Race Date: January 17, 2021
Venue: Pimple Nikakh-Aundh, Pune

That any race could be done virtually & you could race from where you are is courtesy COVID 19. So one of the positive takeaways was that anyone could participate in any race across the world Marathon or IM Duathalon.

So last year I started some structured training with coach Atul Godbole & completed my third TMM with a timing of 4.28 in 2020. The plans post that was actually to do a Half Ironman & that was reinforced when I met Milind Soman at the Raipur airport in February mid. No one would have imagined that a month later we would be facing what would be known to us as a lockdown.

So April & May literally had no running. Fortunately our cross train sessions were online & was able to maintain my fitness level during the lockdown. The running process restarted from around June and had a mix of tempo, hill runs, easy, aerobic & marathon paces. These are things am getting used to now, with an unstructured plan life was only about more mileage with more or less the same pace.

14 Week Journey

The 14 week plan started in October & I felt much better starting with the plan as there was not much gap in my running. I think with sustained & structured running there is some amount of muscle memory built in for running now. So the week was well laid out running was on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday & Sunday. My cross trains used to be Wednesday & Friday. Monday was the much required rest day.

Running was going as per plan. I guess I have never run so many half’s consistently during the past. So the fear of 21 was just out. The sub 2 still was elusive clocked 2.06, 2.04 & a 2 exactly in the time trials. Was happy to sustain a pace of 5.41 for the exact 2 hour half. Was also happy with the negative split & the strong finish.

Was feeling good, body was understanding paces much better now. Its so strange the pace is decided in the mind & when one knows a 6 or a 6.30 is the pace it starts from the go.

Hiccups Can happen anytime

When all aspects seemed really good I started experiencing a bad cough from around Christmas time. Till this time had completed one long run of 32 Km and was happy with my performance. One more training tip which I have put to use for long runs is to NOT stop the Garmin. So what one sees is the real time taken (cos during the race too water & gel breaks would be required).

Kept going with my training despite the cough & was getting ready for the 2nd 32 K run slated on January 3, 2021. ON January 2, 2021 struggled with the 5K easy run & was aghast to see the HR. My breathing was very heavy & I wasn’t in the best of shape. All this was happening 2 weeks prior to race day. With a lot of thought & a heavy heart had to take a break from running. Also consulted a doctor & started with some medication. There was some relief however was not 100% fit.

Had informed coach Atul accordingly & he asked me to connect when I felt good to train again. Post a week’s break was good start on Friday January 8, 2021. Coach Atul guided me to do 2 easy runs on Friday & Saturday. And continue with the rest of the plan from Sunday (there were just 3 runs left – 15K, 8k & a 5K).

Skepticism & Fear

I did complete the rest of the runs as per plan but was very nervous regarding doing the full on January 17, 2021. Felt really under prepared & the last 32 was done on December 20, 2021. I actually checked with Atul whether this race would be counted. I thought of doing my own run couple of weeks later, what if I treat this as my 32 K training run or I thought of doing a half on the 17th. The mind kept coming up with innovative ideas to escape. Atul mentioned that this race was not a formal one but also mentioned that I should go thru with it & TRUST MY TRAINING. At this time I also did think of my brother Deepak who with never follows a structured plan but is always race ready ( am exactly the opposite).

Did try & load up well in the last few days. Had carbs, bananas, nuts, dates etc. Another tip from coach was to watch a lot of running videos a day prior to get the mind race ready. That actually helped & Kipchoge kept coming to mind during the run.

Race DAY

The race was to start at 4 am. Had to hence get at at 2.45 (the earliest I have ever for any race) & leave the house by 3.15 so as to reach by 3.40. Reached there around 3.45 & got just enough time for a quick warm up. The flag off was at 4 sharp & enough butterflies in the stomach.

My planned pace was 6 min/Km however I decided to just listen to my body & see how things went. Had also decided NOT to see my Garmin till 32 Km (actually managed to avoid seeing it till 34 Km).

During the start of the run got talking to another fellow runner he did catch me coughing a bit & told me that my breathing was heavy. The cough was there but I felt I was breathing okay. Any way I guess that ensured he accelerated much ahead of me quickly.

Around the 6/7 Km mark was actually matching pace with a group of 3 other runners (Savita, Prem & a third runner). We also got chatting & bonded very well. Its amazing to see how runners can connect so quickly. A few more kilometers together & we started discussing our plans for each loop. Post loop 1 I stopped take my gels from the car but accelerated a bit & caught up with Savita & Prem. Around the 15th Km Savita offered me a salt tab (realized I left mine in the car). The weather was quite sultry & this was a much needed one. We were cruising well & were enjoying the run too.

Had my gels at 9k & around the 19th K. Somehow this time my gel intakes was skewed. These were the only 2 gels I had on the run. Post 27K when I was contemplating taking a gel it actually felt repulsive & I was feeling queasy about the same. Had my 2nd salt tab around the 30 K courtesy Savita again.

The 3 of us were together till around 33 K & that’s the time Savita & Prem went ahead . That gap kept increasing overtime. Was trying to catch up but couldn’t manage. So finally looked at my Garmin at 34K. At the 35th K I had clocked 3.35. Had 7K to go & I was heading for a decent finish. This is the time of the race when my mind starts playing games & keeps egging me to slowdown, walk & take a small break.

So the mind prevailed & I started to walk a bit for every Km. This got me to complete the last 7K in 50 minutes. Despite this did manage to clock my PB of 4.27 a minute faster than last year.

In Summary

• Trust your training. Hiccups could happen at any stage of the training & one needs to take it in the stride & go ahead
• Stick to your hydration, salt & gel routine
• Running with like-minded & like paced runners is a huge positive
• Every race is an enriching experience
• There is always scope for improvement for the next race & that’s what one needs to look forward to.