In the fast lane: Jacqui Graham at the Yea ambulance branch.
Working as a paramedic is one of the most important jobs in our community, requiring workers to be on their A-game all the time.
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Having a passion outside their job is one way these workers can reset after work pressures and continue to be at their best.
Some paint, others bake up a storm, but some push their bodies to the limit.
Completed: Paramedic Jacqui Graham completed the Ironman Western Australia event in 10 hours and 30 minutes.
Ambulance Victoria acting Yea team manager Jacqui Graham competed in the Ironman Western Australia last month and placed third in her age group.
The performance secured her a place in the 2024 Ironman World Championship, which will be held in France.
The event consisted of a gruelling 3.8km ocean swim, 180km bike ride, and 42.2km (marathon) run.
“It was my first Ironman, so to get through it was a special feeling, but to manage it in the time I did, I was absolutely stoked,” Graham said.
“I completed the Ironman with a final time of 10 hours and 30 minutes.”
It was no easy feat juggling shifts while undertaking extensive training for her first Ironman, but Graham said she made it work.
“I would swim two to three times a week, run three to four times a week and cycle around three to four times a week, with upwards of 15 hours total training,” she said.
“The bulk of my training being completed on my days off from work.”
Graham has worked with Ambulance Victoria for more than 12 years and wanted to share a message with paramedics and other first responders that it was important to keep making time for the hobbies they were passionate about, such as sports.
“I know when some paramedics begin their careers, they put an end to programmed sport due to the constraints of shift work, but it is possible to keep doing (it),” she said.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s a recreational sport or a high-level sport; it’s important to keep doing activities outside of work.
“The flow-on effect of having something outside of work that we are passionate about, or can put our energy into, is so important for our mental and physical health.”
Graham will compete in the Ironman World Championship in France later this year, and Ambulance Victoria wishes her all the best.
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