Running

To those who know me in real life, this  page on my website would seem bewildering, if not outright laughable. Almost like the idea of an elephant who’s into sports – cute and funny, but not quite the typical image of athleticism. I never dabbled in any manner of sports or athletics through my entire school/college life, displayed nary an interest in even cricket (aka the touch-stone of one’s Indianness) and certainly never looked athletic by any measure. In 2006, however, some odd strain of madness possessed me and I decided it was time for me to take charge of my health and fitness and, thusly, running became the solution. Sadly, my lack of discipline has meant that running turned into a sporadic activity for me. Even so, in the interest of making this a habit, I am going to chronicle the various runs I have undertaken and my experience completing them. And as a disclaimer, in case anyone is hoping to scout for a potential Olympic champion, let it be stated clearly and upfront – I ain’t no Speedy Gonzales…I’m a VERY SLOW runner! All the below running challenges I have taken up thus far is with the intent of building endurance rather than speed, so you can stop sniggering at my times, right about now

Upcoming Runs

Nov 24th, 2010: Inter-financial Services Cross Country Championship. A proper winter run of 3.5miles (women). Brrrr.

Mar 20th, 2011: Reading Half Marathon. This event is two weeks before the London Marathon and attracts a lot of serious runners. I hear the atmosphere is great, locals come out to support and bands have impromptu jamming sessions along the route

Runs completed

Jersey Relay Marathon 2010, Jersey: ~1hr5mins This was the first time I’d travelled outside of my city just for a run. This was also the first time I was getting paid to fly into a destination to represent my bank for a run – a paid weekend getaway to an unusual spot just for a run? Oh yes. This was also the first time I had participated in a run as a relay team member, which is a big shift for me, because the only reason I had taken to running, as opposed to other sports, was for its individualistic nature – no worrying about waiting on other people to show interest and no fear of letting others in the team down. Unfortunately, this run was also a mere week after my first half-marathon, which I hadn’t fully recovered from. To make matters worse, it was a cold, windy and rainy run for the leg I was doing. And while I’d originally signed up for the flattish 7.2k leg, certain re-arrangements in the team meant I was going to do an all-uphill 9.6K instead – gulp. The race itself was unique in that it involved much much fewer people than I was used to, it was my first wet weather running experience and I actually got lost on the track at one point due to the marshal/road signage going missing and had to re-trace my path a wee bit. Our team’s performance was less than stellar and I felt guilty although it wasn’t really anyone’s fault – guess it shows I’m not ready for team sports yet. That said, the weekend getaway and the stay in the posh hotel was lovely, even if meant being properly ill the week after, fever and all, to recuperate from wet weather running!

Run to the Beat Half Marathon 2010, London: ~2hr31mins My gutsiest goal thus far and the experience which moved me a few notches further on the credibility scale of being a more ‘serious’ runner, although the very notion makes me laugh, really. This was one run I couldn’t afford to just ‘wing it’ – some serious training was in order and while my training plan was not nearly as organised or thorough as recommended, I did manage to get one 15K and another 18K run under my belt before the big day. I had a couple of instances of falling a bit ill in the lead up to this run, not sure if it was partly a mental thing or a case of me not pacing my training properly, but either way, I wasn’t feeling 100% the morning of the run. To top it off, it was the first proper ‘winter’ morning of the season although it was merely Sep 26th – I was freezing from the cold and rued greatly the fact that

1) I hadn’t done any training outdoor whatsoever. The dynamics of running in the cold are completely different from that of running in a temperature controlled gym on the treadmill.

2) I didn’t have ANY outdoor running gear The only serious running gear I had was my pair of running shoes, apart from which I just wore regular gymming gear. Some protection from the cold was definitely in need.

More than number 1, factor number 2 really made its significance felt while I waited for nearly 50mins in the ‘Pen’ before I started running and then waited around in my sweaty tee for another 30-40mins after the run when I’d lost Ritwik in the crowd. My performance was less than optimal; 4 days before the run, I’d done my 18k in 1hr53mins but race day time was something along the lines of 2hr31mins or so, not counting the brief loo stopover – honestly, really need to stop over-doing the whole pre-race hydration – my 3rd run where I regretted not pacing my water consumption. All in all, not a great performance and my post-run high was significantly dampened by a near fainting spell an hour after the run and then battling a near-cold in the days to come. My post-run pint would have to wait

Standard Chartered Great City 2010 5K, London: ~31mins. Ah my second time around, felt very much like a veteran but didn’t run very much like one. I hadn’t fully recovered from the hot 10K I had run earlier in the week. Had a “zebra” for company along most of my route and yet again, I realised the foolishness of excessive hydration before a run but thank heavens that this was only a 5K run. Celebrated with post-run beers, food and sports massage at the company hospitality tent, yay.

British 10k 2010, London: ~1hr7mins My first charity run. On coaxing by a colleague, I decided to run for ‘Dream a Dream‘ instead of doing my usual thing of just paying for the run registration myself. It was a hot and sunny day (not nearly as bad as hot and humid Singapore though!) and the heat really started making its felt towards the end of the run. However, on account of the 10th anniversary of the run, there seemed to an extra large contingent of Londoners supporting the runners. It was good fun to run along with other faces I somewhat recognized, although I am not a fan, per se, of charity runs and arm-twisting friends into fund-raising for charity. Also, my first London run where Ritwik was present to provide support. Ah, it was fun to have someone to share the joy of post-running gluttony with Another 30-something thousand people running along with me, I never felt alone along the route, and this time, I was smart enough to get way ahead before I started, so I crossed the start line about a mere 8mins after the gunshot

This was my first instance of running with a full bladder due to excessive pre-race hydration and from the 6K mark, I ran merely for the sake of reaching a bloody loo at the end of the run!

Nike-Grazia Human Race 2009 10K, London: ~1hr8mins. This was my first coldish run and I was a bit nervous about it. Although, it didn’t seem to warrant enough worry in me to go buy some outdoor running gear. I just layered up a bit. Once again, my training for this run was very poor. I hadn’t stepped into the gym after the Great City run and in the week before this run, I somehow cranked out a few miles in the hope of those counting as ‘training’ – terrible stuff for the knees and the back, I hear :/ It rained just before the run and the track was a bit wet too. That said, I forgot about it all once the race began. The park is lovely, the course was comfortable and very green – relaxing, if a run can ever be so. Paula Radcliffe was there too to cheer us on – imagine! I also discovered that the temperature range of 8 – 12deg C is perfect for runs. Ah, there was also much hilarity towards the end of this run. The course of the run was a double lap of a 5K circle and the format of the run included three separate kick-offs separated by about 30mins each. I was in the second ‘wave’. For some reason, after my second 5K lap, I missed the turn for the finish line and I started on my third lap and about 100metres in, I paused and looked around in confusion. The supporters, meanwhile, mistaking me for a runner in the third wave thought I was having second thoughts about completing the run after having gone through half of it and they kept cheering me on saying ‘You’re halfway there already (and I was like, egad, halfway?!)’. And then, it’s true, yours truly turned and ran back the way she came till she found the turn-off point for the finish line and nearly got to the finish line, stopped and chatted with the race volunteers about how I was being such a moron, before one of them pointed out that I still hadn’t crossed the sodding finish line – haha. Yep, I’m such a clown sometimes

Standard Chartered Great City 5K run 2009, London: ~33mins. I was very lucky to be included in this run. I had just join my employers about 3 weeks before the event and I was just in time to take the place of some runners in the company who’d forfeited their places in the run. The event itself turned out to be a bit of a bonding exercise with my team who were either running or supporting. The route ran through the famous Square Mile of the City of London and it was a bit too twisty-turny to my liking but I certainly did like  the after-run hospitality organised for my company’s employees – post-run beer and burgers? Oh yes! And free sports massage too, wow, I’m NEVER quitting this company I say

British 10K 2009, London: ~1hr10mins. Yay, my first 10k in the city Over 30,000 runners, this was also my first BIG run, which meant that I was unprepared for the 50min wait after the gunshot and before I could cross the start line! This event was the highlight of the day in the area and LOTS of supporters came out to cheer. I really appreciated the route in the heart of the city, running past historical sites and places of great tourist interest – Big Ben, Pall Mall, London Eye, Westminster, Houses of Parliament, Embankment et al. It was a cool and cloudy day and this run made me appreciate cool weather for its usefulness to running as an activity. The event management was certainly heaps better than for the 5k event I had participated in the year before. Topped off this run with two lunches – my first Moolis (x 2) followed by some Biryani in Brick Lane and some good ol’ beer – what? Don’t judge me, I’d earned it all!

British 5K 2008, London: ~35mins? I had just moved to this city in May 2008 and I was feeling rather portly a year into my unhappy worklife. The utter lack of time and general fitness ensured that the 10k event would be too much of an undertaking, so I signed up for a small challenge in the form of a 5k run. This was my first run where I had no support in the form of Ritwik so I really felt the lack of proper planning in this event – no proper baggage bays, no clear directions. Clearly, the British 10k was the main event and the 5k event was the step-sister. I made up my mind to take part in the 10k event the following year. That said, because the event was much smaller and friendlier, I ended up chatting to lots more people along the way – a good way to feel welcome in a new city.

Standard Chartered 10K 2007, Singapore: NA. The story of this run is, well, disgraceful to say the least. It was with much pomp and glory that I had signed up for this run, told all my friends about this and even booked my trip  to India by planning around this Sunday run. I flew back on Saturday evening to be in time for this run but come race day, I was so ill and unrecovered from my holiday revelries at the International Film Festival of India 2008, Goa – not to mention endlessly grouchy about being such a bore as to cut short my holiday for a run – that I actually turned back halfway to the race venue! I don’t think I stopped feeling guilty about this for a long time to come – this incident occurred at a point in time when I had hit rock bottom in emotional terms in my personal life and was most miserable with my professional life; this added buckling in the face of a challenge was too much to bear.

Great Eastern 10k 2007, Singapore: 1hr15mins. My first proper road run and the longest I had run till date. It seems like this is the event which kicked off my ‘not-enough-training’ syndrome. I remember frantically trying to reach 8k in the gym two days before my actual run. The run itself was torturous in its unrelenting heat and its seeming endlessness. But it was also a massive accomplishment It came with a certificate and a medal too, whoopee. Unfortunately, the image of me running in my shorts with my thunder thighs in full display makes me desist from displaying the cert.

AWARE Fun Run 5K 2006: My first proper competitive run ever. This was a women’s only run which was probably a good way of easing into this world. This was about 8months into my first foray into running. It is a wonder I even signed up, I mean, paying to run? Could anything be more daft? This was also my first outdoor daytime run in Singapore, aka, under an unforgivingly fierce sun. Ritwik came to support me and all in all, the outing to the East Coast Park track must have been fun enough for me to be hooked, somewhat, to this format of exercise.