A puddle of sweat covers the concrete floor below Tom Aylward’s indoor training bike. But his trainer, Shawn Burke, doesn’t give Aylward much slack. As soon as the warm-up is complete, Aylward hits the ground for push-ups and squat thrusts, jumps laterally against a resistance band, then pulls almost 300 pounds, arm-over-arm, across the gym with a heavy rope. This pace would not have been possible 18 months ago when Aylward first approached Burke and asked for help training to participate in the Ford Ironman Coeur d’Alene. The 62-year-old man was more than 100 pounds overweight and had never biked, swum or run any distances, let alone completed one of the nation’s most challenging endurance races/Alison Boggs, SR. More here.

Question: Has the Ironman Coeur d'Alene race inspired you to get fitter?