50 ironmans in 50 states in 50 days

An American man has completed 50 ironmans in 50 states in 50 days. Photo / Getty

James Lawrence has set a new world record by completing 50 full course ironman triathlons across 50 states in 50 days.

The American dubbed "The Iron Cowboy" set the extraordinary record when he crossed the finish line on Saturday at the Electric Park in Lehi in his home state of Florida.

Lawrence has pushed himself to the very edge of human capabilities in the last 50 days by swimming nearly 4km, cycling 180km and running 42km every single day.

His super human efforts were all to raise awareness about childhood obesity in the US and he wants to stress the importance of making healthy lifestyle choices.

The man from Lindon began his epic adventure on June 6 in Hawaii and he's also been raising money for the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation, which looks to provide kids in schools with better access to food education.

The father of four's achievements are staggering and he revealed the main inspiration for his mammoth journey was his kids.

"It's for my children. Everything I do, I do for them. I try to set examples for them. I try to set big goals and accomplish them," Lawrence said. "I want to be around for them as long as I can, and this is my motivation to get up and do those things.

"There is a massive epidemic in this country. We're obese and it's a problem. We need to make some serious changes in our lives. We need to change the way we eat, we need to change our activity levels and we need to change our lifestyles."

Members of the public have joined Lawrence along some legs of his journey and he's gained more support the further he's progressed.

"The crowds are getting bigger, donations keep coming in. The support has been overwhelming and makes things a lot easier. It has far exceeded my expectations."

Lawrence's accomplishments are remarkable but this is actually the third time he's set a new world record.

He held the record for the most ironman races completed in a year when he completed 22 in 30 weeks in 2010 and also one for the most ultra-distance triathlons in one year when he finished 30 in 2012.