Lionel Sanders has revealed that he questioned whether he wanted to continue in triathlon – but emerged from that period of reflection convinced that the best season of his career could still be ahead.

In a candid YouTube conversation with his wife and manager Erin, which is embedded below, the Canadian spoke about the toll of injuries, repeated illness and difficult IRONMAN performances, while acknowledging that he is “starting to get dropped” by sponsors.

But the 38-year-old also explained why he is not ready to walk away, drawing encouragement from Vincent Luis winning Kona at 37 and Patrick Lange doing so at 38.

Having withdrawn from Challenge Xiamen last weekend following another illness, Sanders now plans to race IRONMAN Cozumel on November 22. Beyond the race announcement, his update offered a revealing account of what he wants from the next stage of his career.

“Do I even want to do this anymore?”

Sanders traced his commitment to triathlon back to November 2009, explaining that he had recently needed time away from the surrounding demands to consider his direction.

“Do I even want to do this anymore? I’ve been doing it for a long time,” he said.

“It’s been a very trying last few years.”

He described the frustration of a promising start to 2025, when he won IRONMAN 70.3 Oceanside and St. George, being followed by further injury problems.

In 2026, life with a new baby brought different pressures, while illness repeatedly interrupted his training.

Sanders was particularly critical of his decision to race IRONMAN Texas, where he finished 45th, saying he had been training for only around 15 hours a week across all three disciplines.

He felt he had chosen a race that did not suit his swimming weakness and arrived without the preparation required.

The frustration extended beyond racing. Trying to produce videos when he had little he wanted to say had begun to feel forced.

“I don’t know what I’m doing with my life,” he recalled. “What am I even doing anymore?”

The break gave him space to ask those questions. It also brought an answer.

“I’ve concluded that I’m not done. In fact, I have a deep belief inside that … the best is yet to come.”

Luis and Lange show age is no excuse

For Sanders, the achievements of older athletes at the very top of the sport provide a reason to retain that belief.

“Vincent Luis won Kona at 37,” he said, before pointing to Lange being 38 when he won in 2024.

“So the age is not an excuse.”

Sanders does not see his recent performances as proof that he can no longer compete. Instead, he believes there are other issues to address before he can discover what remains possible.

That includes how he fuels his training. He described having little natural appetite and suspects that, without keeping track, he can spend extended periods eating less than he needs.

His suggestion that this could help explain his illness and reduced training capacity remains his own hypothesis, which he wants to test as he prepares for Cozumel.

“I feel like I should be freaking excellent,” he said, contrasting his struggles with athletes of a similar age who continue to train and perform at a high level.

The Kona experiences that “mentally scarred me”

Some of the most revealing passages concerned Sanders’ relationship with IRONMAN racing.

Runner-up at Kona in 2017, he explained that subsequent difficult experiences had changed how he felt about the distance.

He questioned what he had achieved by continuing to walk for long stretches when his race had already unravelled.

“They mentally scarred me so badly and made me feel like just an absolute imbecile that it’s made me not like IRONMANs anymore.”

He added: “For the last long while I’ve hated IRONMANs.”

For an athlete so closely associated with pushing through pain, that was a striking admission and Sanders now questions some of the expectations he has placed on himself, including the need to demonstrate toughness by carrying on regardless.

“I got all these weird habits I’ve created for myself over the years. Like I’m trying to be tough or whatever.”

His conclusion was direct: “I’m done with trying to be tough.”

That does not mean he has lost interest in difficult challenges. In fact, overcoming his struggles over the full distance – particularly in hot conditions – is precisely what now appeals to him.

Why another 70.3 win is no longer enough

After racing IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel while unwell and struggling in the heat, Sanders’ immediate reaction was that he never wanted to do another hot race.

He described a similar response to his difficult day at IRONMAN Texas: never wanting to race the distance again.

With time to reflect, however, he reached a different conclusion.

“Those are the things that actually pique my interest at this stage.”

He questioned how much lasting satisfaction he would gain from winning another weaker-field 70.3, having already enjoyed so much success at that level.

Instead, he wants to find out whether he can perform well at IRONMAN again and, ultimately, conquer a hot full-distance race.

“Of all the things that you could focus on, I would say that would bring the most fulfilment to me.”

Cozumel is the next opportunity to move towards that goal, with Sanders making clear that progress would carry its own value.

“I don’t want to be afraid to do IRONMANs,” he said.

“I would like to get back to being the person that I want to be.”

Sponsor setbacks and support from fans

Sanders also acknowledged that his difficult spell has had consequences beyond the results sheet.

Reflecting on meeting supporters after 70.3 Cozumel, he said that they had seemed far less concerned about his performance than he was.

“My sponsors care, you know. Definitely some of my sponsors care. Getting dropped, starting to get dropped. So some of my sponsors care.”

He did not go into any further detail at this point but with fans, however, he described conversations centred on his videos and what they had meant to the people watching them.

“It gives me a sense that I’ve had an impact on the world,” he said.

“It makes me feel like I’m connected to the world.”

That connection is one reason he wants to continue sharing his experiences, although he intends to take a less polished approach and make videos when he has something he wants to discuss.

He also accepts that life has changed since his early years in the sport.

“I got two kids, stress, different stressors now. I’m not going to live like a monk.”

Despite those demands, his ambition remains.

“I still really do believe that the best is yet to come. I really do believe I can have the best season of my entire career.”