as well. There is also the risks of dealing with marine life. You never switch off to the possibility of sharks, but you look at it in this way, you are in their territory, you know the risks, and you learn as much as you can about the area you are swimming in to reduce the risks as best you can.

Where would I start? I will be spending the next eight months preparing for my first 10km swim, then my first 20km swim. Keep building the body and mind to deal with these distances, and then in about 2 years push myself that much further with a 40km swim in the waters of my home city. This is all part of the training necessary to reach some of the big distances that are swum through out the world.

With marathon swimming there is a large part of mental strength that is necessary to build, as it is in running and lots of other endurance sports. I am a true believer in, if the mind believes it can conquer and make the distance the body will follow.

I learnt this lesson May 2014 when I completed my first Half Ironman with two injuries, and one of them is still trying to heal. So the mind can push the body to its end and beyond.

There are going to be days that aren't going to be as good and exciting as others, there are going to be days where I am going to be tired, grumpy and want to stop, but as long as I keep in mind the end result of finishing that is what will get me through I believe.

So why do I want to push my body to these limits, why do I want to risk so much? I honestly don't know, I just have this deep seated drive to push myself to extreme levels. The body is such an amazing thing and I am so interested to what the human body can be put through and accomplish. I guess after my heart attack I learnt to live for the moment.

So Dare Yourself To Dream...and you might surprise yourself to what you can do in your life that might excite, scare or exhilarate you ten fold.

Have an amazing week...

Hayley xx