The Bangalore Ultra 2012 - Picture Post

 Ok, the official race results are not yet out and many of the pictures are yet to come. I know you guys have been waiting, so here are some of the pictures taken by the Scientist and BIL: Enjoy!

Good morning Race Day! Just arrived at the venue - time to pin up the bib and wear the timing chip

Stretching the quads - and encouragement from the Scientist

On your Marks, get set, Go! The flag off!!!

Are we there yet? The final kilometre!

Crossing the finishing mat! I'm not last - notice the people behind me?

12.5k Finisher! Yayy!

Updated to add: 

 This was the race picture:

Happy Hello world, I'm doing a 12.5k!

 

and this was my timing (which obviously I need to work on):

Rank	Bib	Name	Category Rank	Split 6.25K	Net Time
320	1723	NIVEDITA	70	00:52:19	01:51:32

I DID it! The Bangalore Ultra 2012 12.5k race recap

Yes, my lovlies! Thanks to everything that worked me up till the moment that said: Go! I just ran and ran and ran, had the awesomest run of my life and was on an adrenalin high all day long.

This is me at the finish line:

12.5 k done! medal and all.



I think I must have taken around 2 hours. The speed is pretty pathetic. But still, I did it!

The loop was 6.25 k out and back. I ran the 6.25 k out without any walking break/water break. At 6.25 aid station, I gulped own some water and a bit of electrolyte and continued running until 8.5k mark. After that I must have taken about 3 walking breaks for about 100 metres each. I simply kept running, and am happy that I actually ran almost all of the distance. People much thinner than me took walking breaks far earlier on. But my main aim was to keep running and my focus was not exactly on the time. So once I found my pace I kept at it.

The run itself was a trail run and the elevation was pretty good. The event was very well organised, and I felt kicked to be a part of it. Running among so many other runners was also a new experience to me considering that I did the KTM 10k all alone! The cheering on, the photographers and the general act of running was enough to make even a non runner want to try  to run! I don't think words can actually express the elation I feel for having been able to do it.

Ofcourse, nothing can be accomplished without support. The Scientist is almost solely responsible for having got me to run. I would have scoffed at someone if they told me I'd ever do something like this in my life. Honestly! But the nice husband that he is, was up early so that we could get to the venue on time. We were also joined by BIL no.2 for additional support :) It feels so good to see those known faces at the finish line. Especially for me, running is not a natural thing. I invest a lot of hard work into it. And any appreciation is so valued. So when those two guys waited two hours patiently till I finished the event and were so sweet to capture those moments, I had to feel so lucky!

I will share more pictures soon. I suspect that since I ran with the group and well on time, the official photographs may also give some nice captures. I also look forward to the official timing and my relative placement. Yes, I will share.

But right now, I think I will go eat a laddoo! :)

 

Thanks guys for all the support and wishes. I really appreciate it.

The great Diwali sweet making experiment!

This was my facebook status today:

the sweet making experiment is sooo over. Clearly cooking is not my forte!

What I might have forgotten to add is that: Only eating is!

Really after using up tons of butter, besan, sugar, ghee and maida, in my attempt to make something that atleast resembled a far far cousin of "seven cup cake" and "maida cake" , I just ended up with two platefuls of a sweet blob!!! Duh! My only hope is that somebody will actually eat it and will atleast save me of that effort.

For some reason, I feel so embarrased! I hate it when something I put so much effort into turned its back on me! In my old self, I would have cried about the disaster! But this time, I can't contol my laughter. I just find it so funny that I am so pathetic when it comes to cooking! Clearly my son and the Scientist have a helthy future ahead!

In other news the 12.5k is like day after tomorow!!!! Yikes. The yoga class I planned on attending today was cancelled. The gym seems to be closed!!! I might do a short run and some good stretching tomorrow in preparation for the big day. Hope I don't bungle up like last time.

Enjoy the festivities, guys. But I expect to keep blogging this weekend :)

October round up and November Goals

Happy to be home on a cold rainy winter day! The gym was closed for being a state holiday and it was raining pretty hard in the morning that I had to call off my run! So I just curled up and went right back to bed. So recharged, I tell you!

Anyway, October goals were:

1. exercise 6 days a week:

Made a total of 20 days of exercise even after being out of town for about 7 days. So counting the remaining 24 days, 20 workouts days, is not bad. But still, scope for improvement exists. 

2. lose weight ( 1 kg a week) although I never EVER make it to this goal 

Haha :) I think I did make some progress, until I got back home armed with mysore pak :)Back at starting point, though!!!

3. keep up the running practise for the 12.5 k race day 

Yes done well there. I have been running regularly, but am super nervous about the race day :)

4. continue to log in food, exercise and weight

Yes good there too :) I even tracked the mysore pak and laddoos!

5. last, but not the least : not gain weight during the wedding 

Pass, on this one too. Although, I guess I gained a bit thereafter!!!

Now for the November Goals:

1. Exercise 6 days a week!

2. Run the 12.5k on 11th November 2012. Can you hear my heart beat? After the mess up at the Kaveri Trail Marathon last time, I sure am crazy nervous!!!

3. Do 80 kms this month. (mostly running! thats about 20 kms per week.Doable, I think)

3. Diwali month, baby!!! And I want to lose weight. Let's see. I am sick of vascillating between 78 and 80. Time to do some serious work.Remember last year's Diwali debacle? 

4. Continue to log in food at Sparkpeople, weight & workouts here on my blog. It sure gives me an idea of what is going on. 

5. Keep my calorie intake at about 1500 cals per day!

And have I told you? I have planned for two more running events in December! But one step at a time, and I focus only on the Bangalore Ultra for now. Less than 10 days. the countdown has begun!!

The holiday mish-mash!

Yesterday, was a much needed break. After the wedding madness, I just wanted to be home and cool off. Since we got back home from Chennai, I found that I was in a perpetual state of sleepiness. Its not like I worked too hard during the wedding, but still my body and mind needed a HOLIDAY.

 

I raced out of bed yesterday morning, for a run! Glorious weathr I tell you. I did 8 kms in 70 minutes. My pace is picking up SLOWLY. Right now, I am focussing on endurance and stamina more than the speed. I feel that as I get lighter, my speed will improve. So I returned home a happy camper to find the Scientist and little Chittu fresh out of bed.

 

I fixed myself breakfast to go with my morning chai, because my stomach was GROWLING!! Gosh! these runs make me ravenous sometimes. Since yesterday was the final day of Navaratri, I decided to indulge the family in some good traditional festival food. Since we had been mostly out, I had laxed out a bit on the festivity. But made up for it yesterday with - the vadai, payasam and morkozhambu ensemble ( for those that dont get it - its just traditional tam-brahm cooking).

 

The toddler was mighty hungry by lunch and my cooking turned out pretty good too. The Scientist appreciated it and made his wife happy!! Honestly, the Husband is the main reason I cook. He loves home cooked food and also openly appreciates when the cooking is tasty. I usually try to add the healthy twist by ensuring the carbs-proteins- veggies are balanced out!!! But really, I am super lazy when it comes to getting into the kitchen.

 

Well, since we had not yet watched  English-Vinglish ( which we both loved too!), the Husband and I sneaked out for two hours for the afternoon show leaving the toddler behind with Maami. When we returned the Scientist suggested we take Chittu out somewhere. Lalbagh it was! To watch the ducks and the sun set. We enjoyed a leisurely 3km stroll, and brought up my yesterdays mileage alone to 11 kms. Sounds good, no? I think I might be almost ready for the Bangalore Ultra - 12.5k run on 11.11.2012. Oh and did I mention?My new reebok shoes seem to have eased out the knee pains for me!

 

I saw a weight gain this morning and I think all those sweets are catching up with me. I have put away the excess sweets in a place I wont access, and hope taht will be the solution to my problem. I did body pump today and think I might have a quivering body for hitting the weights after a week long break! It will be yoga tomorrow and long run on Saturday! I know I am rocking the workouts. I just need to work on the food aspect. Oflate, its become so so hard. I know I really need to watch the food the help me get rid of the last ten. Sometimes I am tempted to give up. But not now. Surely not. Let's see, I aim to lose a bit before the end of this month!Will I see a 77?

 

 

Post wedding fatigue

Back to work time, after the awesome wedding celebrations!!!

Its always hard to get back to routine, no? And even though I had crossed my heart about getting this morning's run, I decided to take it easy and sleep in. Minimal sleep was had the past week and I just could not shake it off. Plus its always glorious to be back home in your own bed and your pillow and have your own bathroom back, right?

Not so bad food choices were made. I really took it easy on the food, and was able to stay well in control most of the time. My weight has stayed the same, I guess. But the only problem now is quite the supply of the wedding sweets. I will have to keep my defences up! And I will go to the body pump class tomorrow. The Bangalore Ultra 2012 - where I'll be doing the 12.5 k run is less than 20 days away! Yikes !!!I better get my act together!

Friday post - body pain, upcoming long runs & the great Indian wedding!!

Friday again? Ah! My body was begging to give a break from working out this morning. I am seriously considering taking a massage once a month as a reward to all that I put my body through. Ever since I started combining my runs with body pump classes, I find that my legs hurt A LOT. Especially when I have just got into bed at night, I feel as if I have some creepy crawlies creeping through my feet (soles)- calves- thighs. There have been many many nights that I  have been unable to fall asleep because of this extreme discomfort in my legs. The Scientist says its lactic acid build up. Whatever!! I guess this is how muscles will react when they have been awoken from a life long slumber :) But I try to use some Ayurvedic oils which quickly give me relief. Otherwise, the kindly Scientist helps by pressing my legs! I told you I am lucky in that department.

 

So I stayed away from exercise today, but am now considering doing the evening power yoga class, before I hop on to the train for the weekend in Chennai. There is a family wedding next week, and some related rituals this weekend. There will be no exercise per se fro the next two days, because the mornings are going to get taken in rituals and in Chennai, and its kind of hard to exercise during any other time of the day. Yes I'd love to run along the beach, but that's another story!As a precursor, I will be doing this 10k run in early December in Chennai.

 

This weekend will therefore be family time and I plan to make a come back long run on Monday morning, because, I am pretty serious about the 12.5k I am scheduled to run at the Bangalore Ultra. I will be going back to Chennai again on Tuesday for the main wedding and reception. My sarees are lined up and so is my jewelry, and I have discovered that other thing I can look forward to in the wedding other than food! I will consciously try to stay away from indulging in every meal, and will save my calories for something I find totally exotic. I am an expert at making plans, you see and even better at non-adherence. I will leave it at that.

I guess thats all for now. All I can think of is the wedding and the fresh romance of the newly weds. It brings back many a sweet memory to me, although there is a great sorrowful story that shrouds my own wedding. That's a different story though and I cannot share it here! But life goes on, and an optimist will stay happy. Don't you think?





 

The weekend, some thoughts and a good run!

When the alarm rang this morning, at 5a.m I lay my head on the Scientist's shoulder and wondered why every weekend zips by so fast. Even if I did NOTHING. So that was pretty much this weekend for me. It all started when I bunked yoga/ spinning class on Friday to just be home and finish up some long pending work. And then it was Saturday morning and we stayed in bed till 8 that is until the maid rang the bell. We woke up, lazed around while we had tea, then mulled over the newspapers, worried about the effect of the kaveri issue and whether life in Bangalore would come to a halt and basically potered around the house doing nothing. Then when I decided I would not hit the gym, I settled for somne yoga on my mat. Little chittu joined in learning to do suryanamaskars and insisted he wanted the yoga mat as well. We tried to get him out of the way using his new cycle as a distraction, but he was quite intent about riding the cycle on the mat as well! Finally we got Maami to deal with him, while I stretched my fatigued muscles into bow, butterfly, serpent and warrior poses.

Lunch was an elaborate affair cooked with love and oil - specially for the Scientist because I ruined his birthday meal.(Sidenote: Am I not the perfect wife? ) And then belly full, we tried to catch some afternoon winks. Then there was chai to be prepared and then dinner! And just to reinforce, I am not a cook my profession, but a lawyer. The only reason I took to cooking is that I cannot find healthy, wholesome and lowcalorie food at the restaurants!

Sunday was identical with the exception of my waking up early, fixing breakfast and rushing to dance-class in an auto in the pouring rain. But what a bummer- no class!!! Ugh! So I took a BMTC bus back home, riding back on an old route in a new city with changed bus stop names. I got a ride that reignited old memories and younger days for just Rs.9. I would like my son to be able to do the same too. See that life is not all about air-conditioned cars and carpeted floors.

After dinner, the fact that we had gone more than two weeks without a meal outside just caught up with me. I asked the Sientist if we could go out for coffee, because the weather was wet and cold and just perfect for coffee. When we hit the mall, I saw a board for frozen yogurt and my heart did a little tango. But the serving size was so miniscule, it did not even let me take a guilt ride for the indulgence!

After carbo loading all weekend, I figured the best thing would be to head out for an early morning run. It was a superb 7 km run. Superb because I simply breezed through about 5k. I found my pace and tempo and just kept running. It was the best feeling in the world. But I am inclined to think that it was so good bacause I was well fed and well rested and my body and mind were so ready for it this morning. It was a glorious run and the endorphins are still pumping! I AM going to do the Bangalore Ultra - 12.5 km race. Thats 2.5 more than the KTM 10k, and I will get to the venue on time. (oh that reminds of another rant - but thats for anotehr post!) So any others want to run with me?