The 20-minute challenge

Tonight I am going to socialize with other runners. Running Room , a sports store that specialises in running equipment, is organising a 20-minute challenge. It’s for everyone – those who run to exercise and those (like me) who are preparing for a race. I am told that these 20-minute thingies get pretty crowded. At the end, everyone gets a free hat for participating.. hehe.

I think I can comfortably do the 20 minute thing. I’ve been running for 60-90 minutes for the last two days consecutively and today might be a pleasant break. I still haven’t decided on the shoes btw. Hopefully I’ll be able to finalise by this weekend and return the pair that I like less.

¶ Blogged by Priyank Thatte | Tags: Marathon training

Finding the right shoe is harder than finding a date

It’s been a week since I started my shoe research. After visiting few stores, doing some tests and reading materials online, I think I have short listed the two finalists.

Back in 2003 when I was young and reckless, and biked from Goa to Bombay, I ended up injuring my right knee. It doesn’t hurt except when I bike continuously for more than 40km. In retrospect, I could easily have taken better care of myself on that particular cycling expedition, but such things happen. Also, I have bowed legs, due to which my feet pronate a lot and I can feel it all the time. The tests confirmed that I have high (but not unusual) degree of pronation and may need some correction in the future. Since I don’t have insurance to cover that, I’m not going to do anything right now.

So I ended up settling on two pairs – Mizuno and Asics. Both are Japanese brands, one uses plastic and the other uses gel for cushioning and support. Mizuno is lighter but Asics has better cocooning for my feet. I am going to the gym tonight and will test run in each pair for 3km before settling on one.

¶ Blogged by Priyank Thatte | Tags: Marathon training

Back to blogging. One post a day, for 91 days straight.

For someone who hasn’t blogged since March 17 (that’s a gap of 124 days), this title might seem odd. Lot of things have happened since I posted last, but there was nothing unusual. Spring has turned into summer, with scorching heat and Mumbai-like heat and humidity. My mother visited me for 3.5 weeks and was content with everything (pheww!). And so on.

The reason for this post is to announce that I have registered for the Toronto ‘Half’ Marathon which is going to be held on October 17, 2010. The Marathon is 42.2km (as usual) and I will be running half of it, i.e. 21.1km.

This blog, with daily updates, is just another mechanism to keep me motivated. I’ll be posting my daily progress, race plans, and share any information that I gather from devouring tons of reading material.

Why?

For the past few months, I was increasingly feeling like I haven’t ‘done’ something for a while, be it travel or adventure or both. Back in 2003, I biked 650km (6 days) from Goa to Mumbai. In 2005, I went on a trek in the Himalayas and saw glaciers and snow (which is not so interesting anymore!) In 2006, I biked in the Himalayas (8 days). 2007 was an exciting year of moving to Canada, followed by a trip to Israel, Peru, Russia and Bhutan in the next year.

Last year and half were low-key, I was busy ‘settling down’. Hence, it was important to do something interesting this year. The thought of running a Marathon occurred to me one day and before my dominant rational-self interfered in the decision making, I spontaneously signed up.

So, here I am, soon to be a half-Marathoner!

¶ Blogged by Priyank Thatte | Tags: Marathon training