It’s been a frustrating five months for Lionel Sanders but things are looking up on all fronts for the man dubbed ‘No Limits’.
Two races and two wins at IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside and 70.3 St George in April and May respectively started the season in perfect style.
But the 37-year-old Canadian has been on the sidelines ever since then – due to a gluteal issue, potentially caused by the diet-related condition known as Relative Energy Deficiency, or RED-S, and a sacral stress fracture.
The IRONMAN World Championships in Nice came and went but Sanders had been hopeful that he would be back in time for the 70.3 Worlds in Marbella in early November.
However in a first YouTube video for a month he revealed that plan has now been shelved – along with the lovely news that wife Erin is expecting their second child.
‘Ridiculous’ race planning
The video is embedded below and talking through his thought process, he explained: “The season was over, unfortunately, on May 25th. That took a really long time for me to digest.
“I put my name on the [70.3] Augusta start list [at the end of September]. That was just ridiculous.
“I thought maybe I’d be ready for 70.3 Worlds, also ridiculous really. Can I finish a 70.3 right now? Absolutely. Can I go to the 70.3 Worlds? What’s the best case scenario for me right now? Top 20. That doesn’t move the motivation needle for me right now.
“Then I was, let’s do an IRONMAN. But if I’m not ready for Marbella, which is a half – and then you’re going to go to Arizona in two weeks, that doesn’t make any sense either.
“Unfortunately you’ve just got to scrap all these dreams right now and get yourself in form and take this opportunity to do it right.
“And that’s taken me literally five months to come to this mindset. And that’s where I’m at.”
‘Blessing in disguise’
And Sanders is adamant he is going to make the most of what has been an enforced spell out of the sport.
He added: “I’m going to set myself up for success for the rest of my career. It will be a blessing in disguise if I do it right.
“I can get down with Indian Wells [on 7th December] because I can be on the start list for Indian Wells having not rushed my training.
“Having built myself back up properly and having made some real gains.
“I’m confident I can set myself up for success and to have 2026 be the best season of my career. That’s my goal and where I am mentally.”
As he ticked off what he called his best run session in five months, he knows there’s still plenty of work to do but things appear to be moving in the right direction.
And with a second child on the way, there lots to smile about right now.
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