Missed this year's Mumbai marathon, but should be back next year. The whole experience of my dream run in 2013 and 2014 had been just awesome. While the marathons had been full of energy, fun and a lot of fan fare, the preparations for the same changed my outlook at looking at fitness. Though I still have those extra kilos still refuse to part with me, the discipline to continue morning walk/jog without fail has brought in a lot of energy and feel good factor in my daily routine.
I think the whole concept of marathons has gamified the fitness regimes. The Borivali National Park earlier used to have mostly elderly folks taking their walk, but last 3-4 years it's bustling with the energy of runners. The best part about it is that it's a collaborative sport. People encourage each other to do better, continue and not to miss the practice. The competition if at all is with self, in an attempt to do better at timings than yesterday, which I think is the best kind of competition. There is a great sense of achievement, pride, times when we endure healthy diet, test our limits or just understand our body.
It's like playing games, doing better all the time wanting to go to the next level and checking with friends at what level they have reached. With many smaller marathons that have sprung up in recent times. I think it's easy to keep up the tempo. It's really heartening to see young generation crowd waking up early and sweating it out in the mornings rather than just being lazy in their beds. Certainly a positive sign to move towards a healthier tomorrow.
And further the gamification on portals where we can pledge the km we will run or cycle or jog etc, and log every day gives a great dose of motivation.
Before winding up the blog, I should surely mention the ultra marathoners. We used to see many of the marathoners running up and down the mountains in shorts and thin sports t-shirts while we would be clad in all layers of clothes! I also read up a lot about ultra marathons then where people run like 100-150 kms across difficult terrains and have really pushed the boundaries of what their bodies can achieve. Very very interesting discussions of these marathoners on how their experience made them rethink about life and how they approach everyday things.
So long live the marathons and hope those help us build a healthier tomorrow
I think the whole concept of marathons has gamified the fitness regimes. The Borivali National Park earlier used to have mostly elderly folks taking their walk, but last 3-4 years it's bustling with the energy of runners. The best part about it is that it's a collaborative sport. People encourage each other to do better, continue and not to miss the practice. The competition if at all is with self, in an attempt to do better at timings than yesterday, which I think is the best kind of competition. There is a great sense of achievement, pride, times when we endure healthy diet, test our limits or just understand our body.
It's like playing games, doing better all the time wanting to go to the next level and checking with friends at what level they have reached. With many smaller marathons that have sprung up in recent times. I think it's easy to keep up the tempo. It's really heartening to see young generation crowd waking up early and sweating it out in the mornings rather than just being lazy in their beds. Certainly a positive sign to move towards a healthier tomorrow.
And further the gamification on portals where we can pledge the km we will run or cycle or jog etc, and log every day gives a great dose of motivation.
Before winding up the blog, I should surely mention the ultra marathoners. We used to see many of the marathoners running up and down the mountains in shorts and thin sports t-shirts while we would be clad in all layers of clothes! I also read up a lot about ultra marathons then where people run like 100-150 kms across difficult terrains and have really pushed the boundaries of what their bodies can achieve. Very very interesting discussions of these marathoners on how their experience made them rethink about life and how they approach everyday things.
So long live the marathons and hope those help us build a healthier tomorrow
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