David Lloyd

Lee, who trained for the challenge at the David Lloyd club in Maidenhead, said “It was a really tough course and the marathon at the end was absolutely punishing. But the elation and achievement you feel when you finish makes it all worth while.”

An Ironman is not for the faint hearted and Carina, 30, a seasoned athlete who competed in the Triathlon European Championships in Prague last year, has vowed never to do one again after she finished in 12.39 hours. Lee, who clocked 10.08 hours, is already thinking ahead to the prestige World Ironman Championships in Hawaii later this year.

John Williams, Campus training coach at David Lloyd Leisure and four time Ironman competitor said “training for an Ironman Triathlon requires a lot of commitment mentally, personally and financially. It needs to be more of a lifestyle change than just a training regime. On average people need to train 15 hours a week for 4-6 months to ensure they are prepared for the gruelling challenge ahead and to prevent injury. It’s a real achievement to complete an Ironman Triathlon so hats off and congratulations to Lee and Carina!”

Lee, who has a six year old son, got down on one knee and proposed while they were out for a winter run in late 2008.

“I think a few of our friends thought we were nutters to do the Ironman on honeymoon,” said Lee “But I proposed to Carina while on a run and we competed for Great Britain together last year so there is a running theme”

After resting their weary legs the pair travelled around New Zealand visiting Auckland and Queenstown.  They finished the break in Fiji, where the adrenalin junkies couldn’t resist going for a skydive before jetting back to the UK.