The MAGIC of the Mumbai MARATHON : Part 1 of 2

#researchleader #young researcher series #5

I (pictured left above) confess that I first wrote this article to encourage my own ‘tribe’ of runners. But I quickly realised that this article is for everyone who has a challenging dream, but is unable to act on it because of internal hesitations.  Through the example of a difficult task like running a full or half marathon, I want to illustrate that you can do whatever you want, you can be whoever you want to be. If I could take up running in my early forties and be capable of running an ultra marathon of 50kms, the sky is really the limit for the young population of India – viz, people like you who are just starting out in your career!

 The MAGIC of the Mumbai MARATHON – PART 1/2

 This article is about something magical and special that happens in Mumbai every year – the StanChart Mumbai Marathon (SCMM). I have been running in this event for the past 4 years and the magic never wears off!  It is so because of the people of Mumbai, who are really a class apart – in this demanding and exacting city how do they manage bring out the enthusiasm to cheer the runners, how the city comes to a standstill, how in a big hearted way they open up the Worli sea link (this year the half-marathon runners had the pleasure of running on it both ways) for runners, how do they manage to come out on the streets on a Sunday morning and give the runners biscuits, chocolates, confectionery, oranges, bananas, water, energy drinks etc. and most important of all encourage and cheer. Mumbaikars rock!!

In Delhi for the Airtel half-marathon we are largely running in Lutyens Delhi and we only get to see the security guards, event organisers and policemen on the streets.

I can safely claim that if the SCMM event organisers were not there, the general public in Mumbai is more than capable of taking take of the energy needs of the runners (full and half marathoners). Sometimes the highly enthusiastic kid volunteers are so persuasive that one ends up taking something from them just to not disappoint them J. Sometimes they appear so god-sent that I have seen a grown up runner touch the feet of a 10 year old because he was cramping and in pain and this kid appeared before him and offered a banana and chocolates *lump in thoat*. 

I believe the SCMM is a ‘SOCIAL ASSET’ that has been created by the Mumbaikars and I am sure most of my fellow runners will agree.

• Some stats about the Mumbai full marathon (a full marathon is 42.2 kms) – about 6,000 people register and 5,000 land up for the run and about 3,670 completed the run in 2016 within the stipulated 6 hours.
• This year about 290 women also completed the FM.
• 15,000 people register for the half marathon.

The other reason for writing this article is to encourage people who are planning to or would like to run but are not being able to cross the last hurdle in their mind. This is also relevant to those who are casual walkers or short distance runners but are not able to consider a HM or a FM:

• Firstly it is a lot easier than you think. The fear is all in the mind. There is no age, gender, health and weight barrier for running. All of us walk to go about our lives and running is nothing but walking faster. REMEMBER – IF YOU CAN WALK YOU CAN RUN.
• Just until 1 or 2 generations back, every person would easily expend an effort equivalent of walking 10 kms every day. A human body is made for walking and running – only in the last 15-20 years in India many people have stopped making that kind of effort in a day because of the modern conveniences and transportation methods. In a modern stress environment, what are you doing actively to keep your health, strength and stamina up. Your health and immunity (or the lack of it, rather) can have a huge impact on you career development.
• On my own, I can run only for about 8- 10 kms. When I am training with my group this can easily go up to 20-30 kms. When we are participating in a big event like the Mumbai Marathon or the Bangalore Ultra – the distance goes up to 42.2 kms or 50 kms. Who you are running with, how big is the event and how many other people are there – these things give us a lot of energy and motivation to complete the run. On a difficult project, how much of succour and help are you able to bring to the team as a whole. Do you spend all your time worrying about ‘my part’ or are you sensitive and empathetic enough to other team members, understand their challenges and try to help them? Most importantly, do you realise that it is the collective optimism in the group (to which you contribute heavily) that is responsible for the success of your project. Always it helps to just do your at most best that you can.  
• I know the legendry BR Hariharan (https://bit.ly/1TGtAUy) from Hyderabad – ran his first big run (50 kms) run on his 60th birthday at the Bangalore Ultra in year 2008 (I had the privilege of being his roomie the night before at the Hessarghata resort and it was my first ultra-marathon as well) and since then he has completed 100+ half and full marathons, in all the 7 continents of the world (he ran his Antarctica marathon in Mar 2016!).
• ‘Hari sir’, as he is fondly called in the running circles, is regularly featured in media, has a chapter devoted to him in an Indian running book and is writing his own book as well. I meet him at many big runs and joke with him saying that after he met me in 2008 at Bangalore Ultra his age is reversing and now he is 52 years. He is the Chief Investment Officer at Shriram Insurance and has just enrolled for his Phd course. Hard to beat that!! Can you as a young researcher find the same energy and enthusiasm to do your tough tasks at work, read heavily to buttress your knowledge of research, marketing, business, the digital space and still have enthu left over for your friends and family and all the wonderful things there are to experience and enjoy in this world?
• Do not anticipate knee, ankle & heart problems and give up running. Just start and if there are any issues then your body will signal that to you and then you can slow down/give up. Our yoga guru, Arun Pandala, once famously said to Raji Bonala in a ‘counselling session’ ‘Rajeswari, we must not whine like dogs’ (www.yogashowstheway.com). Tough message, but true. Whinging and anticipating the worst is self-fulfilling, for the most part
• Running however is different from other sports – it is a very big effort sport and not a skilled sport. Each time you run there is no learning that is stored in the muscles, body and mind.
• We complete a 50 km ultra and then after a 3-4 day break when we start running, the body has re-set itself to zero and we are able to do only 3-4 kms on the first day. We need to pick up from there and slowly start building to come up to a HM or FM. Because there is no skill, there is no stored learning for your body. Think about what would happen if this were to happen to other sports as well.
• Do not over think it. After school I did not play any active sport and then picked up running more to give up smoking. The first time after these years when I got on to a treadmill – I managed 1.3 km in 15 min. I am now 16 years older and that 1.3 kms has become 50 kms. IF YOU CAN WALK YOU CAN RUN. Examine your own life and work – is over-thinking killing you. Sometimes the answer is simply to let be and forge ahead in your efforts. Questions like – why is that person treated better, why should I do this while others are not putting in more effort, I’m not paid to do this s**t are all part of an over-thinking way of life, which has become the scourge of a modern world and English medium education.

• Join a group (small or big is your preference) – take my word for it, this makes training that much easier. I prefer a smaller group and run with a set of awesome people:
  • Nikhil Sharma – a 40 year CEO of Perfetti, Philippines (he was the Marketing Director at Perfetti, India)
  • Anil Singh – another 40 year old, CEO in the making, heads a few states and a 300+ people team at ICICI Prudential. He is the ‘doctor’ in the group and there is no body, mind, soul issue that he has not investigated in the past. He is by far the most knowledgeable person I have ever met in my ‘young’ life. We are blessed to have access to his counsel and wisdom all the time.
  • Parag Sharma – soft spoken COO at Renew Power. Latest member of the group, and has taken to running like a duck to water. After 1 HM (21.1 Km) he moved straight to a 50 km ultra in 2015 and he had the best timing in the group – truly unbelievable feat and after his first 50 km run in Bangalore came home to Gurgaon to attend an 8 pm party – I am sure he was all charming and did not mention his 50 km ultra-run to most people there. He ran the 2016 Mumbai marathon after a one week business trip in China and landed directly in Mumbai and had an awesome run. He is the true James Bond of running for me. Don’t worry if there are more ‘experienced’ members in your team, you possibly have some kind of hidden talent that can out-pace the other older members. But to find it, you have to work really hard – are you prepared to do that?
  • Rakesh Swaroop, 30 year old, a renewable energy space CEO in the making. Hugely gifted runner – in my mind he can party till 6 am in the morning and can run a HM after that (I suspect on cold winter mornings in Delhi, sometimes he joins us at 6am directly from a party and effortlessly runs 20+ kms in a practice run).

The importance of the group is that everybody is doing the best and pushing towards the same goal – everybody should complete the run and do their best timing. All of us normally complete within a few minutes of each other, run together for large parts and encourage each other. If any of us would not complete the run or do their best then it is a group failure. We are sure that even if somebody has a small niggle on the big run day, the motivation, enthusiasm and encouragement of the others will take that person through.

I have indicated the job titles and the roles they perform in their professional roles to indicate how difficult it would be for them to take the time out to practice and participate in those big runs. They all do it effortlessly. Sometimes they could land from a business trip past mid-night but are all bright and cheerful for a 6am, 20 km run. Most of the these big running events happen on Sundays in various cities and if we do not mention it, a colleague sitting right next to us may not know that we went to Mumbai/Bangalore on a Saturday morning, ran a full/ultra-marathon on Sunday and we are back at our homes on Sunday evening and back to work as usual on Monday morning.   

The thought was to inspire all of you young people to take up an active hobby and cut through the inertia and excuses that one comes up, like a hot butter knife. A new you in a few months is what you will get at the other end.

END OF PART 1 - The MAGIC of the Mumbai MARATHON

 WILL POST PART 2 IN A FEW DAYS

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