Naperville Mom Proves She's An Ironman

Biking and running through the lava fields and solar farms of Kona, Hawaii, the pavement was about 150 degrees. For Naperville triathlete Mary Tobiason, there was no way she was about to lay down and die because of a little heat. She was motivated to finish what she started.

What Tobiason had started was the Ironman World Championships, a 2.4-mile swim in open water, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run.  

On Oct. 13, the wife, mother of two and triathlete who holds three jobs, competed in the Ironman World Championships for the first time. She went into the competition with the goal of enjoying the race and taking it all in. But, it didn’t exactly go that way, she said.

“They don’t call it an Ironman because it’s going to be easy,” Tobiason said. “You know it’s going to be rough.”

The race went well until the run. At about mile 17, Tobiason said she started to vomit because something she consumed had gone bad in the heat. Yet, she kept running and completed the entire race in 11:38:02.

What did she take away from the experience?

“Basically, that you can accomplish anything you put your mind to,” she said. “In life, you get out whatever you put in.”

She tries to impart that philosophy to the clients she trains and the kids she coaches. Tobiason coaches at , has her own personal training business and teaches the F.I.T. (FUNdamental Individual Training for youth) youth fitness program for kids at Alleluia Lutheran Church. She said she loves to see her clients grow and succeed.

“I get more satisfaction out of seeing the people I train do it [compete]. The real people and not the genetic freaks,” she said.

Tobiason started running when she was 8 years old, and she was good enough to compete on a private track team that had her traveling all over the world. In college, she ran cross-country for a short time at Iowa, but stopped to focus on a double major.

She always ran for fitness and stress relief, she said. Then, about 15 years ago she started doing triathlons. She had to learn to swim in order to compete. As a child, her brother drowned in an accident and she didn’t swim much after that.

At the time she started competing in triathlons, she was working a desk job. An uncle told her that if she quit to focus more on training, she could probably be pretty good. Her son also needed more of her time, so she quit the desk job and went into the fitness business.

Locally, she races in the elite class. She came in first place at the SheRox Sprint Triathlon held in June in Naperville. At the Ironman in Kona, she competed in her age group and ranked 50 out of 91.

While much of Naperville is still asleep, Tobiason is either training clients—her first client is at 4 a.m., her last at about 9 p.m.—or out training herself, she said. In her peak Ironman training weeks, she was biking 14 hours, running seven hours and spending about four and a half hours in the pool.

To maintain a balanced family life while also getting in her training, it means sometimes getting up at 3 a.m. to train so she doesn’t miss her kids’ activities, she said. Her son Jake, 16, plays football and runs track. Daughter Taylor, 14, swims and plays volleyball.

“I don’t push fitness on them,” she said. “I lead by example. … As an athlete, you realize you have good days and bad days. I don’t really like parents who ride their kids.”

She just wants her kids to be healthy, she said.

As she pursued her bucket list Ironman goal, she said her entire family was very supportive. Her children and their friends were excited about her competing and sent her many positive messages.

“My husband [Tom] knows I’m a happier person when I’m able to do this,” she said.

The reason Tobiason started doing triathlons was that she was tired of working out without a goal, she said. She wanted something that she could challenge herself with.

“It’s not about competition,” Tobiason said.

Even today, when she competes and trains, it is still about the personal challenge, she said.

“That’s what I really like about coaching people, bringing in new people to the sport,” she said. “I love the sport for the sport itself.”

At 41, Tobiason said she keeps getting faster. And, the more she achieves, the higher she sets the bar. She hopes to compete in the Ironman World Championships again and she said she will be better prepared.

As a trainer, her experience helps her get the best out of her clients who range in age from 6 to 80, she said.

“You have to learn what makes people tick,” she said. “You build a realistic goal they can achieve and then set the bar higher and once they meet a goal, you set another one. You do something realistic for that person and make it fun.”

Learn more about the F.I.T. for Youth program. Or visit Endure It!