It’s Just Another Half Marathon

Dad, you are eating too many donuts these days as a running excuse! (after a few donut crawls across town).?

While acclimating to the altitude, extreme cold & snow on top of Mt. Titlis, Dad, you have ten minutes to finish your run before we head down to catch the tour bus!?

It is 11:15 pm, finish your run now! We are going to bed (After running 6+ hours/50K in my backyard).

On any given Friday evening, Can you run your half marathon now so that we have an uninterrupted weekend?

See you at Traders Joe, Dad!?

A few years ago, it was, “Dad, could you run on the trail next to my school during lunch?” Now, I hear, “Please don’t run in front of my new school, I will not recognize you. :)”

In September 2022, during a long layover in Singapore airport, I ran my monthly half marathon from the airport to the bay to kill time. Reactions from my friends and family were just simple emojis :). They were not surprised that I found

another creative way (or outrageous ways) to make running interesting. I thought of repeating the same last month during transit in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, but my adventure was cut short by over-enthusiastic canine friends.

It all started in Oct 2016 as a dare to run half marathon with a chance to enjoy live rock performance on the sidelines. The side effects of running the first untrained and unprepared half marathon remains the same after 5 years and now includes untrained 62 monthly half-marathons and a few full and ultra marathons.?

After running for so long, I have succeeded in resisting the temptation to hit the gym, build core muscles, be a part of a running group, focus on a healthier diet before or during the race, be obsessive about the PR and yet manage to be injury free....?

You can inspire yourself to make simple things extraordinary if you don’t over-analyze.? During the lockdown, seeing heartbroken Olympic athletes missing? the game they loved, pushed me to run 15 monthly half, a couple of full and ultra marathons in a tiny L shaped backyard until the mask mandate was lifted.?

Unplanned routes and time has its thrills, but the occasionally created quirky routes - like donut shop runs, Ace train inter-stations runs, Centennial light fire stations runs, Vineyards run, airport transit runs & others keep the excitement going.

These monthly runs keep me grounded when I am overconfident or have any self doubts. This has left me to appreciate small things in life better, be grateful, and resolve to face & overcome any challenges. The biggest win of sharing the story are the people who reach out to me and proudly share their stories of long walks and runs.

While I prefer running alone, the next time you want me to join a long distance run, choose an event with live rock music, donuts, and drinks on the sideline. Buzz me the night before, if I wake up early, then I will definitely join the fun.