The Fall of the Berlin Wall!

The danger of setting steep improvements, is that expectations run high and at times could affect the performance graph. After the Paris marathon on April 3, 2016, where I ran a 2.59, my goals were quite simple. To do 3 back to back sub 3s – Paris, Berlin and Boston. (with a PB in B) I am not sure whether the 3^rd would fall in place, but that is still some 6 months away:-) Not many would know that I got an entry into Berlin 2016 in November 2015 through lottery when I had just done a 3.14 marathon at the Spice Coast Marathon in Kochi. I got lucky the 3^rd or 4^th time, I have started applying for Berlin! (BTW I have applied for London around 4 times and haven’t yet got through)

So what did I do from April to September 2016? Things I continued to do were as follows – a. Loosely followed the MAF training till around mid July before switching over to the Run Less Run Faster program from mid July’16 b. Continued with my gluten free diet which I started practicing since the end of January’16.

The major changes which I incorporated in the last 6 months were as follows – a. Increase in mileage – Whenever I used to meet coaches and ask them the question, what is the mileage it takes to do a sub 3? The answer was always; upwards of 80 K per week. And here I was doing around 40 – 50 K per week, and somehow managed to accomplish a sub 3. However, I did find merits in that argument. So in the last 6 months I took my mileage in many weeks to 70 – 80 K by squeezing in some easy runs in between those days. In one of of the weeks, I actually managed to clock a 80 K:-) b. The second biggest change was some huge practice runs be it intervals or long runs, with some of the best in the business. Just imagine, being paced by a multiple time SCMM Half Marathon winner Soji Mathew in one of the 32Ks or in one of the 8K tempos!

As I entered into the key month of September, things were definitely looking good! I had just run a 1.24 HM at Hyderabad, which is arguably one of the most difficult courses in India. I was practicing for a 3-hour finish but consistently clocking times which would give me a better finish. The best time I ran during my training over a 32K distance was at a pace of 4.11 min per km, but that gave me the confidence of going slightly better in the European conditions. The only scare (though minor) I got in the last 3 weeks was a slight knee pain on the left leg, probably due to the intensity of the training. This too was got under control by some clever resting and icing. With so much of motivation around, the positivity was clearly there. When you train, sometimes you feel the need to express your timings and routine. While in today’s world social media gives you the channel, I felt more comfortable interacting in private. And I am glad I have people I can do that with who expect nothing in return!

As I always do, my visit to the race city is always planned well before, and leaving nothing to chance. I did get some questions on why I was getting to Berlin on Wednesday afternoon which seemed pretty early. For me it served two things – One, it gave an opportunity for us to see a bit of Berlin and Two, more importantly factored in delays and any jet lag. As I grew up, I always saw some of my friends could write and do well in an exam with the least of preparation; probably referred to as talent. And then a few of us who needed to study that extra bit every time something important was at stake. Life lessons stay with youJ

Pavithra and me stayed at an AirBnB apartment which was booked well in advance. Food too was planned to the hilt and we had carried rice, dal, pickle and an electric cookerJ The expo happened on a Friday which has now become a norm for me. While in Berlin I did some runs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday with the first one being the toughest. By Saturday I was well in groove. I followed the routine of not venturing out on a Saturday except for the morning practice run. At the apartment I watched the 2 hours plus of Berlin Marathon 2014, when Dennis Kimetto had broken the world record. This was essentially to give me a feel as to what to expect on the race day. Through the last two days I was also hydrating myself with plenty of RELOAD.

Race Day

I had set the alarm for 5 am, but woke up by 4.45 am after a 7-8 hours of sleep. Coffee followed by some curd rice with Potatoes was the breakfast. A few gulps of RELOAD on the side made sure I was getting well hydrated. After a quick nap for 30 minutes I got up again at 6.05 am. This time, there was no going back to sleep. While I got ready with a quick shower, I did some more of the carbs through a couple of bananas. Before I was ready to go, I filled up two bottles – One of ACTIVATE and the other of a patented Carb loader. I got both into my system approx. with  around 30 – 60 mins before the start.

9.15 am – Start of the Race

I was slotted in block C which had runners with timings between 2.50 – 3.00 hours. My idea was pretty clear. 4.15 min per km takes you to a 3-hour finish while a 4.00 min per km takes you to a 2.50-hour finish. I had started believing in the last few weeks that I could sustain a 4.08 min per km pace which will get me to a timing of 2.55 hours. The idea was to never get the pace over 4.08 which was pchyologically important to maintain. (funda of Required Run Rate) So that was the internal yardstick, but one always hope for surprises! The atmosphere was electric, and I was feeling overwhelmed when they announced the lead runners – Kipsang, Bekele and Mutai. For once I thought about how lucky I was in every way to be there experiencing one of the premier marathons in the world. When the 5 min countdown started, I took out my old pullover, through it aside and got ready to race in my singlet…

6,5,4,3,2,1 and the Gun shot…The elites had started and the runners slowly started to move. And I was soon off to a fabulous start with the weather nice and cool. The initial few kilometers were slightly overcrowded but it went off pretty fast. The idea for me was to stick to the blue line which gives the measured route for the marathon.

5 K – 20.41 minutes; As I crossed the first mat, I knew there would be people tracking me and the game has started.

10 K – 41.04 minutes; I had increased my pace slightly and looked in fine shape. But the next 11 kilometers would be crucial and would determine the end game. If I were to hold this pace and yet feel fresh, I would be on track for a surprise.

HM – 1.26.24 hours; It looked like I had been sticking on to a fast pace and till this time the cumulative pace was around 4.05 min per kilometer. And here were my thoughts…Even if I were to go on a pace of 4.25 min per km from hereon, I would still do a sub 3. A feeling of over confidence at this stage is tactically not a bad idea as long as the body does not give way.

25 K – Designated place to see Pavithra after the 1 K mark:-) I had started counting in reverse and it was good to know that there was only 17K to go.

30 K – 2.03.23; At this point there were 2 goals to choose from, a 12.2 K in 57 mins or 47 mins? I decided that today was not the time for the latter. I had probably started slowing down a bit which was also a tactical move so as to prevent any unforeseen bonking or cramping which could happen. The body was also slowly feeling the pinch of the pace.

30 to 40 K – From a relative standpoint it was the slowest, especially the one leading upto the 40^th kilometer. I was struggling a bit and I had no time targets by now. How ever a 2.54 or 2.55 was good to take and go back!

Nutrition – 7 gels with intermittent intake of water. Gels – 10 min before the race, and thereafter every 25 mins or so. I had a slice of banana at around 30 K I think. Couple of non planned intakes were – Tried testing the Taxofit gel at 28 k or so which they were offering. Since the taste of gels are typically an acquired one, I threw it after an initial sip not wanting to risk my race. I also had a very diluted form of Red Bull at around 34 K.

And the last turn came up. Once more I would see Pavithra and then have a view of the Brandenburg gate in the front. As I passed through the historic gate, I knew the task was done. A feeling of relief from the run more than anything else. I pulled back a bit of pace in the last 2.2 K to finish in 2.55.43 hours! No surprises there, but just a feeling of a task well accomplished and time to move on!

PS – In the weeks leading up to the race, one of the potential motivations I had got courtesy my brother Anand, was the chance to level the WR of 1908, which was 2.55.18 hours set by Johnny Hayes of USA (source – Wikipedia) Unfortunately that was not to be, but on a track which boasts of 7 of the top 10 fastest times in the world in recent history, I had set my own record. At the end of the day, that is what matters!

I am also happy to see some of the best amateur lady runners in the country charting out their paths and creating new PBs at Berlin!

Personal Marathon History

SCMM 2013 – 4.02 hours

Airtel Hyderabad Marathon 2013 – 4.07 hours (decided never to do it again:-); I don’t like the flyovers too much!)

SCMM 2014 – 3.34 hours

Spice Coast Marathon Kochi 2014 – 3.40 hours

SCMM 2015 – 3.23 hours

Spice Coast Marathon Kochi 2015 – 3.14 hours (Winner)

SCMM 2016 – DNF (Pulled out at the 26 K due to asthma)

Paris Marathon 2016 – 2.59 hours

Berlin Marathon 2016 – 2. 55 hours

Garmin Link

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1382737318

Accessories

Fast&Up Singlet

Performax shorts

Garmin Forerunner 310XT

Asics Hyperspeed 7