RAFAEL RIVERA: FROM 300 LBS TO THE IRONMAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Every year at the IRONMAN World Championships, our President makes a point of greeting every single athlete riding a Quintana Roo at bike drop-off. For us, showing appreciation and support for those who rely on our bikes to achieve their World Championship dreams is a key part of what it means to be “True to Tri.”
In the end, the best part isn’t watching the pros battle for the win. It’s seeing all the everyday people like you and me who have dedicated themselves to making it to IRONMAN’s biggest stage. There’s truly nothing more inspiring. One of the most inspiring athletes we met this year was Rafael Rivera. He has only been competing for a few years, but triathlon has completely transformed him, helping him overcome obesity and alcoholism to become a better husband, father, and human being.
After he qualified for and completed his second IRONMAN World Championship, we sat down with Rivera to get some more details. He explained how daily commitment helped him achieve positive change in his body and life, and how he went from a triathlon newbie to a World Championship qualifier.
A Daily Commitment to Losing Weight and Sobriety
It's about focusing on it day by day. The end result is going to happen. It's just a matter of when.
Quintana Roo: In your own words, who is Rafael Rivera?
Rafael Rivera: I am a father and a husband who made a choice to change my life. I used to be 300 pounds and an alcoholic, and I committed to changing on October 1st, 2021.
QR: Is there some significance to that date?
RR: So, for a long time, I was drinking and not taking care of myself. I was always heavy. I would lose weight and gain it, then lose it and gain it again. I had seen a doctor about gastric sleeve surgery, where they remove a portion of the stomach, and set a surgery date for later in the year.
I turned 40 that July, and I started thinking, if I were to die, would I be happy with how I lived my life? I grew up poor. My mom raised four kids pretty much by herself. My dad was in and out of prison and had drug abuse issues. So yeah, I was overweight and I became an alcoholic, but I was also able to go from where I started to getting a career and becoming successful financially. Was I making enough money? Sure. But eventually, I realized that measuring my happiness like that was an issue.
I started to ask: Am I doing right by my family? Are my kids proud of me? If I were to pass, is this how I want to be remembered? And if I were to pass away, would my family be partially relieved that they no longer have to deal with the drinking? That was more of an issue than the weight. I realized that, to lead a family, you have to lead by example.
One day, I decided that was it. I'm not gonna drink anymore. I'm gonna eat clean. I'm gonna do things right moving forward. My cutoff date was the next day: October 1st. It wasn't easy, but I did it. Quitting drinking was actually harder than losing weight. But I had to show my kids that no matter how low a point in life we hit, no matter how bad things get, if we're committed and we're willing to work towards it, we can accomplish anything we want.
QR: A lot of people struggle with big changes like that. How did you manage to stay on track?
RR: The hard part is simply sticking to it every single day. I knew what my end goal was. I was going to lose 100 or 150 pounds. I was going to stop drinking. But to get there, I really had to take it day by day. I couldn't think about the end result every day, because I’d lose sight of what I had to do that day. Every day when I got up, I had to commit, over and over, and I had to measure myself each day to make sure I was doing what I said I’d do. I had to break it down to that ridiculous level, just breaking it down and chipping away little by little, to get it done.
If you're not measuring yourself day by day, and instead you're looking at things week by week, you're going to end up having a couple of days where you don't maximize your potential or don't execute on your plan, and you're gonna feel like that's okay. And then you’ll slip. There are always tons of hard days. Every day, I had to battle the desire to drink. Every day, I had to battle to eat right. But now, it's different. It took a long time, but I don't have to think about it every day anymore because it’s just how I live.
When you learn to be present and focus on today—this session right now—that's much more impactful than constantly thinking and worrying about the end result.
QR: Breaking down big and audacious goals into what you have to accomplish on a day-to-day basis is a great approach. Do you think that mentality transferred over to triathlon training?
RR: Yeah, definitely. For instance, it’s easy to get caught up in thinking “I want to run a half-marathon in this time. I want my threshold to be this many watts.” Triathletes are always thinking about those things. It took me a while, but when I stopped thinking about the end result and instead just focused on executing this workout, on this day, things got easier. When you learn to be present and focus on today—this session right now—that's much more impactful than constantly thinking and worrying about the end result.
Now, when I do my indoor rides, I'm pushing a lot more power than I did when I used to just constantly look at my watts and obsess over them not being where I wanted them to be. It takes time, but just by committing to doing the work every day, you get there eventually.
QR: So, how do you handle setbacks or getting discouraged?
RR: You know, part of the journey is getting discouraged. There’s going to be failure. You have to expect that. Just like I expect every IRONMAN build to have some bad training sessions. In every race, I expect there to be portions that suck or don't go my way. There isn't an IRONMAN that's ever going to go 100% your way for 140.6 miles! That just doesn't exist.
QR: Kind of like a metaphor for life!
RR: Exactly, whether it’s drinking, your diet, or finishing an IRONMAN, you have to expect to face some adversity. You could fall on your bike, get hit during the swim, or cramp up. You have to be prepared for those low moments. You prepare yourself in your training by thinking through how you’ll react in those moments. I think to myself, “I expected this obstacle, I'm going to be disappointed, but I also expect to overcome it.” Being prepared with that sort of expectation makes it easier to reset and refocus so you can get back on track, whether that’s with your daily habits, your daily commitments, your training sessions, or what you need to do to simply finish a race. That’s how you get to the end goal that you want.
QR: People can definitely accomplish amazing things and make big changes with that sort of mentality.
RR: For sure! The big and important goals you set are supposed to feel a bit impossible and crazy. That's why you set the goal! You have to believe that you can do something bigger than what you've done yesterday, in the last six months, or in the last year. You have to believe that you can become something different. And you have to believe in your process and your plan.
But once you have the plan, you have to be committed to it. Without commitment, you're not going to get anything. And it's about focusing on it day by day. The end result is going to happen. It's just a matter of when.
The Journey from Triathlon Beginner to Qualifying for the IRONMAN World Championship
Every day, you just have to show up... and do the dance over again.
QR: In less than four years, you’ve finished six IRONMANs, two 70.3s, one T100 race, and you’ve even done Ultraman Florida. That’s a lot! In the grand scheme of things, you’re still relatively new to the sport. Beyond weight loss, how did your triathlon journey actually start?
RR: I was training for a half-marathon that was in April 2022, and during training, my friend just texted me a picture that showed the IRONMAN distance, and it scared me. That’s what made me want to do one! I did IRONMAN 70.3 Wisconsin in September 2022, and after finishing, I registered for IRONMAN Waco in October 2022.
QR: So it sounds like you had a bit of experience with running. Did you have any swimming or cycling experience?
RR: I learned how to swim in May 2022, and I clipped into a bike for the first time that same month.
QR: Whoa! Was it a struggle to learn two completely new sports?
RR: Swimming was the hardest! I got a coach, Jeff. We went to the local Y to swim, and I'm moving through the water like Tarzan. He was shocked, and he's like, Oh man, I really got my work cut out for me. He gave me pointers, and I watched a ton of YouTube videos on breathing.
I'd go to the Y when they open at 5 A.M. every morning and just practice breathing. I'd be at the edge of the pool, holding on, my head down, blowing bubbles, breathing to the side, blowing bubbles. I would do that for a long time. Then I would swim with a buoy on my legs, and I’d just keep practicing breathing.
Over weeks and weeks, I got more comfortable with that and improved my technique little by little. Swimming is an art. I'm still working on it. Every day, you just have to show up in the pool and do the dance over again.
I think my bike is bulletproof... I just wish it were a V-PRi!
QR: How did clipping into a bike for the first time go?
RR: The first time I got back home after riding the bike outside, I forgot to unclip and tipped over in my garage!
QR: Ah, yes, a tale as old as time.
RR: Clipping in on the bike was a learning curve, but getting strong on the bike was really tough. I remember my first FTP test was like 154 or 156 watts. But it’s the same deal. You just have to keep showing up, day after day.
QR: To qualify for Nice, you had to train around 15 hours per week. But you also have a full-time job and a family with five kids. How do you manage to fit your training in?
RR: Fortunately, we only have one kid left at home now because my son went off to college! But we did have two at home up until a month ago. What helps me is that I'll do my swims at 5 AM. When it gets closer to race day, and I need more sleep to recover, I’ll start doing them after work. The pool at the YMCA is only five minutes away from my work, and there's also one five minutes from my house, so I'm very lucky in that way.
I do my weekday bike rides or my runs at night, and I get them done before any of our dinner or movie plans. Fridays, I'm off from work, so I use Fridays for my long days. On Saturday and Sunday, I'll get my workouts done before my family wakes up. I'll get my long swim, bike, or run in, and by the time I'm done, they're just getting up and we're good. I try not to sacrifice my time with them. But we’re like anyone else, and we have our moments of frustration, but we work through them.
QR: How did you qualify for Nice? What races did you do in the lead-up? What was it like racing there?
RR: This was actually my second time racing the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice! The first time I crashed while descending at 40 mph. After completing that race, I was afraid of descending with turns. But part of my transformation over the years was facing my fears, so I knew I needed to get back to Nice.
In 2024, I raced IRONMAN Cozumel and qualified. I was also registered for IRONMAN Texas in the event I didn’t qualify at Cozumel. I still completed IRONMAN Texas while sick (threw up during the swim). One week before Ironman WC in Nice I did the bike leg at IRONMAN Wisconsin towing a special needs athlete to help her become an Ironman.
I loved Nice. It’s a beautiful place, very affordable, with a lot to do. The course is challenging, which I prefer. The bike ride is beautiful, and the run is filled with energy. Nice is a great place to bring your family. My wife and daughter came, and they had a great time!
QR: Oh, I didn’t know you’d done it once before! Tell me about this crash. Was it on your Quintana Roo?
RR: Yeah, I was going down the mountain and crashed into a cement wall. My helmet was cracked, it popped my chain off, and I lost two bottles. I put the chain back on and just kept riding. I think my bike is bulletproof! Besides a scratch, there was no damage. I love how durable my bike is. I’ve fallen a couple of times in the past. But there’s been no damage, and no issues traveling with it.
QR: Tell me more! What QR model are you riding? What else do you like about it? What did your IRONMAN World Championship setup look like?
RR: It’s a rim-brake PRFive that I purchased new in August 2022. I like the storage my bike has and just how it looks overall. I used a HED disc wheel in Nice rather than the stock Reynolds wheels I got with it. I recently upgraded the chainrings from a 50/34t to 53/39t and the rear cassette from 11/28t to 11/34t.
I've been super happy with it. It's a reliable bike. I love mine. I just wish it were a V-PRi! I’m considering a new bike and have been eyeing the V-PRi. Hopefully, by springtime, I can pull the trigger on one.
QR: So what’s next for Rafael Rivera? Do you have more goals?
RR: I have 70.3 Worlds in Marbella in November! Beyond that, my future goal is to qualify for Kona, which is going to be hard. I’m looking forward to this challenge and accomplishing this goal. Kona's super expensive, but that's kind of like a bucket list thing. I am also considering Ultraman World Championships, but have not fully committed to that yet!
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. All photos courtesy of Rafael Rivera.
