Braden Currie isn’t quite made of steel — but almost. The professional Kiwi Ironman gave the Wānaka Sun some advice on what it takes to be a real Ironman. When asked about the diet, training regime and mental endurance, Currie said, ”The biggest things are consistency and training. Getting sick can be a major setback or having the need to take time off”. 

As to his diet, Currie’s view is basically eating healthy food all the time. The secret is not to over complicate it and trying to keep it simple as much as possible. Veggies, proteins and a whole balanced diet. During training he sticks to a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet, which gives the body slow-burning fuel to use. “I like to see fats as a slow-burning energy source that does not have too much waste and that your body can utilise on a day-to-day basis. High carbohydrate is great for race days, but on non race days it results in a lot of waste. This by-product can lead to an unhappy stomach and unwanted lactic acid,” Currie explained. 

Recovering after race is a big part of the process and it can be managed in many different ways. Currie makes sure that the time away from physical exercise is productive, whether it is using recovering tools such as receiving a massage, wearing compression boots or it could be just as simple as lying on the couch. The physical preparation to complete such a task is also the foundation for the mental component required to get one through the event. “Having a lot of faith in my coach, preparation and training is what makes the boxes go green,” Currie continued. Above everything, when it comes down to race days Currie needs a lot of belief in himself. He feels so comfortable with the distance, that he could do one tomorrow and it would just be fun. The challenge comes in pushing oneself to  personal limits “when it is about competing to the point of explosion or, preferably just the edge before. Ticking off distances and trying to find ways to feel ok and push even harder,” Currie said. For example, instead of looking at a whole stretch, breaking it down into halves gives Currie more manageable mental segments to push even harder in the next portion — step by step, to the finish line.