Another forgettable year !

From the time  I took to long distance running in the early 2000s,  the year  2019 (  and the 2019-2020 season) was by far the worst year running wise except for 2003-04 when I had knee issues after completing my first Full marathon. After the nadir of  2019 one thought things could only better from there.  As it turned out 2021 was a complete disaster.  I hit a personal low in terms of  running mileage clocked  (approximately 1200), no of cardio workout days(185) , no. of runs over 25Km(just one apart from TMM 2020) , period of no exercise(6 weeks from mid March to early May) and duration without runniong (10 weeks from mid March to early June). And a record weight gain of 4Kgs to top it. 

Of course, 2020 was a terrible, forgettable year globally affecting millions of people through displacement, job losses, sickness and death of dear and near ones. In those terms I have certainly been among the privileged and must count my blessings - no one except R has lost his job among my family and friends and except for the  change in lifestle due to WFH, lack of travel and socialising the pandemic has'nt adversely impacted most people I know pesonally. Outside of running 2020 has actually been good for me - R's wedding in Feb followed by a wonderful holiday in Gujarat were the highs before the pandemic struck in India. Working full time for Mentor Together enabled me to fullfill my goal of working at a NGO and provided an enriching and satisfying albeit very hectic experience. 

Getting back to the running  - the perenneal tendonitis that hit me in November 2019 (due to which I had the 2nd DNS of my running career by skipping the Spice Coast marathon) continued to trouble me throughout 2020. The 6 weeks following TMM in Janaury were anyway lowkey in terms of running due to the wedding and the holiday. As I started picking up the training in the last week of Feb the swelling and pain around the right ankle grew. Physio sessions at IMSMTC (which in my personal opinion were useless and ineffective) got disrupted by the lockdown. Post the easing of the same I consulted Dr. P at Sparsh. When the paid and swelling did not reduce despite the hip and ankle mobilisation/strengthening exercises I consulted Dr HK of Ossicare. Based on the MRI that revealed fluid accumulation around the pereneal tendon he prescribed some medication and ultrasound physiotherapy and complete rest from running or any impactful exercise for 3 weeks. Though the pain and swelling subsided by about 60/70% it did not go away. The Dr suggested surgery as an option. However I decided to give it time instead. After the break in the second half of September I restarted running with much lower intensity : distances shorter than 10K at 30% slower than usual pace. Over a 8 weeks period I gradually increased the distance while keeping the pace between 6:20 and 7 per Km(compared to 5:20 and 6 before this injury). Was delighted to end the year with a 30K/3:30 hr run though the last 5 Kms was quite a struggle. 

With no phyiscal running events being held post Feb and several weeks of lockdown imposed restrictions, 2020 was not a bad year to recuperate from injury.  With the continued uncertainty of the dates and format of physical races in 2021, the focus is to build on the current momentum to run a sub 5:15 FM in TMM 2021 (tentatively scheduled for late Feb)- which is probably likely to be a virtual race.  The other goals for the year, at this point in time, are to build strength, reduce weight below 56Kgs and run a sub 4hr marathon in the Oct/Nov time frame. 

 

Struggle to get fit for TMM 2021

After consulting Dr P - head of sport ortho at Sparsh hospital on 13th May restarted cycling with a 50m/12K  ride on 15th May. After couple of weeks of ankle and hip mobilisation excercises restarted running on 3rd June after a long break of 10 weeks - the previous run was on 17th March.  Starting with a 32 min /4Km run  scaled up to 17Km over 4 weeks. While cycling even up to 30Kms did not stress the ankle much the running has been a real struggle. Though running slow (usually between 6 and 6:30/km pace) and despite weeks of ankle and hip related exercises the ankle hurt specially when running beyond 8-10Kms. It also seemed to swell quite a bit.

Desperate to try and address this I started focusing on improving cadence from about 159 strides/min to at least 166 strides using a metronome beat.  Along with this I also tried to  focus on the gait. However, it did not help at all. I felt I was not lifting my legs properly and was tending to shuffle at times.The cadence was also stuck mostly around 162 or so. It is as if I had forgotten the basics of running after doing it consistently for 20 years.  After a virtual strengthening and stretching session  with S the ankle feels better only to feel as bad during and post a run however short and slow it maybe. In order to minimise the variables I switched out of being a vegan to normal vegetarianism. Physically it has not yet made any difference though mentally I feel worse. 

To make matters worse dengue forced me to lay off from all exercise for  2 weeks + in the second half of September. On resuming running from 28th September the ankle discomfort  and swelling manifested itself even in a 3Km/21m run. With TMM 2021  just 3.5 m away it is going to be a real challenge to get fit enough to run the marathon virtually to keep my streak going. At this point in time running a full marathon distance looks dauntingly impossible. The only 20K+ since TMM was in March and have struggled through only one run greater than 15Km since then. 

Based on the advise of Dr P of Sparsh I plan to consult the sports ortho Dr H this week and see if any further investigation is needed to determine the cause of the ankle swelling. Though Dr P feels confident about his diagnsosis of Peroneal tendonitis, he suggested further consultation and investigation to rule out anything else before scaling up the training for the marathon in January.Whatever the outcome , I am determined to run/walk the distance come what may. 

Longest layoff from running

I had to stay off from running for a few months , due to problem in my knees, after completing my first full marathon in Jan 2003. Since completing a half marathon in the first edition of Mumbai marathon in February 2004 I have been fortunate to be able to run pretty much continuously for 16 years till February 2020. Of course, its not that I did not have my share of periodic breaks due to  injuries. But usually the down time has not been for more than few weeks at a time and has of late been more to take a break between two seasons. Never have I had to layoff running for 3 months - my last run was on 16th March 2020. And as of now I am not sure when I will be able to resume. Hopefully it will be soon after I meet a physio in the next week or two.  Being completely off any form of excercise for so long is a real bummer specially when one has more time available. The continuing dull pain in and around the right ankle, pain in both quads and right glutes after sitting in one place for more than 30-45m is worrying to say the least. Not being able to consult anyone about it due to the Covid19 lockdown is very frustrating. It is causing a tremendous psychological and mental stress and driving me insane . And on top of it despite trying to maintain a fairly controlled diet the weight has gone out of control. It has steadily gone up to touch 58Kg now and I can clearly sense the increased fat around my waist . The weight is as high as it has ever been in the last 10 years or so. Need to ensure that it does exceed 60Kgs at any cost. Else it will be a huge challenge to bring it back down to the optimum of around 55Kg. 

Need to be optimistic that this too will pass and I will get over the current injury woes in time to be able to run the Mumbai marathon in January 2021. 

Grounded Covid19 or not...

This is not about Covid19 that has grounded over half this planet's population in their homes and brought the global economy to a staggering halt. In fact one blessing of the current situation could have been to be able to go outside early morning and run or cycle in the empty roads and enjoy the fresh air(though a voilation of the quarantine rules , it could not really have harmed anyone or me to be outdoors alone between 5:45 and 6:45am in rural Bangalore). Unfortunately, even before the national lockdown I had to stop  running due to pain in the right ankle and swelling around it. A slow 8Km(47min) in the weed strewn 'track' of Malhar on 17th March was my last run. I also cut down on the strengthening and stretching regimen to a bare minimum sustenance level- to those those did not impact the ankle or calf.  Subsequently, due to the persistence of intermittent ankle pain, I stopped ALL excercise from April 1. The hope is that 10-15 days of complete rest will help overcome the issue. This has added to the challenges of staying sane and managing weight while being home bound 24 x 7.

The irony is that I stopped all cardio excercises barely ten days after putting down some tentative goals for the 2020-21 season. Depending on how the suppression of the virus proceeds over the next few weeks many of these events are likely to be rescheduled or cancelled. So this is probably not a bad season to focus on first recovering from the current ankle issue  and then building strength from glutes upwards (all the way till the upper shoulder). In any case as of now all bets are off for participating in events this season.  The plan now is to get a MRI done as soon as normalcy returns and then go from there. If the injury does get managed by the August/September timeframe then one can look at targeting a reasonable FM finish  at TMM in  January 2021 and then race for a sub 3:47 in Delhi in February 2021. Dream on!!!

Goals for 2020-21 season

Plagued by injuries the last few years, the long term running goals have been sliding out further and further into the future. The last several years I have been starting the season with a break from long distance running and focus on strengthening and rehabilitation. This year also the plan is similar - to consult a physio to address the long festering issues of stress in the quads, numbness in the left sole and inflammation in the right ankle(bothering me since November 2019). The goal was to just maintain base fitness with slow runs not exceeding 21Km and no interval or tempo runs and a weekly mileage of 35-40Km.  Started sessions with with Aashish Kusswaha of IMSMTC in Nagarbhavi from 29th Feb. Unfortunately, post that there has been further setback with increased inflammation of the right ankle as well a catch in the lower back resulting in complete rest from all execrcise for some time.

Hoping that I recover from the injuries by April end or so,  following is a very tentative plan for this running season. 

2nd August 2020  - Airtel Hyderabad marathon

9th August 2020  - Bangalore 10K challenge

October 2020 - HM at Bangalore marathon or Airtel Delhi half marathon

17th Januar 2021 - Tata Mumbai marathon

February 2021  - IDBI Delhi marathon

3 FMs for the year is probably way too ambitious given how the past few years have been. The 10th edition of Hyderabad marathon is tempting as I have very fond memories of it and it has been a while. I am targeting to  race hard and try and BQ at the IDBI Delhi marathon in Feb 2021.  Have slotted the Airtel Delhi Half in October yet again to get familiar with the course. If I decide (again) not to travel all the way to Delhi  then the HM  at the Bangalore marathon is an alternate option.

Apart from injury free running another important factor is to  zoom in on a new pair of running shoes as the new Brooks Ghost 10 seems too heavy and does not seem to be working for me. And last but not least, all going well,  will work towards reduction of the extra weight of 2.5/3 Kgs to get closer to optimal performance weight of 55Kgs by June end.  

The Mumbai streak continues....

The annual visit to Mumbai to run the marathon on the 3rd Sunday of Jan was a good change from the hectic activities related to the wedding that was the focus of all energies since Dec 2019. The race itself was nothing to write home about. After the ankle injury in early November ,which further jeopardised my faltering training,I had reconciled myself to running TMM without any timing goal and just completing it in reasonable shape. With a per km pace mostly between 6:15 and 6:30 I completed my 15th consecutive FM in Mumbai in 4:33 - running the last 4 Kms quite strong. In hindsight, could have pushed a bit betwen 15 and 25Km  for a sub 4:30 finish.  However, glad to have made it to the start line despite injuries and happy to have finished in a reasonable shape.

As in 2019, again I drove to the airport on 18th Jan morning picking up Chandru and Pankaj enroute.  

As usual bumped into several runners at Bangalore airport as well as on the flight. After collecting the bib and taking photos with a few runners at the very crowded expo a bunch of us headed to Rajwada Thal for a Rajasthani thali lunch. (My 2nd consecutive year of lunching here).

After meeting a friend and her husband at Smokehouse Deli near by I reached Hotel Fortune around 7PM.  Met with another bunch of runners over (vegan pizza) dinner at Bezos in Colaba.

Slept from about 10PM to 3:30am Though the room was a bit small the hotel overall was better than New Bengal where we stayed in 2019. Bunch of us left the hotel for Azad maidan at about 4:35am.

This year I did not carry a bag with me for check-in at the baggage counter - probably for the first time ever in Mumbai. Usually I wear a windsheeter or full sleeve shirt which I keep in the check-in bag along with my phone and sandals to change into after the race.  I decided to run with the phone - again a first ever for Mumbai. After quick pictures with D and Monappa and Nitin(outside the TCS tent) I headed to the start line via the holding area around 5:10am.

With no specific race strategy in mind (except to get to half way point in about 2:10 or so) I started at a slow pace with the intention of running with Pankaj and Prateek. Ended up staying just ahead of them till about the sea link after which they slowed down further. So we never met on the course.  Ran with  Chandra Kumar for sometime betwen Km 8 and 14 till I decided to stop at a Sulabh to take a leak. Had Rishi and Amrita for company for a bit on the sea link. Post that I pretty much ran alone.

The first half at 2:18 was about 10 minutes slower than planned . This meant I had more energy for the second half which was 3 minutes faster. Felt reasonably comfortable while going over the Peddar road flyover and the return stretch on Marine drive despite the increasing temperature. Overall the weather was quite ok with moderate temperature and below par humidity level.

Happy to have completed  the racewithout stretching myself too much. The post race refereshment was quite pathetic. After a quick shower at the hotel and lunch at Pancharatna near by headed to the airport early.

It was close to 10PM by the time I got home after dropping Pankaj at UB city - fortunate enough to have made a successful trip for the seventeeth year in a row!!

Forgettable year of injuries and missed goals

With consistent training post a decent50K(+10K) run at the Malanad ultra in Oct 2018 I was hoping to end the 18-19 season and start the 2019 calendar year with a BQ at TMM 2019.  It was very disappointing to miss it by about 3 minutes despite being on target in the first half of the race. That set the trend for the 19-20 season and 2019 calendar year. 

Event                                          Goal                 Actual

TMM 2019                                   3:48                  3:50:47

Bengaluru 10K Challenge            0:48                   49:45

Mysuru celebration HM               1:48                  1:50:46

Spice Coast Marathon                   3:47                  DNS

The niggle with the left quads and left sole has been bothersome throughout the year. At times the right quads also hurt specially while running up gradients.  However, it was not bad enough for me to stop training. However, the peroneal tendonitis in the right ankle changed that forcing me to take a break of 3 weeks+ from running and cycling. As it is I was struggling with my endurance runs for TMM 2020 though the intervals went well and tempo runs were mostly ok.  So, yet again, like the year 2018, I plan to run TMM , which is just over 3 weeks away, with no real time target . It would be an achievement to complete in sub 4; Sub 4:30 will still be satisfying. Depending on how the left sole, the quads and the right ankle I may be happy just crossing the finish line for the 15th year in a row!! Will need to focus once again on strengthening and rehabilitation post TMM and only then plan for the 2020-21 season. 

  

Run, walk or crawl at TMM 2020?

TMM 2020, my annual must do FM ,is just about 7 weeks away and I have been off running or any form of excercise since abandoning my last run on 10th November. This is turning out to be the worst ever running season causing severe angst and  depression to even a seasoned runner who has been constantly in and out of injuries for the last decade. Have been pretty much taking rest from excercise after deciding to not run the Spice Coast Marathon in Cochin on 1st Dec - the third DNS of my career. While the ankle is much better it does not seem to be have healed fully as it is still hurting  around the bone on and off. Prolonged the break from 2 to 3 weeks and now in a dilemma whether to prolong one more week or try out a short easy run in the next day or two. Either way I will, at best, have time to do no more than two 25Km+ runs so maybe better to give it one more rest. Will probably take a call early in the coming week.  I am now mentally reconciled to the fact that, barring a miracle, this will likely be my slowest ever FM at Mumbai. Whether I should set any timing goal will depend on  how it goes once I resume running. Nevertheless,  I am determined to run, walk or crawl to complete the race within the stipulated 6.5 hrs time to keep my streak at Mumbai alive and also to complete at least one FM event for the 2019-20 season. 

Forced break..another washed out season

After struggling to a below par 3:14/33K in the most critical training run, on 3rd November, for Spice Coast Marathon I was anyway on the verge of backing out from the event. I did not see a point in incurring travel and stay costs to either run a 4h+ FM or run just a HM. However, postponed the decision till after the next two long runs , that is, 25K on 10th November and 32K on 17th November.

When I stopped after just 3K of the 25K run due to niggle in the left quads, pain in the right ankle and super negative thoughts in the mind it was game over for the Cochin event. The mind started looking for reasons to justify the struggles with long runs including the switch to vegan diet.   The last straw was when Dr. Basavaraj, an ortho at BGS hospital, whom I consulted due to increased pain, tenderness and swelling in the right ankle, diagnosed it as peroneal tendonitis and advised rest from any physical activity of the lower limbs for 3-4 weeks! In a way it was a blessing in disguise as my long training runs were among the worst ever and I would have probably struggled to do a sub 4 hr marathon even on a flat surface. This would have further hurt my confidence in my ability to do a sub 3:47 ever again.  However, now targeting a time goal for even the Mumbai marathon on 19th January 2020 looks futile. As I will be left with just 5 weeks of training assuming I can restart running from 1st Dec. This means the 2019-20 is another washed out season - the 4rth one in last 5 years.

Well such is a runners life : injuries popping up at the most unexpected of times and derailing plans for the season. Given how the last few seasons have gone  I need to seriously introspect as to whether I should:

A) give up on timing goals for FMs and just run for completion and maybe switch to slow ultras(albeit flat, road runs)  OR g

B)  stop running marathons/ultra marathons and stay with easy runs of shorter distances

While I very well know B) is sufficient from a health and fitness perspective andis probably the logical thing to do it is unlikely the heart will allow me to stop making attempts at FM timing goals for a few more years!!

A make or break month - November 2019

In my long distance running career,  that started sometime in 2001, I hit peak form between June 2011 to August 2013 achieving PBs in 10K, HM and FM distances and qualifying for the Boston marathon. Since then it has been a steady downhill with perennial niggles in the left glutes and left sole hitting the nadir in 2017.  While I continued to enjoy my running  and be fit and healthy for my age , it was a disappointing realisation that the days of setting time targets and achieving them were over.  With minimal running and focused strength training  from mid 2017 to mid 2018 (including a personal strength trainer for the first time ever) it looked like the niggles had been overcome and I had a decent run at the challenging course of The Malnad Ultra in Oct 2018. Then I narrowly missed my goal at TMM 2019 in spite of training well for it. And it has been back to square one or actualy square minus one since then.  The niggle in the left glutes has been replaced by one in the left quads/IT Band with the numbness in the sole showing up on almost all longish runs specially on gradients.Unable to put the right finger on the issue to get it fixed has been very frustrating and demotivating.

Nevertheless, I decided to make another attempt at sub 3:48 FM (and  BQ ) at , the flat as a pancake, course of  Spice Coast marathon  in Cochin on 1st December 2019 . The ten weeks training post the Mysore celebration half on 22nd September has not been going well. There has not yet been a single week when all 3 training runs(interval, tempo and long run) have gone as per target pace. The intervals have been by and large fine(except the one this week which I ran the day after a 13K at MP).  The tempo runs are going ok. The strange thing is the mental and physical struggle in completing the long runs when in the past I have usually completed 32K or even 36K training runs well within the target time.  This is playing on my mind to such an extent that, for the first time in 18 years of distance running, I am no longer enjoying the long runs. In fact I am starting to dread them and the thought of sticking to shorter distances and giving up on racing has crossed my mind more than once.  This does not seem to be just due to the stress in the quads and left sole which increases even with a few meters of elevation. The increasing dogs, dust and traffic on my usual running routes as well as higher than optimal weight and slightly worn out shoes are probably playing their role. Also the frequency of the strain in my right hip/abdoemen has increased- it occurred this week for the 3rd time in the past year or so.

With just about 7 targeted training runs left, before the Spice coast marathon,  the next 4 weeks is critical not just for achieving the FM timing goal but to determine the psyche and course of my future running career.  Am giving it all I can by running the two remaining  long runs (35K on 3rd November and 32K on 17th Nov) on relatively flat courses, dilgently working on strengthening of glutes, quads and calves, recovering through weekly workouts in the swimming pool and taking it easy two days  before the long runs. In spite of this if the long runs and/or race on 1st Dec goes badly or is not enjoyable then a serious introspection on future running plans and goals will be in order.

Disappointing HM at Celebration Mysuru marathon 2019

As a step towards building up pace to hit a sub 3:48 FM this season I decided to race a HM after a gap of 6 years. Rather than the flat, fast course of ADH in October that I was considering, I decided to run the Life is Calling Mysuru marathon on 22nd September - a race that I had PB'ed in at the 1st edition in 2011. The ten weeks training, (post the Bengaluru 10 K challenge on 7th July), using the RLRF training plan for 1:48 HM, went pretty much as per target despite struggling to hit time targets in a few tempo runs and missing the last long run due to a sprained hip. The left calf hurt a bit on and off during the long runs. Surprisingly, almost all the interval runs were on target. The route for the HM was made available by the organisers less than a week before the race. Unfortunately, elevation map, which was the main thing of interest to me, was unreadable. The lack of response in spite of repeated communications to the organisers to get information on the elevation profile of the route(as my preference now is to run flat courses as my quads find it stressful to navigate gradients) was disappointing.  From what I could make out the course was not as flat as I had expected. It seemed to have rolling hills with long but not very steep gradients throughout the route. Also, there seemed to be too many turns and loopbacks in the route.This was the start of the negativity towards the race which probably contributed in large measure to my not hitting my timing goal. The usual phantom pains and bouts of nervousness in the days leading up to the race could not be avoided. My plan was to get to 11Kms in as close to 55 minutes as possible with 53 minutes or so for the remaining 10Km.

Just before heading out from the hotel room

My brother C and I took a 1:50PM  train from Kengeri on 21st afternoon and reached Mysuru around 4:30PM. The bib collection process at Decathlon was smooth - there was no expo to speak about. We walked the 750m from our hotel(Siddarth) to the race start point in the evening in search of bananas. After an early dinner we went to bed before 10PM. Woke up around 4:20 am and reached the start point by 5:30. Saw the flag off the 30K race at 5:45 before lining up around 5:50. There were  probably less than 1000 runners - a surprisingly low number for a city race in its 9th edition.  

I took off from the the front when the race started at 6 am and covered the first 7 Kms in a little over 35 minutes. After that the turns and the loopbacks and the lack of clear Km markers put me off mentally and my pace began to drop. Also, the left calf strain and heaviness in the left sole constrained me from pushing physically. The city route was not great(excepts for the part inside the college campus and around it) and it was made worse by unclear and insufficient Km markers specifically for HM. This was compounded due to  the 30Km and FM being added for the first time this year  creating loopbacks and partial route overlaps for different distances. The volunteers were not proactive in directing the runners and more than once I had to almost stop to check the route with a volunteer. There were quite a few segments where one was running along with the traffice which is never enjoyable in a race and around the 17Km mark one had to cross a road with traffic flowing in both directions with no volunteer to manage the traffic. There were aid stations every 2-3 Kms and adequately stocked for my needs which is only water. Nevertheless,  I  felt hungrier and thirstier than  I usually do in a race probably due to below par pre-race nutrition. In summary I did not enjoy the race experience -  both the organisation and my performance was a let down.  I was so cheesed off by the 13Km mark that I could muster only betwen 5:15 and 5:30 pace for the last 8 Kms for a finish in 1:50:46. The finish area was also not clearly marked and I almost sprinted towards the wrong arch. 

 There was limited breakfast both in terms of items and quantity. After breakfast we hung around for a while till the HM results were announced.The participation level was so uncompetitive that I ended being the first of eight finishers in the 61Y+ age category despite missing my goal by 3 minutes.

With Sumant in the finish areawhom we met on the train

We were back at the hotel by 10am and in Bangalore by 530pm.