A day after the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, 2013, i got a number of emails and calls with complains about severe knee/back/joint pain and questions on how to get rid of the intense muscle soreness that prevented a large number of people from going to work the next day.
I must say I'm impressed. People i know for years who never exercises or ate balanced and healthy diets attempted to run the half marathon. Some did it, and some dropped out mid way.
It's great that the number of participants have increased year on year. Some see it as the city getting more conscious about fitness and sports. Others see it as a chance to run for a cause and make a difference, and then there's the large lot of people that run because of the media /celebrity and social attention that this marathon brings along with it.
Did the dream run or the 21 km run? Wow, i can update my BBM status, post it on Facebook and Twitter...it's definitely an achievement worth feeling proud of, but at what cost?
Athletes train months before such a sport event. It's not just running everyday as practice. It includes proper and i mean proper nutrition, large amounts of rest and recovery, training in the right gear, the right amount of hydration and developing a strong mental state of mind.
Running a marathon puts immense pressure on the human body. Right from the joints, muscles, ligaments, to the fine cartilage and vital organs like the heart, kidneys, liver, lungs and brain.
Many people are unaware that this immense pressure can cause deadly problems , which may only be felt later in life as the body wears down.
Running is a science. I commend the overweight runners that made an attempt to participate, but were their knees and back strong enough to support the additional weight they carried ? Consider the immense pressure i referred to earlier doubling in this case.
A number of clients reached out to me months before the marathon for diets and fitness programs, and i insisted that core training was a mandatory part of their training, to help support their backs through the run. Regular stretching, dynamic and static was part of every routine recommended.
Mixtures of turmeric, ginger powder and fenugreek became part of their nutrition plan along with a host of other anti-inflammatory foods. 8 hours of rest was part of the plan to ensure a healthy recovery between training, and water intake was mandatory to be at the top of all their ' to do ' lists.
If you aspire to run like a professional you got to train like a professional. If it's a fun run, you got to analyze the pros and cons, be aware of your current fitness levels and start of with small steps, progressing along the way until you reach your goal.
Running is a science, and if you don't train for it, you will pay in terms of health in the later years.
Like any other goal that needs to be achieved in life, you need to Plan, Prepare, Review and Do.
Congratulations to all the runner..keep up the amazing spirit, but keep your health in mind as well.
A tip for all those runner: Increase your intake of turmeric, ginger and garlic. These super-foods and spices are naturally occurring anti-inflammatory foods.
Train and exercise on a regular basis, and you'll find it's much easier to condition your body and mind when the next event comes up
Peace out
