Ironman accountant off to Hawaii
Acar accident changed the life and focus of accountant Jed Eden. In 2006 he was forced to stop all physical activity for six months and the weight piled on. He decided that at 105kg he needed to do something about it and with encouragement from friends he signed up to his first triathlon.
Both his parents had competed in ironman triathlons but it wasn’t anything he wanted to particularly do.
What started out as a bit of fun to help him lose weight soon became a lifestyle choice, then before long he was challenging himself including beating his father’s personal best.
The next phase of his life was sure to put an end to his triathlon lifestyle; having kids. However, this led to another set of coincidental changes that amplified his hobby even further.
His daughters were diagnosed with gluten and dairy allergies so the family changed their diet. ’’I was surprised at how much more energy I had to train,’’ said Eden.
‘‘Before that I thought that the more exercise I did, the more I could eat. With a simple change in meals I repeatedly beat my personal best and lost another 9kg.
‘‘This is when I realised I could start to train and compete seriously.’’
He gets up at 5am on weekdays to train then starts work at 7am, trains again in his lunchbreak and makes it home by 5pm for family time. ’’If I wasn’t doing it, I don’t know what else I would do. It’s just became a lifestyle.’’
Eden emphasised the perks of living and being able to train in Taranaki.
‘‘You can bike 200km with no traffic lights and no need to stop. The many trails with soft underfoot that Taranaki provides, gives some great options of landscapes and scenery to train in.‘‘
He works at Staples Rodway, which makes accessing the walkway, trails in Pukekura Park or the Aquatic Centre to get in his second training for the day during his lunch break easy.
‘‘Racing in Kona will be a whole new ball park. The heat will be approximately 40 degrees, 99 per cent humidity and with strong winds. Some triathletes competing will go to Kona a month before the race just to climatise. I don’t have that luxury.’’
Eden has started a Givealittle page to help him raise funds for the championships in October.