An interesting information that I came across recently was that of the first lady to go across the world in a bicycle learning to ride it only two weeks before the trip. As apocryphal as it may sound, I refused to verify the authenticity for I loved the sheer audaciousness that the story carried with it. Not everything that is achieved need to be premediated or planned; somethings can always happen by chance. With little over a month to go for Coimbatore Marathon, why not a running or walking a 5K happen to you even if it was not one of the resolutions for 2018? Fancy it, read further
Let’s begin with a caveat. Your health is of utmost importance. Running is not a panacea for any existing ailments or complications. If you have been advised against walking or running by a medical practitioner or suffer from medical ailment which can be made worse by running or walking, adhere to the advise of your medical practitioner and seek their inputs. If cleared by your doctor, here’s a crash course to get your going in the next one month to participate in the Coimbatore Marathon.
Register for the event. Registrations for the event close by September 7th and it is advisable to register early to avoid disappointment. Also, by registering, your resolution gets even stronger with the financial commitment in place.
Sleep early and rise early. The most difficult distance to cover is often the distance from your bed to the shoe rack. It is always best to choose mornings over evenings, especially when you begin to run. The freshness of morning air easily gets you going. Running in the evening is often difficult due to vehicle movements, pollution, tired days, which require additional motivation to get started. The initial few days may present new challenges like feeling drowsy during morning hours and it is usually matter of time to get over it.
Get your friends and family on board Reach out to your friends and family and rope them in your adventure. The best, almost certainly, doesn’t come alone. If you do not find any, there are always Coimbatore Runners with whom you can give a start. It is perfectly fine to start and finish your run with them, even if you cannot adhere to their training programs.
Download an app If you have a smart phone, download one of the many apps that are available today to help you keep record of distance, time and maintain a diary of activities. Many of them are simple yet addictive, and possibly help you in encouraging yourself. Should you prefer peace over complexities, you can still go with your simple notebook.
Well begun is half-done. The actual act of running or walking is definitely not a rocket science by any means. It is all about placing one foot after another and repeating them, till you feel like stopping. Take it easy and never exert any pressure beyond what you are able to. Do not get into running to prove anything to anyone. The journey is a reward by itself as you will soon find out.
Baby Steps – Take small steps each day and progress gradually. You are your own judge of your capabilities. If it is 1 Km on day, do not rush to 2 Km or 3 Km on the next day. Just increase it by 100m on the next day and see how you feel about it. Similarly, do not try running the distance all out in a single stretch. Alternate running and walking and slowly increase the proportion of running.
Reward yourself – The race day brings in its own set of entitlements that you will make your run unforgettable. Then, there is nothing stopping you in rewarding yourself. A new apparel for the first five days of training or a new gadget for accomplishing a certain distance is not a bad idea to start with.
Look forward with excitement. Do not see the event as an examination but as a celebration of your effort over the next one month. Attending the pre-race event expo is another experience by itself, where you get a chance to meet runners in plain clothes and listen to their extraordinary stories. No matter the time of your finish, when you cross the finish line, each one of you will be a winner with a lovely medal that will have stories of one lifetime.
Finally, participation in Coimbatore Marathon should only be a beginning in bringing in a new life style. The last minute preparations for school or college examinations often make us miss the flower for the fruit. The real joy in running is not about the participation in one event but making it a habit. The event certainly acts as a catalyst to set the new lifestyle. As Ajay Varma, finisher of the 89-Km Comrades Marathon in 2017, says, “My running started with the Coimbatore Marathon in 2013. I had registered for the 5K and in fact, tried to prepare for the event only the evening before. I had not looked back since.”
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(And edited version of the Article appeared in The Hindu, Metro Plus, September 4, 2018 – https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/fitness/quick-tips-for-a-5k-run/article24863875.ece)
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