I started running seriously on July 16, 2021, during the Covid lockdown. I had graduated, and I could no longer walk or cycle to the lab daily. And I was working full-time and very long sessions on my six-month-old startup, and these long programming sessions were taking a toll on my health. I needed a routine to sweat daily.
I enjoy cycling. I need at least two hours of sessions per day to feel like I’ve had a good ride. One day of cycling a week didn’t cut it. My muscles were getting stiff, and I wasn’t sweating daily, which is one of the best stress-busters. I turned to running, something I wasn’t really fond of during my Ph.D.
I occasionally cycled and hiked in the Western Ghats. I tried playing badminton to sweat daily but never running. I used to joke with a few friends who went running, “Hunter-gatherers run, not scientists!” and “What’s the point of running after all this scientific progress? Can’t we go cycling? The best combination of machine and muscle!” I tried swimming, but I couldn’t learn how to breathe properly before the lockdown, and access to the pool was very limited during the lockdown.
Starting was tough. But I went out every day and ran as much as possible, which was very little. In the first week, I was running between 1 and 2 km. I was aiming for mileage and not pace. This strategy helped a lot. I joined the Subreddit r/running. It’s a great community. I also read many blogs about running 5km from zero. 5 km was the target.
From almost zero to 5 km
RUNALYZE – Data analysis for athletes
In my first 15 days of running (July 2022), I went out nine times (total 15.5 km, min 1 km, max 2.3 km) and cycled one time (60.2 km). I am a bit surprised that I went out nine times in the last two weeks of July! I must have felt really good after sweating. I think I do slow starts but remain consistent.
On August 16, 2022, I ran my first 5 km in 41 minutes. I was not planning to run 5 km that day. I was touching 3 km for a week before this day. I can’t remember what was pushing me to finish 5km. I was very proud! I think I zoom-bombed my old lab’s lab meet just to tell everyone that I ran my 5km🥲.
It took me a month to go from almost zero to 5km.
First 10 km
RUNALYZE – Data analysis for athletes
On August 27, 2022, I ran my first 10 km. It had been two months and ten days since I began running seriously and one month and ten days since I completed my first 5 km. I put a lot of effort into it and was exhausted afterward. I had a slight fever and slept like a log the entire night. I didn’t brag about my 10 km accomplishment as much as I did about my 5 km😊.
Half marathon
Aditya, who often does half-marathons and marathons, told me to sign up for one. One in Munnar was coming up. So there was a chance that I could hike as well. We took our coworkers from the office to a homestay in Munnar. The trip wasn’t the best for everyone because of all the traveling. Four of us ran the half-marathon. The route was beautiful, but the roads were bad. You could still see the effects of the floods that happened in Kerala a year ago. I barely completed it; I mostly walked the uphill parts. It took me almost two hours and 30 minutes to finish.
I think I have developed a taste for running. I am planning to run 40,010 km before I die. That is the circumference of the earth passing Bengaluru.
The benefits of running are clear. Unlike other sports, you don’t need anyone else to do it, and you can run whenever you want. It also lets you sweat a lot in a short amount of time. Your body will get used to it and want it more when you keep doing it, like with any other exercise.
There is also Newton’s third law of inertia. When you haven’t been running for a while, you don’t want to start again, and when you do it regularly, you don’t want to stop. Nowadays, if I don’t run for two days in a row, my body starts asking for it.
Personally, sweating has been the most important part of my exercise routine. It makes me feel good throughout the day, and my mood is significantly better. My programmer’s body also likes it; my shoulder pain and wrist stiffness have gone away after four months of running.
I don’t think running is a complete exercise; my upper body is still as weak as ever, but I don’t care too much about it. And developing a routine also has its benefits.
Tools
I used an Android phone and the Runnerup app to record my run. I had a MI watch, which was costly by Indian living standards, to record my heart rate and other data. However, I disliked their official app. The Runnerup app could use the heart data from this watch. After the recording was complete, it uploaded my runs to Strava and Runalyze (https://runalyze.com/dashboard). I am very fond of the Runalyze platform. Its free plan is sufficient for my needs. Anyhow, I cannot afford their monthly plan.
I often use GOTOES to add times to a GTX file. Occasionally, due to power-saving settings, the recording fails and I must manually trace the route and add times before uploading to Strava and Runalyze. There are other features on this site that I haven’t explored yet.
I haven’t made any special plans for running. Maybe I should get a massage after running and do some stretching before running, but I’m not sure.