Co-workers at WellStar Cobb Hospital in Austell describe Linda Lamm, MSN, RN, as a nurse who keeps going and going and going. They should see her after she leaves the hospital.
At the 2005 Duathlon World Championships in Australia last September, Lamm ran 10 kilometers, biked 40 kilometers, then ran another five kilometers to finish fifth in her age group (55 to 59). It was the third time Lamm has qualified to represent the United States in the event.
"The first time I ran in the World Championships, I placed 19th, Lamm said. "The second time, I was 12th or 13th. My goal this year was to make it into the top 10, so I was thrilled.
"It's a very difficult, technical bikecourse, but it was beautiful. We were riding along a breakwater, with waves crashing on either side. It was really exciting and a lot of fun.
Lamm has always been an athlete.
"I played basketball in high school and was on the team at Georgia Baptist School of Nursing, she said. "I started running in the late '70s after my first child was born. It was an outlet from the stress of nursing and being a mom. After a run, I felt better, and it gave me lots of energy.
She started entering local races and discovered she was competitive in her age group. When her knees began to give out and doctors advised her to switch to a different athletic outlet, she took up bike riding and continued to train.
Her husband, Roy, a fellow Duathlon World Championship competitor (in the 65 to 69 age group), and the friends she trains with - the TriGeeks - encouraged her to attempt the grueling Triathlon Ironman Competition. The race includes a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile marathon run.
"I had to overcome a fear of the water and learn to swim at 53, but I'm a big believer that people can do what they want to do, she said.
Lamm's goal was just to finish her first race. She was thrilled to make it through the swim, but mechanical problems, dehydration and a bee sting caused her to miss the bike time requirement by about nine minutes.
Undaunted, she's already signed up and is training for next year's competition.
Lamm works nights in the short-stay unit at WellStar Cobb so she can train 16 to 20 hours a week. On the weekends, it's not unusual for the couple to bike 27 miles, run five to seven miles and swim at least a mile in Lake Allatoona.
"My husband is retired, and he does most of the cooking and the wash, so that I have time to train with him. I'm really lucky to have such a supportive husband, she said. Lamm always knew she was destined for a career in health care.
"When I was 3, my mom bought me a book about a doctor for a long train ride. It came with Band-Aids, and Mom loves to tell the story about how I went up and down the aisle applying Band-Aids to boo-boos, she said.
During her career, Lamm has trained nurses for WellStar Cobb's first critical care unit, served as supervisor of hospital operations at night and become a nurse executive, but eventually she knew she wanted to go back to bedside nursing.
"I missed the athletic training and felt like my life was out of balance, she said. "Exercise has always helped me stay focused and be more productive. It clears out the cobwebs, and, besides, nurses are supposed to be about health.
She encourages patients and coworkers to make exercise a conscious choice. Instead of watching television for a half-hour, patients could take a walk.
"As we age, we forget how to play, how much fun it is to run through the woods, ride a bike or swim in a lake, she said. "For me, going out for a weekend bike ride with the people who love us and care about us is just wonderful. We all encourage each other, and when one succeeds, we all succeed."