Everybody Is Free to Wear Sunscreen

Back in Tri Mode.....as part of Team SirCha! :)

2011-06-03T13:27:00.012-05:00

(Picture courtesy Sirsha)

Hello! I am back....after a long long time! I don't even know if anyone checks this blog anymore, but I am still excited to be back! :)

So since August 2010, when I did my last Tri - I had gone for just one ride with Vish, and during that ride, I ended up with a flat barely 3 miles into the ride, after which I gave up. Since then, Scarlett II, my precious bike, has just been sitting "vettily" in my bedroom not doing much. Even in the 2010 Tri season, although I did a Triathlon, it almost felt like I did it for the sake of doing it, and my heart wasn't really in it, and the results definitely reflected that as well.

Earlier this year, my super enthu husband Vishwas signed us up for a 70.3 Half-Ironman Triathlon - Redman Triathlon OKC - Vish is an excellent biker and runner, but swimming is still pretty alien to him. Although he has done one Triathlon in the past, his passion lies with Duathlons. Ever since our superman friend Amit Bhai did his first ever Ironman race, he's been itching to be part of an "Iron" race....so that's how I got roped into doing the swim portion of the 70.3 for him, while he raced the bike and run portions. I was okay with this - I enjoy swimming and being able to just swim without the stress of biking and running after was something I was even pretty excited about. I had planned to start training in the mid-June timeframe, once I got done with some of the other commitments I had. Meanwhile, Vish has been training properly in San Antonio, withTri-Sition Area, in preparation for an upcoming duathlon, so I am constantly fed with stories about training.

A few weeks ago, a dear friend and Team Asha running mate Sirsha, signed up for her first ever Triathlon. She will be racing Danskin this weekend - an awesome all-women Triathlon. She also borrowed my bike Scarlett I for her training program. Her enthusiasm – especially outlined in all her blog posts (which I highly recommend reading for new runners/triathletes) – throughout this training program had been slowly rubbing off on me, even though I did not really realize it. Early last week, she sent out a SOS note to the informal training/support group we have Tri-Oomph, expressing concerns about open-water swimming during the Triathlon. Almost instinctively, I replied to her email and asked if she would like me to sign up and do the race with her, especially the swim portion. I did not really expect her to reply and say yes, but when she did, I knew I had to keep my promise and promptly signed up – 10 days before the race! I have to thank (or blame :p) Vish for pushing me to do this!

I have done a couple of Triathlons in the past without any structured training, but had typically always been in good shape, and had also been swimming, biking and running somewhat regularly. The last 6 months though, I have been living a very sedentary lifestyle, with almost zero exercise and physical activity and poor eating, due to multiple reasons. The only good thing I have done in the last few weeks is lost ~6lbs as part of a weight-loss program I had signed up with at my gym. This was mainly via restructuring my diet and eating habits, and not really through a rigorous exercise program. Given this, this weekend’s race is definitely going to be an interesting test for me in gauging my physical fitness! But regardless, I am excited! Excited to finally be getting off my ass and back in training mode, and excited to accompany a friend as she loses her Tri virginity. :p I am also pumped to train through the Summer for 3 different events I have signed up for in the Fall timeframe (Austin Tri – Oly distance, Redman Relay and Philly Marathon) and most off all, I am just so darn glad to be back on track towards become more healthy, fit and toned after being a slob for so many months!

Thanks much to Vishy and Sirsha for inspiring me to do this!

And……Go Team SirCha….I can’t wait for this weekend!!

-C

Gator Bait Memorial Tri

2010-08-17T08:17:00.001-05:00

At the Gator Bait Memorial Tri in Boerne, TX

Vish did a Bike-Run Du and I Tri-ed! :)

Captex - My 1st Olympic Triathlon

2009-07-06T13:12:00.000-05:00

This race report is looooooooong overdue - it's been almost 40+ days since I did the Captex Triathlon, and I already have my next Tri coming up this weekend! Yikes!! I have been completely swamped though the last few weeks with work, wedding planning, my engagement ceremony, rehearsals for a drama that happened 2 weekends ago, other Asha-related stuff etc etc. I don't think I can remember all the details from that day since it's been a while, but I'll try my best to provide the gist of everything that happened!

Pre-Race:
On the Sunday before the race, I went to check on my bike and wanted to prep to take it to transition for the pre-race dropoff. To my horror, I discovered a FLAT on the bike! I made an SOS call to Amit Bhai, who told me to call down and take the bike to J&A. I did just that. The bike tech there could not find anything wrong with the tube and was a little perplexed on how the flat happened, but nevertheless, he changed it for me and declared the bike to be race-ready! I was more relaxed after that and went to get my race packet and dropped my bike off at Transition. Since I got there pretty early, I was able to get a nice corner spot. I then went to scope out the swim course, and the various transition entrances/exits. The swim -> transition and transition -> bike distances were pretty long I met Amit at the Transition and we discussed the course a bit more. I then went for a drive along the bike course to check it out! Overall, I felt pretty relaxed about the race. My main concern was the weather - it was going to be HOT on Memorial Day and I am just not a fan of the heat at all!

Race Morning:
On race morning, I hitched a ride with Amit Bhai. Amit likes to be at the race site as soon as Transition opens, and I decided I would try that out this time, after the fiasco at Rookie, where Vish and I got to transition 10 minutes before it was going to close due to parking challenges! Going early gave me enough time to set everything up, visit the port-a-pottie, fill up air in my tires. This is definitely something I am going to strive to do in all races! It's amazing what it does to keep you calm pre-race! I then walked over to the swim start and hung out with Amit, Steph and Bradford there till the race started!

The Swim - 1500m
Total Time: 37:40 min
Pace: 2:31/M
The swim was one big loop in Town Lake. I have never swam in TL before, and the closest I have coming to experiencing the TL water is in Barton Springs Pool. Everyone around me was wearing a wet suit, something that I didn't have and didn't use! As I entered the water, I was a little taken aback by the coldness of the water! It felt like it was freezing...I started treading water to warm my body up before the gun went off....As the wave started to leave, I was still feeling a little cold and it me about 200m or so till the first buoy to get semi-comfortable with the water. I wasn't able to swim freestyle at this point at all! After about 400m or, I felt a lot more comfortable and switched to freestyle, and swam steadily parallel to the auditorium shore, switching to breaststroke only if I had navigational issues (which i did a few times!). The rest of the swim went pretty smoothly, and I even managed to enjoy it somewhat. My swim pace was about the same that it always has been, not faster, but not slower either.

T1: 7:13 min
T1 was long for me for 2 reasons - one due to the fact that the actual distances from swim exit to my bike in transition and the run from the transition to the bike start were pretty long, the 2nd due to the fact that I really had to pee and so was stuck in the long port-a-pottie line! It's amazing how long the line was in just T1!

The Bike - 40K
Total Time: 1:45:30
Pace: 14.1 mph
The bike leg was my favourite leg of the race! The 40K distance was made up of 4 10K loops around downtown. Hydration-wise, I was this time prepared with my camelback and it felt awesome to drink water anytime I wanted to w/o stopping or trying to do a balancing act to try to reach down for my water-bottle (sth I'm terrible at!). My folks were sitting at the interesction of 1st and Cesar Chavez and it was fun to wave at them and hear their cheers during each loop! Since the course consisted of loops, I was able to say Hi to Amit Bhai a couple of times as well, until of course he zoomed past me! :) Overall, I had a fun bike ride despite the 2 horrible hills on each loop, and 14.1 is my best bike pace till now!

T2: 5:40 min
T2 should NOT have been remotely close to 5 minutes, and ended up being that because of a stupid stupid mistake! :) I arranged my bike back on the rack, removed my helmet, had a drink of water with a Gu and took off running. When I reach the run exit, I realized that I was still wearing my bike shoes!! :D I don't know how I didn't realize that before because it feels really weird when trying to walk, let alone run, wearing bike shoes! :D I hobbled back to my transition area and changed it to my running shoes. This blunder however cost me a few minutes!

The Run - 10K
Total Time: 1:27:34 h
Pace: 14.06/M
What can I say about the run?? It was hot, hot, hot, and I had a terrible time through the run! Somehow I didn't feel the heat that much when I was on the bike, but on the road, it was torturous. I ended up alternating between jogging and walking while struggling with the usual stitches I get in the heat. Even the salt tablets that helped me during my marathon did not help this time. Another reason for the poor run was also because to be honest, I didn't focus much on my run training at all! I biked a bit and swam a lot, but neglected running - and that really came back to punish me during the race. When I do the Olympic again, I really have to focus on running. In the Sprint distance, I can somehow wing it with the 5K run, but for a 10K run, I definitely need more training!

Overall: 4:03:38 h
Overall, I had a good experience with my 1st ever Olympic Race. I could have had a better time by doing some better prep work and avoiding silly mistakes, but I went home with a lot of lessons learnt and look forward to learning from this experience when doing future longer distance Triathlons!

The remaining Tris for the season included the Couples Triathlon this weekend and the Sweet and Twisted Triathlon with the Tri-oomphers in August - both Sprint distances. I am not going to have the time to train properly for these, but hope to just have fun with my friends doing them. Hopefully, I will be able to incorporate the lessons learnt from the 2 Tris I have done so far this year in those races!

Cheers!
C

7/6/09

Rookie Rundown

2009-05-11T09:46:00.010-05:00

The Rookie Tri this past weekend was my 1st Tri for the season. The Rookie Tri back in 2006 was the 1st ever Triathlon that I participated in. Back then, I didn't train much at all, got a bike pretty much 3 days before the Tri, a bike with maybe just 3 gear combinations, and had no clue about really anything - I was a true Rookie. It was not one of my best days in my atheletic history. :) My swim was ok. My bike ride was just hell. AND I lost my chip during my bike ride - and ended up with a DNF on the results board! The run was nothing to speak of either Quite a terrible 1st Tri...

Last year, I went back to the Texas Ski Ranch (TSR) where the Rookie happens each year as well, and while I had a much better overall experience, I still ended up with a messed up result on the scoreboard because for some reason, they marked my age as 13 instead of 26 (no clue how this could have happened!), and my swim leg was a ridiculous 32 minutes for 300m! :)

I considered this course to be jinxed for me!

I went back this year with much trepidation. But I wanted to do it since it would be a perfect trial run for my Olympic in 2 weekends. Also, Vishy wanted to do a Tri, and this was a perfect Tri for a newcomer like him! Here's my race breakdown:

Swim - 300m
My goal for the swim was just to relax and swim freestyle throughout the 300m. I managed to swim freestyle for the most part, using breaststroke just for navigational purposes - so I'm pretty pleased with myself for that. It wasn't the most efficient of freestyles. And the water being extremely muggy and gross attributed a bit to that. It messed up my breathing and sighting a bit. Also, swimming freestyle in a pool is vastly different than swimming one in open water. There are no pool borders/lanes to guide you, and veering off the course is pretty easy in open water. Other than that though, I had a good swim and saw marked improvements in my pace, so was pretty happy.

Time:
2006: 12:01 min
2008: 9:32 min
2009: 8:43 min

Areas of improvement:
Practice more open water swimming!

T1:
My T1 this time was not as efficient as I wanted it to be. Vish and I reached the TSR pretty late that morning and pretty much had 5 minutes to set everything up in Transition and I didn't have much time to place everything I needed the way I wanted to. Defn some room for improvement here!

Time:
2008: 2:47
2009: 3:51

Bike - 11.1 miles
My 1st goal for the bike ride was to work on gear shifting, managing the gears properly so as to achieve the best possible gear combination for where I am in the course, either on a flat road, or hills with varying gradients. My 2nd goal was to hydrate properly, so that I am not dehydrated when I start the run! And my 3rd goal was to just not get stressed with the clips, and take my time getting on and off. I did pretty decently with respect to my 1st and 3rd goals...Because I was a little more familiar with the course as well, I was able to anticipate some of the hills and change gears in advance accordingly. I was also more focused when getting on and off my clips and managed to do both w/o any major mishaps. So that was good. My hydration plan on the bike centered around using the camelback I had purchased a week earlier. I was looking forward to trying it out during the Tri. But in my T1 excitement, I completely forgot about it! I remembered it half way through my ride when I saw someone else carrying it. Lucky for me, the weather was not too hot or humid, 2 things that really dehydrate me easily, and I was able to get through the bike ride without much hydration, and managed to improve my time as well!

Time:
2008: 57:55, 11.50mph
2009: 51:45, 13mph

Areas of improvement:
More hill workouts, practice hydrating on the bike!

T2:
My T2 was not too bad considering that I had to do a shoe swap (bike shoes -> running shoes), something I didn't have to do before, and I managed to do it w/o any major hurdles. I plan to try out the easy laces for my running shoes next time to see if that helps make the transition quicker!

Time:
2008: 1:10
2009: 2:40

Run - 2 miles
My goal for the run was pretty much to not walk! I did that for the most part despite my legs feeling like bricks right after the bike ride! I walked for about a 100m stretch to hydrate and take a salt tablet for a side stich, but felt much better after that and continued running. This is defn an area I need to work on and improve as I do longer distances though. Need more BRIC practices for sure!

2008: 25:59, 12:59/M
2009: 23:37, 11:49/M

Areas of improvement: More BRIC workouts needed during training!

Total Time:

2008: 1:37:23

2009: 1:30:46

Overall, I am happy with the way the Tri went. I broke the TSR jinx and it was a good warm-up Tri for the season, and helped me identify areas for improvement. I also had fun being with Vish during his first Tri! I still plan to do the Olympic in 2 weeks - I have no time goals, my goal there will be to simply finish, but I hope to incorporate a lot of the lessons learnt during the Rookie to ensure that I finish strong!

Tri Training - Week 10 Schedule

2009-05-04T20:12:00.002-05:00

Last week was one hectic week @ wk and otherwise - so much so that I didn't have time to record my training! Vegas was a blast...but I needed a recovery day to get over the trip! :) I managed to get some good workouts in though - a 1600m swim, a 2hr spin class, a 12-mile bike and a 4-mile run + a Bikram session! I wanted to get a much longer bike ride in during the weekend, but my ride was disrupted when I realized that my front gears were not working well. So instead of continuing my ride (which including going up a nasty hill every 3 miles), I took my bike to Jack and Adams for some TLC instead. The good thing is that I was very minimally sore after the bike ride...usually I can feel the soreness a few hours later after a ride of that distance...so the intense spin classes must be doing some good!

The Rookie Tri is coming up this weekend - my first Tri for the season...I feel confident about the swim and the run - but the biking is going to be interesting. It will be my 1st ride using clips in a race atmosphere...and I really need to not freak out, especially when I have issues clipping on and getting on my bike (and I know I will have issues! :) ). I am not going to focus on time at all during this race - it's going to be my trial race, to ensure that I go through the right motions needed in a Tri, and note any mistakes or rooms for improvement I can then correct/incorporate into the Captex Tri.

I am not feeling too good today....healthwise...probably from all the exertion over the weekend and the crazy ever-changing weather...so I am going to take it a little easy the first couple of days this week w.r.t training. Am also going to avoid the pool since it's where I can encounter the most germs! :)

Monday: No workout, recovery

Tuesday AM: LIFT Class (pending how I feel) PM: Spin Class

Wednesday PM: 4-mile Run

Thursday PM: BRIC - Spin Class + Short Tun

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Short BRIC - 3-mile Bike + 1-mile Run

Sunday: Rookie Triathlon - 300m Swim, 12mile Bike, 2-mile Run

Wish me luck! :)

Tri Training - Week 8 Schedule

2009-04-20T08:49:00.005-05:00

This past week was a pretty successful week in terms of training - I managed to cover most of my planned workouts and also got a bit more comfortable riding with the clipped pedals! Had to miss a swim at BS pool due to the weather though. But I've signed on for a open water swim on Tuesday evening - so hopefully that will help make up for it!

I still have some trouble clipping on and off - and fell twice while riding this past weekend - OUCH! - BUT I have gotten over my fear off falling, and have now braced myself to the possibility of falling in the future - and that in a weird way has made me less fearful of the clips! :)

Amit Bhai aka Coach A conducted a Bike 101 session for Sha and I on Sunday morning - he used his bike and trainer to demo some biking best practices, including efficient ways of getting on and off the bike, riding position, riding cadence, gear shifting, tackling hills, etc. This was defn a very useful session and I learnt a lot of new stuff that I will be trying to apply on all my future rides! One good thing about biking during a race is - I will be biking in a closed course, so don't have to worry about stop signs, traffic lights and what not! I am also purchasing a camelback, because I am still very uncomfortable in reaching down to get my water-bottle while riding, and hydrating during a long ride is crucial - it will especially be the case during my 25-mile ride at Captex!

This week will be a short workout week - am trying to squeeze in 2 workouts a day as a result. Let's see how that pans out. No T3 clinic this week due to issues @ the swimming pool!
On Friday evening - I leave to VEGAS for a reunion with my Spore buddies! Not much working out there! ;) From next week onwards, I will start focusing a lot on long rides, bricks, and open water swims!

Monday PM: 5-mile Run
Tuesday AM: LIFT Class @ 24hr Fitness Tuesday PM: Pure Austin Splash and Dash (750m Swim, 3K Run)
Wednesday AM: Spin Class @ 24hr Fitness Wednesday PM: 12-mile Bike Ride
Thursday AM: LIFT Class @ 24hr Fitness

My 1st ever Marathon coach, Coach Amy is running Boston today. Here's wishing her a FANTASTIC speedy race!

Tri Training - Week 7 Schedule

2009-04-13T14:01:00.008-05:00

Tentative Training Schedule for Week 7:

Monday PM: T3 Swim Clinic

Tuesday AM: LIFT Class @ 24hr Fitness
Tuesday PM: 45-min Run around Duval Neighborhood

Wednesday AM: Spin Class @ 24hr Fitness
Wednesday PM: T3 Clinic

Thursday PM: 7-mile Bike Ride on Shoal Creek

Friday AM/PM: Bikram Yoga session

Saturday AM: Long swim at BS Pool followed by 3-mile Run around Town Lake

Sunday AM: 14 mile Bike Ride @ Shoal Creek followed by 20min Run

Mantra for the Week:
"I love clips...I love clips...I love clips..."

Cheers!
:)

Tri Training - Week 6 Schedule

2009-04-06T10:12:00.004-05:00

Last week, I had a short week of workout - but all the workout sessions were pretty productive - so I am really happy! I also ran 7 miles on Sat AM instead of my originally planned 4 miles and ended up finally getting on my bike after more than 6 mths! Vish and I went riding at Shoal Creek...it was gorgeous on Sunday morning...sunny and just a little breezy...we were glad to have gone in the morning, since it became really windy later on in the day!

After the bike ride, I went to J&A and got my caged pedals swapped for clipped pedals! I am super excited about trying them out this weekend! I will be taking my biking shoes to spin class as well this week to test them out!

With just 8 weeks to go before my Target Tri, here's my Week 6 schedule! I'm having a cold today - so will be cutting down 1 early week swim workout this week!

Monday PM: Treadmill/Elliptical Hill Workout/Resistance Training @ 24hr Fitness

Tuesday AM: LIFT Class @ 24hr Fitness Tuesday PM: Spin Class @ 24hr Fitness

Wednesday PM: Bikram Yoga Class @ Yoga Groove

Thursday PM: Easy 1.2K Swim @ 24hr Fitness

Friday PM: Rest Day

*Saturday AM: 12-14 mile Bike Ride @ Shoal Creek followed by 20min Run

*Sunday AM: 5-mile Run around Town Lake

(* My Sat and Sun workouts might swap around depending on Vish's cricket schedule, since he's now my biking buddy! :) )

A big kudos this week to the ever-fabulous Amit Bhai for completing his first ever half-ironman (70.3 miles --> 1.2mile Swim, 56mile Bike, 13.1mile Run) with a fabulous time of 6:07:08h!! You're truly an inspiration Amit Bhai - I am so psyched for my Olympic distance now! :D

Tri Training - Week 5 Schedule

2009-03-31T16:48:00.005-05:00

I was not able to work out from M-W AM this week due to several happenings - but here's my schedule for the rest of the week. Can't wait to get cracking!

Wednesday PM: Spin class @ 24hr Fitness
Thursday AM: Swim @ 24hr Fitness
Friday AM: Boot Camp @ 24hrFitness
Saturday AM: 4-mile Run
Sunday AM: Biking - 10miles @ Shoal Creek

A 10K to Remember! :)

2009-03-31T16:28:00.005-05:00

Last Sunday, I woke up in the morning and got ready to run the Capital of Texas 10K, after a long Saturday filled with drama fun and a late night celebrating the success of the drama. :) I was not prepared for the run at all, and the additional tiredness did not help.

However, this 10K race ended up being one I will remember for the rest of my life! Not because of the timing (it was in fact my worst timing for a 10K) - but for something very special that happened at Mile 5.2.

I'll let the following pictures explain what happened! :)

http://picasaweb.google.com/charanya0907/A_10K_to_Remember?authkey=Gv1sRgCIHF0JbN2uP2gAE#

The Captex 10K organizers defn have 2 confirmed registrants for their race every year for the next many many years! :)

Still Smiling....
ME.

Theerndathu Kanakku

2009-03-24T22:17:00.007-05:00

If you live in ATX and can understand Tamil - I'd better see you at the show!! :D

Contact me for tics!

Tri Training - Week 4 Schedule

2009-03-24T13:14:00.006-05:00

So Week 3 of training went ok. I managed to follow the plan for the most part. I still haven't had a chance to take the bike out yet. My cage is also broken. I am defn taking it to the bike store this week to get inspected and all readied up and I should start from next week onwards! The plan is to go for weekend rides with Pooja and Sha!

I signed up for a Stroke Technique Efficiency clinic with T3 (which Amit swears is the BEST tri training program ever.) It's a 6-week program and should hopefully improve my swimming pretty significantly. Check it out: http://www.austint3.com/t3/clinics.htm It will also ensure that I am swimming regularly twice a week!

This weekend, I am running the CapTex 10K. It's supposed to be a fun race, and I have not had a chance to run it the past few years! So I'm pretty excited! The drama gp that I am part of is also staging a show this Saturday - so I'll be bogged down all this week with rehearsals - so am going to try to get most of my workouts in in the AM.

Here's my schedule for this week! It's going to be a pretty light one!

Monday AM: Nothing PM: Swim+Spin @ 24hr fitness

Tuesday AM: 5:30am LIFT PM: Nothing

Wednesday AM: 5:30am SPIN PM: If there is time - run.

Thursday AM: 5:30am LIFT PM: If there is time - run.

Friday AM: 5:30am Swim PM: Nothing

Saturday: Nothing

Sunday: Captex 6.1 mile Run

Tri Training - Week 3 Schedule

2009-03-16T11:48:00.006-05:00

So Week 2 of Tri Training had some ups and downs. The major downer was the weather...a massive cold front ("massive" of course is in relation to TX weather! :p) hit Austin along with strong rains as well. This prevented me from attending 2 BC sessions. However, I did take the BC fit test and saw some significant improvements in my 1-mile Run and Plank timings, and also managed to do more leg lifts and push ups/minute than I could 8 weeks ago! So yay for that!

The weather also prevented my from getting a bike workout in. It was too cold, windy and rainy to venture out! So I had to go for a spin class instead. I also could not take my bike to J&A. I am out of town this coming weekend and the following weekend, I am running the CapTex 10K! It's also the weekend of my drama (more on that after this) - so this means I'll have to skip 2 long rides in the weekends. Looks like April is when I will be able to start my long bike rides! Meanwhile, I will try to get in shorter outdoor bike rides in the weekdays!

The strategy now is to try to go for AM workouts when possible, so that I have no excuses after work! Now that BC is over, this is more feasible as well!

The plus points were successful swim workouts, including a great coaching session with Amit, and run workouts! Amit taught a new swim drill - that aims to focus on where my hands and head should be while swimming freestlye in order to swim more efficiently! You can read more about it on Sha's blog - http://triscapades.blogspot.com/.

This week's workout schedule:
Monday AM: Nothing PM: 7pm Swim @ 24hr fitness
Tuesday AM: Nothing PM: Run @ Location TBD (probably my own neighborhood)
Wednesday AM: 5:30am Spin @ 24hr fitness PM: Nothing
Thursday AM: 5:30am Lift @ 24hr fitness PM: Outdoor Bike Ride - 7 miles
Friday AM: Swim @ 24hr fitness PM: Nothing
Saturday: No workout. Trip to Houston.
Sunday AM: 4-mile AM Run

Tri Training - Week 2 Schedule

2009-03-09T12:54:00.005-05:00

Week 1 of Tri Training went pretty well! Workouts that I had to skip were 1 weekday spin and the weekend bike ride! :( Vish and I went to Jack & Adams though and found a bike for him! He will be doing his first Tri - the Rookie Tri in May, so we're pretty excited! I am taking my bike back to J&A this weekend for a tune-up and to get my caged pedals swapped with clipped pedals! I'm excited but a little nervous about it. There's a learning curve to the clipped pedals and I am sure I will fall multiple times - but I can't wait to try 'em out!

Monday - AM: Bootcamp PM: 2-mile Run or Break
Tuesday - AM: Bootcamp PM: Swim Session @ 24 hour fitness pool
Wednesday - AM: Bootcamp PM: Break
Thursday - AM: Bootcamp PM: Spin Class @ 24 hour fitness followed by a 4-lap run around 24 hour track.
Friday - AM: Swim Session @ 24 hour fitness pool PM: Break
Saturday - AM: 4-mile Run @ Town Lake
Sunday - AM: 9.5 mile Bike Ride @ Shoal Creek OR Spin Class (if I don't get my bike back in time), followed by a 1-2 mile run.

Tri Training 2009 begins!

2009-03-02T10:43:00.005-06:00

It's March...practically Spring...and time for Tri season!! :D

I signed up last week for my 1st ever Olympic Distance Triathlon - the CAPITAL OF TEXAS TRIATHLON - http://www.captextri.com/!

These are the distances I will be training for for this Tri:
Swim: 1500 m
Bike: 40 KM
Run: 10 KM

This is definitely going to be one challenging experience, but I can't wait! There is a lot to be done. I need to improve my swimming and stroke efficiency and become MUCH more comfortable with freestyle. I need to graduate to clipped pedals! 10K run might not sound that bad after a 42K marathon, but a 10K run AFTER a 40K bike ride will surely be something! So definitely more brick training needed!

I start my training this week and this is what my tentative schedule looks like:

Monday - AM: Bootcamp PM: 45 min Swim Session @ 24 hour fitness pool
Tuesday - AM: Bootcamp PM: Spin class @ 24 hour fitness
Wednesday - AM: Bootcamp PM: Break
Thursday - AM: Bootcamp PM: 2 mile Run @ Canyon Creek Middle School track
Friday - AM: Swim Session @ 24 hour fitenss pool PM: Break
Saturday - AM: 10K Bike Ride @ TBD.
Sunday - AM: 5K Run @ Town Lake

I'll make all you folks - my readers- keep me accountable for this!! :D

Mardi Gras Marathon - Race Report

2009-02-10T20:27:00.008-06:00

I've been meaning to write this report for about a week now, but work has been crazy and I had yet another busy weekend last weekend including a trip to cheer on some Team Asha buddies running their 1st ever 50-miler in Huntsville TX (more on that next time)!

The race weekend started off with a 9 hour drive from Austin, TX to New Orleans, Louisiana, via Houston, TX. We had planned for the 500-mile ride to take a shorter but ended up having a little adventure in the middle! The drive started at 7:30am with some yummalicious Eintein Bagels (Green Chile Bagel with Jalapeno Salsa...mmmm)...We drove the 2.30 hrs to Houston comfortably, listening to music and jabbering about everything under the sun...From Houston, we drove, what seemed like an endless distance, to the border of TX and Louisiana! New Orleans (aka NOLA) is about an additional 200+ miles from the TX-LA border. About 100 miles from NOLA, we hit a terrible traffic jam; the traffic was literally standstill. We were lucky enough to have stopped close to a freeway exit and took the exit. We talked to a local store owner who gave us an alternate route via some farm roads and dirt roads! I was hesitant as first because we were driving my little Corolla, but the prospect of being stuck in traffic for 2-3 hours was even less appealing! So off we went through the dirt roads...my poor car bouncing along...I felt like I was on a mini roller-coaster ride! It was especially "exciting" when a much larger truck would pass us and we both had to make way for each other! :) We finally got through the 9-miles of dirt road...and another 9 miles took us to a highway running parallel to I-10 and also headed to Nola! We finally reached NOLA around 4pm, went to our hotel, collected the race packets and then got an early dinner in at an awesome pizzeria in the French Quarter! When we got back to the hotel, I got all my race gear ready and then went to bed! I needed as much zzzzs as possible for the next day!

I got up the next morning around 5am - feeling all nervous, but excited at the same time. We showered, ate, got dressed and walked the mile or so distance to the race start at the Superdome. The weather was pretty lovely - cool with a slight breeze blowing. LA is infamous for its humidity, but at that time, I could not feel a thing. I felt great! We checked in our race bags and headed to the race start. I love race starts! There's something very thrilling about standing among a large group runners (or triathletes), who have come from near and far, to do the best that they can! I had trained as much as I could given my busy schedule and was ready for the race to start!

Miles 0-8: This was probably my favorite part of the course. We ran through the French Quarter for about 2 miles, including Bourbon St and Royal St, famous (or infamous), for their jazz clubs, bars, live music and lots of other entertainment! From the French Quarter, we entered Nola's Garden District. We ran a 4 mile distance on the historic St' Charles Avenue, which was lined with rustic NOLA buildings, charming cafes, and spectacular mansions. While we were running up the road, we got to see the elite leaders returning from the loop on the other side of the road. It was pretty exciting to see them - typically, because of the way race courses are designed, it's practically impossible to get a sighting of the race leaders - so this was definitely a treat! Miles 7-8 were around the gorgeous Audubon Park, which also housed a lovely golf course. I was feeling great at this point. I had been running about 10-11 min miles, which in hindsight, was probably a little faster than I should have gone, but I was feeling absolutely great!

Miles 9-13.1: From Mile 9-12, we ran on the other side of St' Charles Ave, back to NOLA downtown. At about Mile 10, the 5:00 hr pace group passed me. This was when I kind of realized that I was probably going a little too fast, and decided to slow it down a little! I was still feeling pretty good though....the sun had come out...but there was no real heat or humidity yet. I had been taking salt tablets - 1 every half hr and eating my Cliff Shot Blocks! I was enjoying the crowds and cheers and generally having a good time. At Mile 13, the 1/2 marathoners split from the full-marathoners! I could hear roaring crowds at the 1/2 marathon finish line. I myself reached my 1/2 marathon point at about exactly 2:30h (~11:27 pace). This is my personal best time for a half-marathon, so I was feeling pretty happy! In order to finish the marathon in 5:30h, I had to run the remaining distance at about a 13:45 pace. I felt that was a pace that I could maintain pretty well! Little did I know what was in store for me!

Miles 13.1-16: This part of the course veered through the north part of downtown and led up to the State Park. From Miles 14-16, we ran on a gravel path and on a quite a bumpy road. My feet took a little bit of pounding during that time, but I tried to keep running. Cheer support had dwindled by then and the runner crowd had also shrunk down significantly since the half-marathoners were no longer there! This is one major advantage of running a race that has both half-marathoners and full-marathoners. After the split from the half-marathoners, you suddenly feel like you are all alone. And this is when the mind really start playing games with you! :)

Miles 16 - 22: Miles 16-22 took me through a loop around the New Orleans City Park. This is one of the hugest parks I have ever seen - it had everything from tennis courts, basketball courts, playgrounds, swimming pools and even a golf course! The loop was pretty enough - but the weather gods decided to not be so nice anymore....the clouds opened up and the sun came out...bringing with some strong heat....the humidity level suddenly seemed to have gone up notches as well! I took a potty break at Mile 16, and then continued running till Mile 17. The heat and humidity really got to me by then and I had to slow down my pace considerably, alternating between running and walking! I took a gu, more salt tablets and kept munching on them cliff blocks (I love them btw! They are my new fave race snacks, except they are cumbersome to carry around! :( ) The water-stops at the race were located every 2 miles, and some of them were themed which was pretty fun! My favourite was one which was vampire-themed and volunteers were dressed as vampires, with the fangs and capes and everything! It was awesome! They even hung up bats on the trees next to the water-stop and offered "blood" - red gatorade! :p I tried to get through the run 2 miles at a time, looking forward to each water-stop!

Miles 22-26:Mile 22 brought me back to the end of the park loop and the remaining 4 miles essentially followed the same roads back to the Race Start. I was pretty energyless by then and close to hitting the wall! I just do very badly in heat and humidity, and it's something I am really going to have to work on when I decide to train for a marathon again! Just when I was feeling really burnt out, at Mile 24, I had a pleasant surprise! I saw my running buddy Vish, who had completed his half-marathon earlier (and set a killer PR may I add!). This instantly cheered me up! It's always nice to see familiar faces show up during a tough race! I picked up my pace a little during Mile 24, and told Vish to not let me walk even a bit from Mile 25 to the race finish! And he did just that! With some renewed energy and Vish's support, I finished the last 2 miles, and even managed to sprint the last 100m to the finish! I love finish lines as much as start lines! You always feel like a rockstar running through the finisher's chute whether you had a great race or a not-so-great race! I crossed the finish line, got my medal (which is uber cool by the way!!) and went to get some drinks and met up with the other runners!

One of my main goals during this race was to beat 5:30h - I did not manage to do that, but I did beat my previous PR time (5:53) by a whole 11 mins, for which, I am happy. I could have definitely done better! I'd like to blame the heat and humidity, but the truth is, I could have also trained harder, been more consistent with my shorter runs and Quality Workouts, and tried to get more long runs in. Given that, I'll take my 5:42!

Of course this also means that, I'm gonna have to do another marathon sometime to try another attempt at beating 5:30! :) But no marathon training for me anytime soon though! My goals from now on are to work on speed and running efficiency! I will focus on running some faster 10Ks and Half-Marathons before I attempt another Full! I'm also psyched up for Tri season coming up in a couple of months - and my plan is to focus more energy on getting more fit and toned for that!

The Final Numbers:
1st 13.1 Miles: 2:30h (11.26min/mile)
2nd 13.1 Miles: 3:12h (14:38min/mile)
26.2 Miles: 5:42h (13.02min/mile)

Previous Best: 5:53h (13.28min/mile)

As always, a big big thanks to all my family and friends and Team Asha for their fantastic support!! I could never run a 26.2 JLT without you guys! :)

Pictures!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/charanya0907/NOLAMarathon?authkey=zd8MXRdzimE#

3M Relay - Race Report

2009-01-29T18:33:00.008-06:00

I ran the 3M Half-Marathon relay this past weekend with another Team Asha runner Vishwas. It was the 2nd time that I was participating in a relay race – the 1st being the Silicon Labs Relay Marathon last year with G31 and G32. Relay races have a different dynamic to them – as a relay team member, you are not just focused on how you personally run, and how well you do, but also on how your relay portion contributes to the team’s success, and how your team members do. Vishy had been complaining about a knee pain the previous evening, but I knew that despite that pain, he would still run a great race – and I was determined to do my part in helping to acquire an overall good time!

I was running the 1st leg of the race – and started off slowly, letting the crowds pass me. I saw the Asha cheersquad at the start waving our brand new posters – which made me smile. The weather was cold that morning, but that worked for me since I LOVE running in the cold. I took off my jacket after the 1st mile and settled into a comfortable pace. I was carrying my own Gatorade, and did not need to stop at any of the water-stops. By Mile 2, I was doing sub 11-min miles, which for me is pretty good! I was excited at Mile 3 to see that I was maintaining that and started to pick up my speed a little.. I ran past a few familiar faces along the way – and cheered on a couple of Asha runners as well. I was feeling great. We ran through the lovely Spicewood neighborhood and finally hit Mopac. I crossed the 5 mile marker right after the Mopac intersection and really picked up my pace. I had just a mile left and figured I might as well give it my all. Praveen – another enthusiastic Asha volunteer was cheering so loudly it really got me all motivated to keep up my speed! Before I knew it, I had crossed the 10K marker and reached the relay point shortly after. I had completed 6.4 miles in 1:07 h – which is a personal record for me! I was thrilled and gave a Hi-Five to Vish after taking his sweater and waved him off. I then rode the shuttle bus to the finish point.

Vishy reached the finish just 54 mins after the relay exchange – which is quite incredible! We had an overall time of 2:03h! Vishy’s knee was hurting a little but we were both excited about how the race had gone and stayed at the finish to cheer on the rest of the Asha runners and our friends who were running the race.

Here are Vish’s thoughts on how the race went!

Vishwas:

My race season has finally started - three races in a span of four weeks! Up first was the 3M Half Marathon Relay. I was running the relay with Charanya. Both she and I have our big races coming up next weekend and hence decided that doing the relay was the best option. I for one didn’t want to get a freakish injury and jeopardize my target race. The 3M course is famous for being a fast one. Being mostly downhill, the course offers good prospects of setting personal records. The relay is split up such that the first runner runs 6.4 miles and the second runner runs 6.7 miles. The plan was for Charanya to start us off and for me to finish the race.

The pre-race events were good. I got to see the start of the race, I saw the elite runners jet by and then the ASHA runners followed. I then was dropped off to the relay exchange point by ASHA volunteers- Murali, Gaurav and Bharat. It was a bitterly cold morning; I managed to stay warm by constantly moving and stretching. As I waited I cheered on the runners who were passing the relay exchange. I struck a conversation or two with some of the other folks who were also waiting for the racing partner to get to the exchange point. Around 8.20 or so Charanya appeared from the turn, and this was my cue to take my layers off and get ready. She gave me Hi-Five, I gave her my hoodie and off I went.

It took a long time for my body to warm up. My toes felt numb, my gloves didn’t help much but my brand spanking new shoes felt great! I had been battling some left knee issues, but it felt okay at that point. I was zooming past people, partly because I had just started the race and they were more than half way through it. I was running 7.5 min/mile pace for the first two miles, at which point I decided to slow down a bit in order to conserve some energy for the finale. This was about the time that my knee pain kicked in. This knee pain is a strange one, it happens on the inside bone on my left foot and no stretching/exercise makes it go away. I decided to suck it up and keep going. I passed the 10 mile marker and before I knew it, my pain was increasing. I decided to totally change my running form; I changed the way my foot landed - but it still didn’t help. So I decided to run by just straightening one leg- the right one. I somehow managed to keep the pace up in spite of a strange running step. Once I got to the 12 marker I forgot about the pain and dashed to the finish line.

All in all, it was a satisfying race. The course was easier than some of the other routes I have run in Austin. I managed to run a sub 50 min 10K, which is a PR for me. Mentally it puts me in good shape for my target race ahead. But the same cannot be said about my left knee. I have been icing/rehabbing it constantly for the past 4 days. It feels better, but I will not know for sure till race day Sunday!

Overall, Vish and I had a really great race and truly enjoyed ourselves! We are both extremely grateful to the awesome Asha volunteers for cheering us on at the various points of the course – despite the cold, and boy was it cold!! We are both now looking forward eagerly to our target races this weekend in New Orleans! Hope we have a good time there as well!

Why do you run?

2009-01-28T21:29:00.004-06:00

I can't stop watching running videos on youtube! :) Here's another neat one!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eXqAWjJ_dE

Love the last reason...

Why do I run?
Because when I do there is always the chance to be extraordinary!

Are you going to finish strong?

2009-01-28T10:34:00.005-06:00

Here are 2 pretty awesome videos that I watched this past week - both inspirational in very different ways!

1. Amit Bhai posted this video. It's about an hour long but totally worth the time! Like Amit said "Forget those stupid motivational self-improvement books and workshops.....just watch this video!!" :)
http://www.hulu.com/ford-ironman-world-championship

Oh..and by the way, I have a huge crush on Chrissie Wellington now - my new heroine!!! :)
http://www.chrissiewellington.org/pages/index.asp

2. This one was fwded to me by a work colleague and moved me to tears! It makes me really appreciate the fact that I am able to do crazy things like run 26.2 miles and take part in Tris - and will defn be something I will look back on when I have a bad training day and all I feel like doing is whining!
http://www.maniacworld.com/are-you-going-to-finish-strong.html

4 days to the New Orleans 26.2! Can't wait! :)

A fabulous 20!!

2009-01-19T09:46:00.003-06:00

It's amazing how the body can cooperate once that mind sets itself to do something! And its amazing how a simple change in weather can make an amazing difference to a training session! I had to run 20 miles last Saturday, and was nervous all of last week about it! I had not been training consistently, I had not run the 20 miles I was supposed to the previous weekend, I'd been sick early last week, the weather has been fluctuating like crazy all week, and my target race was just in 2 weeks - the New Orleans Mardi Gras Marathon! The longest I have run this season is 18 miles and I had a miserable time running it! Given that, I was not feeling good at all about running the 20 this weekend!

The run started slowly...we ran up Rio Grande from 4th St to 28th St, and when I say, ran up, I literally mean it, it was a constant upward gradient. The first 3 miles were painful and the weather was humid...and I was already dreading the remaining 17! I met Coach Peri at the 1st water-stop at about 3.5 miles and she told me I looked great! I know coaches HAVE to say that, but it's still somehow uplifting to hear someone say that, especially when you feel crabby! I drank 2 cups of water and headed off....the next few miles took me to Bull Creek and then on to Shoal Creek...I am not a big fan of running on Bull Creek...but the weather had become better and there was a cool breeze along the route....so I just kind of zoned off and ran till I hit Shoal Creek...I love love running on Shoal Creek...it's a very pretty road, and has a nice wide bike/run path...met Coach Geezer at about Mile 7....drank 2 more cups of water and swallowed a salt tablet....continued on Great Northern and then past Northcross Mall....by now, I had settled on a good momentum and was also enjoying the cool weather!! The humidty had also kinda disappeared!

The run then went onto El Arroyo St, another long Road and then towards North Loop....I took a Gu at the Mile 11 water-stop....I literally sucked parts of it and washed it down with Gatorade...and barely tasted any of it...and then took off...I was at mile 13 now....I had been avoiding looking at my watch all this while...but was curious to know what my half-marathon time was...I was clocking about 2h 46 min....about a 12:40 pace...I was pretty happy with that since I was running sub-13 mins....it made me a lot more excited to get the next 7 miles in!! The next few miles involved a relatively downward descent on Duval Road...another road I quite enjoy running on...For those of you who are running 3M, you will spend at least 3-4 miles on this road, and it's where you will really pick up speed!! I reached the end of Duval and was feeling pretty good when I got to the last water-stop....I looked at the map then and saw that we were going to run left on San Jacinto...and then right on Dean Keaton, and do a loop around campus, Dean Keaton - Guadalupe - MLK and then back to San Jac....Deak Keaton is a horribly uphill road - with a steep gradient...I decided to skip it, since I didnt want to risk doing anything to my knees just 2 weeks before the race....and decided to make it up by running a couple of smaller loops in the downtown area...which is relatively flat.....

I ran continuously without stopping for the remaining 3 miles...and reached the Rogue Store with quite a strong finish....I felt great....I could have run more....which I was happy about since on race day, I would have 6 more miles to run!....I looked at my time....4h14min...a 12:42 pace exactly!!...I was really thrilled!! My goal this season is to break 5h 30min....and for the 1st time this season, I actually think that I have a shot at doing it....I took 5h 53min for the DC marathon (13:35 pace)....and really want to reduce that by at least about 25 mins!!....And hopefully I will!! I am pretty psyched now about New Orleans!! And will spend the next couple of weeks tapering off and resting my body in preparation!! I just really really hope that the weather cooperates, because that really made a big difference in yesterday's run! But more importantly, I am going to focus on keeping my spirits up and really enjoying the experience, because that is what truly determines whether you have a great run or not!!

All Gu-ed out!!

2009-01-06T10:21:00.006-06:00

"Gu" is an energy gel that I have been using pretty regularly during all my long runs and during my marathons and tris. The Gu gels are a great source of carbohydrates and during runs, I typically try to take one every 50 minutes or so. They help maintain my energy during the long runs and also keep me from becoming tired/hungry. I've never really had any major problems with them in the past and actually quite enjoyed the Chocolate Gus!

Over the last 6 months however, I've lost the taste for Gus. I find it very hard to stomach them, and it's been a challenge trying to consume them during workouts. I've tried washing them down with water, tried different flavors and alternate brands but those have not worked as well. I switched to the jelly beans and the shot blocks - which have been good, but those just dont produce as much energy and are also quite cumbersome to carry along for a run. Gu packets - I can just pin on to my shorts!

When I'm out on the course for 4-5 hours, I really need energy replenishments. Otherwise, I tire easily. I carry gatorade or salt tablets typically to help with electrolyte replacements, but I am not sure what to do now about carb replacements. Any suggestions folks??

I'm all Gu-ed out and my race is just 3 weeks away!! :(

Team Asha rocks Dallas White Rock!

2008-12-15T15:19:00.003-06:00

This past weekend, 2 of our Team Asha Austin runners ran the Dallas White Rock Half-Marathon!

Vishwas ran his 1st ever half-marathon and Ganesh ran his 45th race! Both guys ran a great race - especially given the crazy weather conditions - it was HORRIBLY HUMID, the temperature was 17 degrees warmer than the average temperature, and it was insanely windy!! A big hearty congratulations to both of them!!

In addition, a couple of us volunteered at the Team Asha Dallas water-stop at Mile 9.5 and had ALOT of fun! The Asha Dallas folks also had a desi band playing some awesome music at the water-stop and provided non-stop entertainment to all the runners! A big congratulations to all the Team Asha Dallas runners and volunteers as well for an awesome race and race support! This experience also made me realize again how much effort from thousands of volunteers goes behind into making the race experience a good one for every single runner!

Here are some pictures from the weekend!http://picasaweb.google.com/ashaaustinmarathon/TeamAshaDallasWhiteRock #

Go Team Asha!

Truly Inspirtational!

2008-11-18T10:27:00.004-06:00

http://teamasharunner.blogspot.com/2008/11/first-ultra-in-india.html

Santhosh is one of Team Asha Austin's pioneer runners and his efforts are truly inspirational!

Rock and Roll – Lessons Learnt

2008-11-17T13:13:00.002-06:00

I ran the San Antonio Rock and Roll Half-Marathon yesterday. It was my 1st major race since the Austin Marathon in Feb earlier this year. I was pretty excited about running this race with my Asha crew and also made some new friends sign-up as well! There was a lot of excitement leading up to Race Day, including planning accommodations for my friends, the pre-carb dinner party etc etc. And I felt like this might probably be one of the best races of my lives!

I was wrong.

It ended up being a really mediocre race experience. I had a lot of fun planning for the race – but barely any fun on race day. Here’s why:

1. I started the morning with an upset tummy – and this pretty much persisted throughout the race day and ended up bothering my quite a bit.
2. The race logistics in terms of transportation to and from the race was quite a nightmare. The shuttle lines at the parking area were never-ending and the actual journey to the race village was pretty long as well. This mentally tired me before the race.
3. I had eaten a decent breakfast in the morning – but by the time we actually got to cross the start line (almost an hour after the gun start) – I was starving – starving to a point where my stomach was growling! I was saving up the supplies I’d brought along with me to the race for much later in the race, but had to consume them earlier because of this!
4. I got a stitch attack close to Mile 7 and those darn stitches did not leave me at all right till the end of the race. I tried salt tablets, drinking more Gatorade, stopping for a bit and taking deep breaths – but they just refused to go away – and really made close to half my race very incomfortable.
5. My ITBs started hurting a little again – I thought I had seen the last of my ITB issues – but looks like there are still some issues left! Time to maybe go back to AR again!

I finished the race – but in a very mediocre time – I knew that I could have definitely run better! I was reviewing all these different reasons in my head after the race – and realized that the real reason why I did not have such a great race – was that I had been training very poorly this season. I have not been consistent with my marathon training at all. I have had valid reasons for missing some of the long runs and QWs, but I have not been good at all for coming up with backup plans in case I have to miss a long run – and neither have I been good about making up for missing those long runs on my own. I’ve also not been good about the “on your own” runs. The lack of proper training for a long race will definitely show on race day. Sure you might finish the race – but it will definitely not be your best finish. Being consistent with training not only helps you physically, but also mentally, and half the challenge of getting to the finish line is mental! This might not to apply to everyone – but it definitely does to me. I am not naturally athletic and in order to improve my running abilities, I need train and practice.

This changes from today. I guess I needed a real “kick in the butt” to get me back on track – and this race was just that. I have downloaded the schedule for the rest of the season and pinned it up on my whiteboard at work – and have already planned my workouts for the rest of the week. Can’t wait to get started!!

Having said this – I have to thank everyone who helped me get through the race yesterday. Sha – you were an excellent running partner and really helped me push through those initial miles!! Savi+Varsha, you guys were so so sweet to drive up from Austin yesterday morning to cheer us on! Varsha, you were an A-star pacer and I don’t think I would have gotten through the last 5k without your support! Vish – thanks for all the moral support! To everyone who wished me luck for the race – thanks so much! To the rest of the Team Asha runners who ran the race – congratulations on your excellent race finishes!

I got forwarded a race report this morning from a friend about the Team Asha Bangalore runners. A lot of them ran trail races over the weekend – and 2 friends ran a 100-miler and 100K respectively. While I was reading their race reports, I felt ashamed at myself about listing reasons like “long shuttle bus line”, “late race start” etc as reasons for not having a good race day. We are so spoilt racing here in America – race organizers and volunteers really do SO much for us here – and still we are not satisfied and find something to complain about. Santhosh and Shumit ran through the night in the trails and all the organization for the race was done by just the running groups there and supported by all their teammates and families. They did not have any fancy race organization – but ran excellently and cheerfully with the support of all their friends and families! And really – that’s what truly matters! I have all that here as well – and should really not complain about anything else!

I am extremely motivated about my long run this weekend now! 16-miles. Mount Bonnell. It will be challenging for sure. But I cant wait!

The Spanking New...

2008-09-29T07:37:00.001-05:00

Strides of Hope Austin Website!!!

http://www.ashanet.org/austin/soh/

:)

Quality Workout Mindset

2008-09-24T09:25:00.004-05:00

One of the most difficult things for me as part of the marathon training is to keep up with the rest of the group that I train with...a lot of them are training for their first marathon but are extremely good runners....fast runners....I am more of a slow and steady runner...speed is not my thing...but I have the endurance to keep running for a long time. During long runs, I have no problems. I just kind of tune out the rest of the runners and keep my steady pace. During quality workouts however, there is a lot of emphasis put on running drills, speed workouts, varying paces etc, and this is what gets to me. No matter how strong I personally feel doing the workouts, I always feel like I am lagging behind the rest of the group...I should know better though..Ive been through this training twice, and I know what works for me, and what doesn't. So I need to learn how to just focus on the improvements that I am making with the training, and not compare myself to the rest of the group!

Rogue's featured coach this week is Amy and one of the things she says is "meeting goals isn’t just dependent on training your legs to run fast, but it’s also about training your head.” And she's right! I do have a goal to reduce my timing this year pretty significantly, but in order to do that effectively, I am going to need to train not just my legs, but also my head, and focus on listening to how my legs feel, and how my body feels, and not worry about other runners! The great advantage of running with a group is that it motivates you to run better and faster than you usually do, but it does not necessarily mean that you run as fast as all the rest do!

I am going to be approaching my future QWs with this in mind!

P.S. The Quadballer is my new best friend! I just love it! :)

TP Massage QuadBaller

2008-09-18T11:14:00.005-05:00

If you would like to inflict some pain on yourself, do get yourself one of these!

It will be "GOOD" PAIN mind you!

Now I know how the poor chappathi dough feels when I bring down the rolling pin on it!

Groan!!

IT Band Blues and 2-mile Time Trail

2008-09-17T09:42:00.005-05:00

I’m into my 2nd week of marathon training now….and have been bogged down by IT-band issues…my left IT-band has been bugging me for a while now, since the Sweet and Twisted Tri…At that race, I went to get a massage from one of the Advanced Rehab guys who suggested that I visit one of their sports doctors. My IT-band was apparently super tight.

For those of you who are wondering, "What the heck is an IT-band?"(something I had to educate myself on as well):

Iliotibial Band Syndrome is one of the leading causes of lateral knee pain in runners. The iliotibial band is a superficial thickening of tissue on the outside of the thigh, extending from the outside of the pelvis, over the hip and knee, and inserting just below the knee. The band is crucial to stabilizing the knee during running, moving from behind the femur to the front during the gait cycle. The continual rubbing of the band over the lateral femoral epicondyle, combined with the repeated flexion and extension of the knee during running may cause the area to become inflamed.
- Wikipedia

And INFLAMED is how it feels….it has literally been burning everytime I run, and I finally went to Advanced Rehab a couple of days ago. The doctor there examined the area and agreed that it was indeed pretty taut and slightly inflamed and that I would need to ice it regularly and do some specific exercises and stretches that will help make it feel better. I also finally bought a TP massage roller…which is great…but oh lord…so freaking painful…the physical therapist assured me that it was “good pain”…hmm…

I asked the doc if I could run and he told me yes – doing 2-3 miles will not affect me much…so I went to my Quality Workout yesterday evening…we were gonna do a time trial…A time trial involves running 2 miles around the track, so 8 laps, and the time taken to run that distance can be used to project your paces for various distances, from a 5k to a marathon. I was concerned about running it with my IT-band issues, but coach Peri assured me that it would be okay and told me to take it easy, and even walk it if I felt like it. I ended up running 2 miles and my time was 20:09. (Not a great time...but last yr, I think I ran slower than this with NO issues, so it is some sort of improvement! :p)

Plugging that into the pace calculator, my projected times for various race distances are:
Marathon: 05:19:08 (12:10/mile)
Half Marathon: 02:31:19 (11:33/mile)
10K: 01:08:01 (10:58/mile)
12K: 01:22:35 (11:04/mile)
15K: 01:45:10 (11:17/mile)
5K: 32:46 (10:34/mile)
2 Mile: 20:08 (10:04/mile)
1 Mile: 09:26

I ran my marathon last year at 5:53....and my goal this year was to reduce that by half hour....or at least break 5:30....so I'm pretty excited about my projected marathon pace....hopefully if I stick to the training, I will be able to attain that goal....just really really hope that my IT-band issues do not aggravate....have another session with the doc tomorrow....hopefully we come up with a good plan to get rid of the problem....wish me luck!! Meanwhile....I will be skipping the 8-mile long run this weekend and taking it easy...am also headed to Chi-town to hang out with some gal pals I haven't met in a while! Should be fun! :)

Nike Human Race 10K - Austin

2008-09-04T10:41:00.005-05:00

The MINUSES:
- Weather was HOT and HUMID
- Course was HILLY almost 60% of the race!

- T-shirt was a weird fit :p
- I had my worst 10K timing ever! :(

The PLUSES:

- 300,000 Runners running simultaneously all across the world

-15,000 Runners were running it in ATX - all adorning the same T-shirt!

- Austin was one of only 3 cities in the US besides LA and NYC to host the race

- Lance Armstrong and MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY were running it! :)

- Ran it with a group of friends - some doing their 1st ever 10K - which is always exciting!

- Awesome spectator support!

- It was my most fun 10k race ever in the end! :)

So the pluses definitely outweighed the minuses and I had a complete blast!

Targets for the 08-09 Running Season

2008-08-28T10:15:00.004-05:00

So it's that time of the year again - when Team Asha runners come together and start their fall marathon and half-marathon training! I am one of the coordinators for the Strides of Hope program this year and have spent the last few months helping to plan the program, organize info sesisons, recruit runners etc. I am pretty excited that we have a huge bunch of first-time runners this time who all seem pretty enthusiastic and motivated! I have managed to rope in my sister into the program as well and I am trying to see if my mom will be interested in walking the half....;)

To find out more about Team Asha - Austin, check out:
http://www.ashanet.org/austin/marathon

Through all this, I had completely slacked off on deciding what my personal goals would be this season...but over the last couple of days, after doing some research and sorting out schedules, I have finally signed up for my next two major race targets.

I will be doing the San Antonio Rock and Roll Half-Marathon on November 16th this year. I will be doing this race purely for the heck of it! :) It's supposed to be a nice flat course and they are making it a Rock and Roll marathon for the first time this year! I also have a bunch of my gal pals who plan to do this - so it should be good fun! And it will be about half-way into my training for the full-marathon which I plan to do in Feb 09....

...The Mardi Gras Marathon in New Orleans, Louisiana! :) I was debating whether to do the Austin marathon again and finally decided not to because:

1. I have already done it before
2. I'd rather pace or cheer on the other Team Asha runners on that day
3. It's not the most fun course....it's pretty nice for the first half with a good spectator crowd...and then things just dwindle down after that!

Why the Mardi Gras Marathon?
1. It will be 2 weeks before the Austin marathon - so will align with my training
2. It will be a new course - makes things more interesting, also supposed to be relatively flat
3. It's NEW ORLEANS!! IT's MARDI GRAS!! So why not?? :)

So that's that! The target has been set...the training will begin soon! And it should be good fun!

Where have I been??

2008-08-25T13:40:00.003-05:00

TRI-ING WITH SOME LOVELY GIRLS!! :)

http://www.tri-oomph.blogspot.com/

Kalki....The Messiah

2008-03-24T15:59:00.010-05:00

All of Austin is buzzing with news about Kalki!! :) I'm not going to go on and on about it here, although I am really tempted to, but I would definitely urge you all to check out both our show website and a "trailer" we have released to give you a sneak peak!

Website:

www.AustinTamizhSangam.org

Trailer:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ALXxmBVAlUY

This is one of the the most creative shows that I've been involved in - it's a one of a kind for sure, doing a "movie on stage".....and I am totally thrilled about being a part of it. If you are in Austin, do come on out and support us! I have no doubts that you will find this show throughoutly entertaining! And if you're not in Austin...do spread the word nevertheless. Who knows....we might just become a travelling troupe someday! :) A part of the proceeds of this show will be donated to the Vidyarambam Trust, a partner of Pratham USA, an organization that I've been involved with for the past 7 years. So I am additionally thrilled that we are going to be able to raise some funds for them.

Contact me for tickets if interested - charanya0907@gmail.com.

Hope to see you all there!

Marathon #2 Done!

2008-02-22T10:48:00.013-06:00

Marathon #2 - The ATT Marathon happened this past Sunday. I don't plan to write a full recap similar to what I did after completing Marathon #1 last October. But I do want to mention some things.

This marathon was a very tough one for me. I had all sorts of stitches-cramping issue. The weather became really hot and I kept getting dehydrated easily which resulted in me consuming a lot of liquids which resulted in more than planned potty breaks - and each time I stopped, it was a pain getting back started!! I was shooting to better my DC time by 20 mins and finishing in 5.5 hours, but I actually ended up taking 10 mins more than DC to finish!

BUT despite all of this, I had a GREAT race - and this was mainly due to the wonderful folks from Team Asha and my own friends!! I've been more involved with Asha this year than I was last year, and have gotten to know the core members a little better. And I have to say that I have never met a group of people more dedicated, enthusiastic and committed to a cause as much as these folks! They were there for us through the training months - and there for us throughout the race - all the way to the finish line - and there for us after the race as well! It was very exciting to see the Asha cheer squads along the race course - and served as an instant energy boost! Asha also provided pacers for all the marathoners - and I had 2 very wonderful pacers who accompanied me at different points during the 2nd half of the race! One of the pacers was from Dallas and I really have to give him a big big gold star for not only pacing me, but also entertaining me all the way to the finish line! :)

Besides the Asha runners, Areille, who will always be my favourite running buddy, accompanied me on the last 5K of the race, and when she is around, even the toughest run feels like a piece of cake! Areille also made the whole day tension-free for me by waking up early in the morning to give me a ride to the race and then driving me back home!! I cannot thank her enough for all her support through these last few months!!! She's just awesome!! I also have to thank Prax and Aparna who showed at the finish line to cheer me on!! That was a really pleasant surprise!!

Thanks to all of you who wrote to me with your words of encouragement as well!! It really did mean a lot to me!!

So overall, I really did have a fabulous Marathon #2! I plan to hang up my laces for a while to focus on some other stuff, but do have some Tri plans for this fall - so I'm sure they won't stay hung up for too long! :)

Tribute to Thalaiva.....

2008-02-11T09:24:00.001-06:00

OK - Here's a non-running vetti post!! 2 years ago, a bunch of us did a cheesy "item dance" to the song Aasai Nooru Vagai - a Rajini classic! My friend managed to upload the video recently. By far, this is one of the most fun dances I have EVER done on stage! Hope you enjoy it as well!

Happy Monday! :)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1596157383406530390

10 more days!!!

2008-02-07T12:35:00.001-06:00

So in the last couple of days, I have started receiving "Good Luck", "You can do it" emails from folks - and each time I receive one, I am like "huh? good luck!! what for??".....I keep forgetting that I have a marathon coming up - in fact in just 10 days!! I have been so busy with everything else in my life, that I've totally lost track of time....I attend my workouts and long runs routinely but have not really been counting down to the big day like I did the last time round!

I need to re-focus....re-align myself....and quick! The worst thing that can happen on a marathon morning is not being mentally prepared for what's ahead!!

So this weekend - I am gonna go for a pre-race massage - just to "flush things out and loosen things up" like Coach Stephanie has recommended, run my easy 7 miles taper workout....focus on my nutrition and hydration plan for next week, and try not to do anything crazy the whole of next week - especially at the gym or all the dance practices I have for an upcoming show! I will also be attending the pre-race Asha dinner this evening - and Coach Amy, my DC marathon training coach will be talking about mental preparation. She is AMAZING at motivating and encouraging runners of all levels - so if not anything, that should definitely get me back on track!!

Meanwhile, my fundraising site for Team Asha is still up and running (I'm sorry - but I just HAD to add in my last final shameless appeal! :) ) - so please take a moment to look at it if you haven't so already (see the link on the right-hand side) and think about contributing something - anything and everything counts! If you any questions about Asha and its projects, feel free to let me know about them as well!!

The Day after the Marathon!

2008-01-16T17:50:00.001-06:00

Andre, my running friend at work - sent me the following video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-hCuYjvw2I

Pretty hilarious! I can totally identify with a lot of these!! I loved the slogan at the end!

"Here's to one part of your body that doesn't hate you right now.....YOUR HEART" :)

4 more weeks to go for Marathon #2!!

Back in the Groove...

2008-01-07T08:13:00.001-06:00

After 4 weeks of lazing around, eating, partying, and merrying in India and not managing to get any quality running in, I went for my 1st long run of the year on Saturday morning - bright and early at 7am in Georgetown, 30mins outside of Austin. It was a beautiful morning, not too cold, but with a slight breeze. We were going to do a 20-miler that morning. It started off pretty well - I did good for the first 5 miles or so. The only thing that was bugging me was my sniffles...I think after 6 years in Austin, I have finally become a victim of the dreaded allergies that this city is so infamously known for! :(

I struggled from Miles 6-10, especially during the killer climb upto the top of the Georgetown Dam between Miles 8-9....but wow....that climb was totally worth it, as I was treated to a gorgeous view from the top! It's amazing how something as simple as that can really lift up your spirits or re-energize you! I had a nice run back down and was generally feeling strong....I got a massive sniffle attack again at Mile 16, and really struggled to get those last 4 miles in, added to which the weather had gotten warmer and the sun was actually blazing for a little bit!! I also felt a lot more tired that I would usually!

Not training properly for the last 4 weeks really did show its effect on Saturday. When you train for a long-distance endurance event, you slowly teach your body, over a period of time, what it's capable of and how to adapt to new challenges. If you completely give it a rest, you definitely need to take the time to ease it back into the previous rigorous routine you used to have! I probably should have run a shorter distance yesterday, but oh well! I'm glad at least that I took it slow and managed to cover the distance injury-free!

I had to drop out of the RunTex Distance Challenge!! :( My cousin has decided to get married on the day of the 3M Half-Marathon in California.....and well, I can hardly tell him to postpone his wedding so I can go run 13 miles and not lose out on the totally rad finisher's jacket!! Or wait...can I?? ;)

Special kudos to Amit Bhai for conquering those nasty hills at the ARA Run Hard Live Easy 30K yesterday and also for completing his first ever 20-miler!! Woohoo!!

2 amazing movies that made me cry bucketloads this past weekend: City of Joy and Taare Zameen Par! 2 MUST-WATCHES for those who haven't already!!!

A Very Happy 2008 to all of you!! :D

Distance Challenge - RACE 3 - ARA Decker 20K

2007-12-03T10:29:00.001-06:00

1. With Shama - another one of Coach Amy's Ducklings! :)

2. With Santosh - who accompanied me on a nasty hill!

3. With Amit Bhai - we love YELLOW!!! :)

4. The Fab Team Asha runners

5. The Fab Coach Amy!!

It was a HOT HUMID HILLY race - but it was made so very pleasant by the great Team Asha Cheer Squad and Coach Amy!!

3 Down...3 More to go!!

http://www.runtexdistancechallenge.com/

Holiday Running in Chennai!

2007-11-29T11:11:00.001-06:00

So I am off to Chennai in just 9 days! I can't wait...it's been close to 3 years since I last visited and I have ALOT to catch up on...friends and family I haven't met in a while...new people to see (specifically a new niece and new nephew!!)...new places to see...new restaurants to try out....weddings to attend etc etc....and of course who can forget all the AMAZING SHOPPING!! The 3 weeks are just going to zip by so darn quickly!! I wish I could have more time there!!!

3 weeks in India however means a 3 week absence from Rogue Training....this is especially crucial because I have a 20-miler Distance Challenge race to do the weekend after I get back!!..This means that I have to get some running in during the 3-week vacation including at least one solid long run. Coach Stephanie suggested checking out gyms and running groups in Chennai....and the first one that popped up when I googled Chennai running was the following site: www.chennairunners.com

Chennairunners is an informal running group consisting of a bunch of people who just enjoy running - be it long distance or short distance!

Quoting what appears on their website!
"Essentially a friendly lot, this group comprises, in varying fitness levels, the young, the young at heart and people whose youthfulness belies their age. Long distance running with the goal of finishing a marathon drives most of the members in this group. So we draw up schedules, train together, travel to races, exchange stories and experiences. Running in a group helps us push each other beyond our limits and alleviates the loneliness of running."

Both G32 and I contacted them - and will hopefully get a chance to run with them when we are in India in Dec and Jan respectively.

I was in general very impressed with all the results I got when I googled "running" "gyms" and "fitness" in Chennai....Just comparing to 3 years ago when I last visited, there are a lot more avenues available for one to get fit and stay fit in Chennai....Running especially is really picking up momentum not just in Chennai, but all over in India. I would defn. love to go run a marathon in Chennai sometime in the next few years!! Overall, this increasing awareness and embracement of fitness and staying healthy in India - is definitely a great trend, one I hope to see keep continuing.

I for once will definitely need to run in Chennai when I am there in December, JUST to compensate for all the binge-eating I plan to do!! ;)

Happy Holiday Running!

Distance Challenge - RACE 2 - EAS 10-miler

2007-11-11T20:20:00.001-06:00

Beautiful Route....
Gorgeous Weather....
Great Company....
2 Down...4 To Go....
http://www.runtexdistancechallenge.com/

Why do a 26.2?

2007-11-08T16:37:00.001-06:00

Found this quote and article on one of the Rogue Forums and just had to post it:

"Humans weren't meant to run 26.2 miles at a crack in the same way humans weren't meant to explore the heavens. We know mankind should get out of the space-exploration business because astronauts have died in the line of duty. Humans weren't supposed to navigate oceans, either, because if they were, we wouldn't still be pulling up wooden ships from the sea. And humans obviously shouldn't be attempting to climb Mt. Everest because people die trying every year. Maybe we shouldn't strive or dream or set goals at all. But we do. We do because that's how we're wired. Something inside us tells us to go for more. To strain and struggle and bleed for something great. To build ever taller buildings. To push the envelope. To take it to the limit and beyond."

-Rick Morrissey in a Chicago Tribune article on why we should keep running marathons even if occasionally people tragically die like Ryan Shay

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/cs-071106morrissey,1,2928793.column?coll=cs-home-utility

My First Marathon Experience!!

2007-11-02T15:47:00.001-05:00

It's been more than 10 whole days since I completed my 1st marathon, and I am finally getting some time to sit down and write about it!! I still quite don't know how, where to start though.....overall, it was an amazing 1st Marathon experience, one that I will never forget as long as I live, and one that I will definitely look back on for inspiration!! I am not going to get into too much details - it would be quite difficult to do that - but just give some of the key highlights!

For the run-geeks out there, here are the all the final numbers from my race....

Distance Splits:

5 miles: 1:04:00 Pace: 12:48
10 miles: 2:10:08 Pace: 13:13
13.1 miles: 2:40:18 Pace: 12:57
15 miles: 3:18:24 Pace: 14:47
18 miles: 3:58:54 Pace: 13:30
22 miles: 4:55:24 Pace: 14:07
26.2 miles: 5:53:10 Pace: 13:45

These numbers are quite telling!! As you can see - I started off pretty ok, slightly faster than I wanted to....but I couldn't help it!! I was overwhelmed by the crowd, the electrifying atmosphere, the fantastic spectator support, the perfect weather, the CUTE Marines etc etc!! :) I slowed down a little in the 2nd 5 miles, partially due to a much-needed potty break, and then picked it up again during the next 5K....Miles 14-20 were the toughest portion of the race for me...The course itself was through Downtown DC, pretty flat, and of course full of great sights - all the monuments - and large spectator crowds - but I didn't quite get to enjoy all of this due to these horrible cramps that developed in my lower abdomen area...and I had to reduce my pace to a very slow jog, and had to keep taking deep breaths...doing anything other than that made me feel the pain considerably....

My cousin Ash joined me around Mile 14 and ran with me through Mile 22....something that I am extremely grateful for!!!...After mile 16, the spectator crowd thinned considerably, alot of people started walking, it became slightly hot, my cramps were bugging me, but Ash kept chatting with me throughout those miles, distracting me, amusing me, pointing out sights to me, and that kept me going on.....I am quite sure otherwise that I might have started walking with all the other folks around me!!....At mile 19, I saw my mom and ran to her with joy....I guessed she had what I really needed - TYLENOL!!!!! :).....And as I predicted - she did....I took 2 pills and within the next couple of miles, my cramps slowly decreased!! I slowed down a little though, as we crossed over back to Virginia, around miles 19-21....this time primarily due to weariness...my legs I guess really started TALKING to me and asking me all sortsa questions - the key one being - why I was torturing them the way I was! :) At this juncture, one of the DC Asha Chapter coaches who was standing in the sidelines ran up to me and enquired which Chapter I was from - he told me that he and his wife, also a coach, had been running up and down the course, and running with any Asha runners they met who feel like they need the assistance or company....he ran with me and Ash for about a 1/2 mile or so, and said that the few miles I have left were going to go a long way towards the goal I had for supporting Asha! My cousin also went "Doesn't she look great?"....and at that point, I couldn't help smiling...and well, I guess my legs also got the answers they needed - at the end of that 8 mins or so, I became a lot more relaxed and my spirits went up!

The last 4 miles were around Crystal City, and then around the Pentagon....I picked up my pace slightly after the 22mile point....the remaining course consisted of a few rolling hills, which weren't too much fun, and then a crazy, but short, steep uphill at the end.....As I was struggling on that hill, I heard Anusha, the friend who got me into this marathoning business in the 1st place, yelling, "Go Chandy!!!".....I could see and hear her clearly and was thrilled, although from the weary expression on my face - she would have never realized that :) , BUT I could also at that point see the finish line just ahead and I don't really know what came over me, but my legs suddenly had renewed energy, and I sprinted the last 200m towards the finish line, remembering to lift my hands up and smile at the camera as I crossed the finish line!!

The Finish Line is truly a sight to behold!! There are tons and tons of people there all cheering their guts out for every single person who crosses the line, most of them they don't know personally, but acknowledge as Marathon Finishers!! It was a great feeling to keep walking on after that to receive the Finisher's Medal from the Marines. I saw my mom and cousin and couldn't help grinning as I went up to them! They were my fabulous support team for the day, and helped make my 1st marathon experience a worry-free one, and provided moral support all throughout the race!!

Some crazy MCM race sightings/experiences:

- I PEE'D behind the bushes along the course with some other women while a Marine stood guard outside to prevent men from entering the same bushes! :)
- There was a guy who ran the whole Marathon BACKWARDS!!
- There was a guy who was juggling 4 Tennis Balls throughout the course!!
- Since it was Halloween weekend, a lot of folks were wearing costumes!
- There was a group of ~60-yr old women who wore "I want a kiss from a Marine at every water-stop" T-shirts!! Some got their wishes granted! :)

Overall, I had a very memorable 1st marathon - I wouldn't have traded it for anything else. More than anything, I enjoyed myself thoroughly - I guess for the 1st time, I truly experienced the Runner's High that everyone talks about!! I had an excellent coach, and excellent cause, and excellent family and friends to support and cheer me on throughout the 6 months it took me to get to that Finish Line! The running doesn't stop here....I still have 5 races left for the Austin Distance Challenge, starting this weekend with the EAS 10-miler. It will be my first long run since the marathon, and I am planning to run it super easy , but none the less, I can't wait to get back on the road!!

On a side note, the Asha Austin Fantastic 4 - Santosh, Gaurav, Ganesh and Vinod, completed their first ever 100-miler race this past weekend!! Imagine doing 4 marathons back to back!! It's an amazing feat - and I commend them on this fantastic achievement!! They are truly an inspiration to all the Asha Runners!! Kudos to the 4 of you!!

Off to the Nation's Capitol for my first 26.2!!

2007-10-26T11:11:00.001-05:00

The big weekend is finally here....I am gonna be running my first ever 26.2 this coming Sunday...and I am extremely extremely excited!!

Amit Bhai sent me the following inspirational quotes and I just love 'em all!!

"Divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart"
-Mike Fanelli, club coach

"The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy...It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed."
- Jacqueline Gareau, 1980 Boston Marathon champ

"Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired. When you were younger the mind could make you dance all night, and the body was never tired...You've always got to make the mind take over and keep going."
- George S. Patton, U.S. Army General and 1912 Olympian

And lastly....both his and my favorite!!

"You can quit and no one will ever know about it but YOU will ALWAYS know"
- The Blazeman aka Warrior Poet

Coach Amy also advised that I have index cards with some of my own personal key phrases written - and I have those ready as well!

"Start Easy....Finish Strong"

"I am WELL TRAINED and READY for this"

and of course....

"I can SO do this on my hands!!!" :)

Thanks to all of you for your emails, gifts and well-wishes!!
A special special thanks to Coach Amy for being such an inspiration and an awesome cheerleader!! :)

Distance Challenge - RACE 1 - IBM Uptown Classic 10K

2007-10-22T09:15:00.002-05:00

Team Asha at the IBM 10K

1 DOWN....5 TO GO..........

http://www.runtexdistancechallenge.com/

Respect versus Approval?

2007-10-19T11:38:00.001-05:00

Friend: Would you have the courage to stand up for what you firmly believe in among a group of friends and people that you respect? I sometimes think that it's easier to stand firm in the face of adversity. But are we unsure what to do when we are among friends who don't believe in what we believe ?

Me: I try to do that as much as I can - and if I encounter some sort of resistance/mockery etc, I look at it objectively and ignore/address it as necessary.
If you think it's worth explaning your beliefs to someone who you know will listen objectively and you are comfortable enough to do so, it's definitely worth it. Else, there is no point.

It's sometimes frustrating to be among friends whom you love and respect who just don't really get you or your beliefs - in which case, you have to evaluate if the issue is important enough or bothers you enough to the level that you might need to reconsider the friendship. But I find that most friendships are temporary. Whereas beliefs are usually lifelong. So sometimes it just might not be worth it. And sometimes, you like/love people so much that you just put aside the fact that they don't believe in what you do.

In the face of adversities or when trying to make a life-changing decision (ex. marriage?), things can change.

Friend: A couple of good friends and I had a discussion about religion and spirituality last night. That's when I realized that it's harder to share opposing beliefs within a group of people I care about than with people who are not close. Is it because deep down we have a need to belong and seek approval?

Off late I try to live in such a way ... to only seek respect not approval. Does that make sense?

Me: Sometimes you like people for their personality, the fun/comfort level/chemistry you have with them. Sometime you like people for their beliefs/convictions. Very rarely will you find friends who you gel with for BOTH. And if you do find them, you have to try to keep them for life!! :)

Respect not approval is what I strive for as well. There's no way you can really get approval from everyone. Noone can.

What do you think?

FALL IS HERE.....

2007-10-12T14:10:00.001-05:00

Well..at least sort of.....AND MY SPIRITS ARE UP!! I just read through my last post with much disgust and I am glad to say that I am completely over being pathetic and whiny!!

To quote Amy, my coach, "OK, you can be bummed about it for 24 hours, but then that's it!"...:)

I just want to thank her and all of you guys who wrote in my scrapbook, wrote me personal emails and gave me a call to lecture me (!!!)....cos I defn won't be able to do this without all your support!!!

2 more weeks....and I'll be flying off to DC. Can't wait!!

Happy Fall!! Happy Navratri!! Happy Running!!!

A Training Low

2007-10-08T10:08:00.001-05:00

Not the kind of feeling you want to have just 3 weeks before the big day, but it's exactly how I felt during my last 20 miler this past Saturday - LOW.

I am getting very very nervous. The long run last Saturday was just bad..really bad. It was nothing like how I did or felt the last time I ran a 20. I don't know if it was the weather, the humidity, or all the crazy hills...I don't know what! I felt physically fine - had no aches/pains, or all that sort of trouble. Only real problem I had was getting a consistent breathing going on. I kept running out of breath - not sure why though.

I finished the run, but overall felt very bummed out. I was just depressed during my whole drive home. I went through the motions of eating, taking an ice bath etc etc, but nothing really helped. I finally just went out and hung out with some friends to get my mind off the whole thing. The next morning, I went for my easy run, and around 4 miles, I tripped and FELL....so now I don't just have a low morale...but I have close to 9 bandaids all over my hands and legs....usually when you are on the verging of tripping and falling, this adrenaline rushes through you and you try to prevent it if possible. What went through my head was "Crap...I can't believe I am falling!".... and I just let myself fall.

I don't know what's wrong with me. This is really unlike me to be getting upset about something like this. I've had more than 20 good weeks of running, but I just can't seem to put this one bad weekend behind me. I think it's because I am so close to the race day - and now am suddenly thinking of all the 101 things than can go wrong!!

Aww gawd....I need some inspiration....quick!

Cheesecake Martini and Injera!!

2007-10-05T12:52:00.001-05:00

So I've made a new resolution to check out someplace new in Austin - or revisit someplace old that I love...at least once every 2 weeks...be it a restaurant, bar, coffee shop, clothing store, book store...anything at all!! I've loved my six years so far in Austin, but have still alot...ALOT to explore....and who knows how much time I have left in this wonderful little city??...I gotta make the best of it while I'm here!!

This week, I explored not one, but two new places in Austin....they may not really be new to Austin....but defn. were new to me!! Here's a little review of both places!!

1. Ninety Proof

http://austin.citysearch.com/profile/44691579/austin_tx/ninety_proof.html

Ninety Proof is a small little bar tucked away in the corner of East 2nd street, kinda almost hidden between a bunch of pricey restaurants, right across the street from the Austin Convention Center. It has a really lovely decor - dark walls...cool lighting and stylish+comfy couches...one of the main walls also has water kinda cascading down which is really cool....Ninety Proof is a more of a chillout kinda lounge more than a noisy bar....well...at least that's how it was last night when I went to check it out with El Vee, which is probably the ideal time to go there...I have a feeling it might be way too packed in the weekends, but I'm not sure...The bouncers+bartenders were really nice and very attentive!! The music, to be honest, wasn't that great. BUT the drinks....the drinks were awesome!!....They had a whole array of martinis....and the one that really appealed to me was the Cheesecake Martini!!....Oh yumm....I am drooling as I write this...This drink is served in a big martini glass lined with SUGAR, not salt on the rims....the actual drink has an initial ice-cream soda-ish taste but before you know it, the vodka hits you....it's really delicious....and if the idea of a Cheesecake-Martini combination doesn't do anything for you - they have a bunch of other interesting flavors as well....defn a neat little place to check out if you live in Austin or visit sometime!!!

2. Asters

www.astersethiopian.com

I've been craving Ethiopian food for a long long time. The best Ethiopian food I've ever had is in Georgetown - I think it's called Zed's! If you are ever in the DC area, defn go check that place out!!.....If you are in Austin though, go check out Asters. Asters is located along the junction of the I-35 Feeder and Dean Keaton....it's pretty much a little shack...I've seen this place a couple of times before on my way to campus and have been meaning to check it out - I finally headed there today for lunch with some colleagues...we took a long idyllic 2-hr lunch (a very rare occurrence where I work!!) and drove all the way from Round Rock....and well it was defn worth the long drive!!...I was extremely excited to see that there were as many vegetarian entrees as there were meat entrees, and every single one of those vege options sounded soooo good....I chose the lunch special #17..the Bedergan - which is "eggplant spiced and prepared with tomato sauce, garlic, onions, and special Ethiopian seasoning"....served of course with Injera and 2 more vege dishes (I got lentils and a potato dish)....and it was fantastic!!! I love eggplant in general and loved the flavoring that was added to this eggplant dish...Injera, for those who don't know, is a thin soft dosa-like bread which you eat with the main dish....but the injera here tasted so good that I ate it plain and totally loved it!....One thing I would probably do the next time I go is ask my entree to be extra spicy, but other than that, the food was great! My meat-eating colleague Andre totally loved his dish Doro Wott as well - Ethiopia's National dish! Definitely go check this place out the next time you go out for a meal and are looking to try something new and exotic!

So there you go - my 2 awesome Austin picks for the week!! Try 'em out sometime and let me know what you think!!

The trio that ran a marathon....

2007-10-01T11:54:00.000-05:00

So after forming a 4-member relay team to run the Silicon Labs Relay Marathon, and having one member drop out, then adding a new member, then having that newly-added member drop out, then adding another member, then having one of the original members drop out, and adding a replacement for that member, and then finally having yet another member drop out.......wait hold on....I'm confused....ummmm.....:)

ANYWAYS....yeah...we finally went to the race yesterday morning as a 3-member all-gals group all set to run 5 legs of the relay - consisting of a 12k, 10k, 10k, 5k, 5k - which together make up a full-marathon!! Our team consisted of the 2 G3s and of course yours truly!

The weather was DECEPTIVELY gorgeous yesterday morning...it was slightly cool, cloudy and there was a hint of a slight breeze....I use the word "deceptively" however because when we actually started running the race, we realized how unbelievably HUMID it was - humid to the point that it was actually very uncomfortable when I started running the first 12k leg. I also had not hydrated well before the race and forgot to carry my gatorade with me.....and was dying of thirst within the first 2 miles....The usual hydrating at water stops doesn't really work for me....I usually need to have my liquids handy to keep sipping on a regular basis rather than down cups of water at intervals...I figured I'd be fine since it was just a 12k distance but then was soon missing being able to have a drink handy whenever I felt like I needed it....

The run along Congress was fun though....there's always a lot of interesting things to look at on both sides of the roads, and then of course there's the Capitol building, which is always a pretty sight....the last 5k of the race was an out and back along Cesar Chavez....running parallel to the Town Lake trail....and this part of the leg consisted of quite a few ups and downs which were a little tiring and all I kept thinking was "Where the heck is the turnaround???"...it was pretty funny later to discover that the other 2 had the exact same thought when running this part as well!!....

Amit bhai crossed me in the opposite direction 3 times during our 12k leg and each time cheered me on - it was always fun to see him cos it made me pick up my speed!! His team - The IndoChinese Dudes and AfroBritFrench Babes - did an amazing job yesterday and finished 152/373 overall and with an overall time of <4hours!!!>

Following my 12k, G32 ran her 10k....then handed over the "baton" to G31 for her 10k....both these girls did an amazing job yesterday....For G32, this was her first race EVER, and she ran her first 10k effortlessly like she has been running 10k races all her life....G31 aka Areille...barely trained for this, had the misfortune of having the sun show up as she started her leg and her shin started hurting within her first 2k...but still got to the finish line w/o giving up!! Bravo G31!!! I was very proud of both girls!!

G32 and me ran the last two 5ks...we were familiar with the course now and knew what to expect...but the weather had deteriorated since the first 2 legs we ran.....which wasn't fun...we did have some crazy volunteers at the very last water-stop pour water at us to refresh us which was pretty fun....one of the guys in particular was having waaay too much fun throwing h20 at all the women and his friend had to remind him that this wasn't a wet T-Shirt contest!!! :) This made all the women at the water-stop crack up....and we all ran the last mile of the race in high spirits!!

Overall....it was a tough, tiring, but fun race....it made us all realize how much harder it is to run alone than with running partners/friends...BUT that it's not impossible either - as long as you still have their moral support!! This is definitely a race that I would love to do again next year!! I'm pretty sure both the G3s agree as well!! :)

Fall Running....

2007-09-23T13:09:00.001-05:00

The Austin Fall running season has started and there a quite a few races coming up - for which I am extremely excited about!! I also bought my first ever timing chip!! I am officially a run-geek with my very own timing chip!! I bought the special edition Distance Challenge 2007-2008 chip - and it's so darn pretty!!! Gushhhhh..... :D

Upcoming Races:

September 30th - Silicon Labs Marathon Relay - 12K
October 7th - The Dream Mile - Vibha - 10K
October 21st - The IBM Uptown Classic - 10K

and of course the MOTHER of 'em all....
October 28th - The Marine Corps Marathon - 26.2 miles!!!

Fall's always been one of my favorite seasons in Austin - and this Fall is shaping up to be an extra special one!!

Runners. Yeah, we're different.

2007-09-07T18:26:00.001-05:00

This link was posted in my Training Forum recently. Pretty darned hilarious - although I have to say that I can actually relate to some of these even with my limited running experiences!! ;)

http://www.chayden.net/Runs/Adidas/index.htm

TWENTY....

2007-09-01T19:01:00.000-05:00

Ecstatic.
Delirious.
Elated.
Thrilled.
High.
Overjoyed.

Hungry.
BIG DINNER TONITE!!!! :)

I could do this on my hands!!!

2007-08-28T09:33:00.001-05:00

So the day has finally come - I'll be running my first 20-miler this weekend! My first TWENTY miler....I am excited but nervous at the same time!

We've been told to come ready with a little internal affirmation catch phrase - basically self-compliments/positive affirmations that will keep us going through the run when we are going through a rough patch, in the middle of a nasty hill, or just feel like giving up.

Some words of wisdom from my coach.....

Coach Amy: I think the most important part is to come up with affirmations before you need them. When you read or hear a phrase that “speaks” to you, write it down. Reword it if necessary to make it short and rhythmical, so that it is easy to memorize. Before a particularly hard training day or before a race, go over your list and write a phrase or 2 on post-it notes. Put the post-it notes on your bathroom mirror, on your car dash, or on your computer screen and then commit the affirmation to heart so that you can repeat it over and over in your head. A few that I personally like are : “start easy, finish strong. Start easy, finish strong.” “I am mentally tough. Mentally tough.” I am well-trained. I am prepared for this race.” If you think a negative thought during your workout or race, immediately substitute your affirmation.

I've been trying to come up with something that will work for me and this morning - I was chatting with my colleague Andre, an avid marathon runner - and I found what I needed!! :)

Charanya says: my coach wants us to come up with a postivie reaffirmation phrase! any suggestions?
Andre says: Hrmm....
"This is the dumbest thing that I've ever done"
"But I like it"
Charanya says: haha....too long...what if i get demoralized at DUMB and then never finish???
Andre says: it's possible
Charanya says: for att half...i remember chanting "i love hills"
Andre says: "These Indian legs are strong!"
Charanya says: hahahahahah
Andre says: I like that
Andre says: "I could do this on my hands!"
Charanya says: hahahaha.....
I like "I could do this on my hands!"
Andre says: it's catchy
Charanya says: I think the visual image of me marathoning on my hands will just keep me going!
Charanya says: Good job - Gold Star for Andre!
Andre says: WAHOO!!!

:)
And yes....I could so totally do this on my hands!!!!!!!!!
And as silly and strange as it sounds - just saying it right now a few times to myself is already making me feel good about it all!! It's not so much the actual words - but what it implies - that I am strong, and I will be able to do anything I put my mind to!

The ADC - To Do or Not To Do?

2007-08-23T14:42:00.001-05:00

My life once upon a time used to be such that I would try to fit in exercise/physical fitness/sports in between all my other activities - and mostly only if there was nothing else better to do! Now with all this running and triathloning - I find myself trying to fit in my life in between all my training....And my old friends from school and family members are quite perplexed because this was the last thing they expected me to do while I was in school - I was a complete inactive bookworm then!! The only remotely active thing I used to do was play tennis and swim once a week - but more so because my folks made me join those classes - if given a choice, I probably would not have enrolled in those 2 either!!....

And now I am training for my 1st Marathon and have also just this morning exhanged about 20 emails with Areille contemplating doing the Austin Distance Challenge for the 2007-2008 season!!! (http://www.runtexdistancechallenge.com/events.asp)

We've both been asking each other if we've gone completeley crazy. Have we??

I discussed it with my coach - I wanted to find out if this was ok - training for a 2nd marathon right after having finished my 1st ever marathon - and she said it was absolutely fine - only thing I will need to do is take a complete break the week after the MCM - so absolutely NO running - and then ease into the running - no more than 30 mins a day - and no more frequent than once every other day!....

My only key concern with all this is - how this will affect the rest of my life!! I am (or at least used to be!) a pretty active social person - and love to go out, hang out with my friends etc. But because of all this running madness, I've been forced to skip/miss out on a lot of hangouts, dinners, movie outings, special events etc etc with my friends - mostly because I am opting to stay in and sleep and be prepared for the next day's run or to sleep and recuperate after a long morning run! I also used to be able to just drive to Houston any weekend I chose to and hang out with my parents...Now I have to plan these trips way in advance and plan them around my so-called "Easy Weeks"....so that I don't end up missing my longer runs....It's tough to get those runs in when I'm elsewhere and have to run alone - so that's something I defnitely need to do with my run group and hence need to be in Austin for! I'm also quite certain that my friends and family are quite fed up of hearing the "I'm sorry...gotta run" excuse!! I have so many calls that I need to return to disgruntled friends! I keep promising them it will all end come October - but here I am - already planning another 4 months of running! ....

I still feel like I want to do it though - this is the one time in my life that I can do all this w/o having any other responsibilites. I see working parents with young children and other individuals with insane work schedules come for training and then rush off to take care of their kids or to work etc etc...whereas I currently have the luxury to just come home and sleep all day and recuperate!!...

Hmm....I don't know....I'm kinda confused now....I am enjoying the way things are currently - but I don't know if I am running (no pun intended) the risk of letting all this just dictate my life completely!!.....I also don't quite know what my big goal at the end of the day is for keeping on doing this - and if - I really need to even have such a goal! I had a specific goal for doing 1 marathon - it was a personal challenge - to see what I was capable of - but why do I want to do another one??

How about you guys? Have you ever felt this way about anything - something that you really want to do but takes up such a big chunk of your life - you don't quite know what it will amount to at the end of the day - but you still want to keep doing it anyway??

18 Miles and STILL Running....

2007-08-15T09:32:00.001-05:00

Last Saturday, I ran my first ever 18 miles....(or what was just supposed to be 18 miles....)...and during this run, I experienced my first ever SERIOUS "Why the hell am I doing this???" thought....That thought has come to me before - several times, but it was something I always used to just brush aside, because things were never really that bad....and I was always reminded of my 3 main goals - get fit - reach my endurance goal - raise funds for Asha - and that used to be enough for me to want to go on!! But last Saturday - was the first time where I came really close to wanting to absolutely give up!!....

I woke up at 4am that morning, feeling strong and confident. I had done 2 16-milers already, and was looking forward to tackling this 18-miler. Several runners have told me before that upto 18 miles, the physical endurance plays a big part, but after that, it becomes a more mental challenge....So this was going to be quite a milestone and I was feeling good....

The run started well - we ran through the trail, then along the Lake Austin Boulevard stretch....it was after I made the right on Enfield, that my little "adventure" started....I was looking out for a turn - on Pecos - but for some reason..missed it....I ended up running the whole of Enfield trying to find it - until I hit Mopac.....I was separated from the group at this point. Most of the other 11-13min/mile runners had not shown up this week and I was pretty much solo by the time I reached mile 5. At the junction of Enfield and the Mopac, I met another lost runner!...We debated on what to do - we could try to run back on Enfield and find Pecos or keep going north on the Mopac feeder. We knew that we would eventually hit Far West - where we needed to cross Mopac! We chose Option 2 and continued running. We ran past Windsor, Westeover and kept going. The roads were slightly hilly and winding but still manageable. I had my water bottle with me and that helped both me and my fellow lost runner get by without needing a waterstop. We finally hit Exposition - a familiar road which we knew would lead us back on track....

Exposition, for those who have driven on it, is not a fun road to run on at all - it's where the coaches typically take us to do the dreaded HILL WORKOUTS.....UGH...at the end of it though...we reached 35th Street....which I knew would get me to Balcones and back on track!!...My fellow lost runner took off at this point - I was extremely grateful to have had his company but I knew he had been running at a slower pace for me - which was very sweet and considerate of him! I continued on Balcones - this was quite a long stretch FULL of steep ups and downs, and having just run all the hills on Exposition, I had a miserable time running these new hills...I ended up walking a few of the uphills - although I really didn't want to - but my legs just felt so darn energy-less!!...And it was right in the middle of one of these hills, in what felt middle of nowhere, that I came to a standstill and asked myself what the hell I was doing!!....My 3 goals floated in front of me - I just remember thinking - wot the heck, I'm fitter than the average person, I don't really need to meet the self-imposed endurance goal, and well there was Asha - I was thinking if I could get away with writing a big fat check?..... I literally stood there....motionless for 5 whole minutes - my mind whirling with crazy thoughts!!!

I guess that 3rd thought was the one that really made me feel kind of bad - I had just sent an email to all my friends and family a couple of days before asking them to assist me in helping to meet my fundraising goals....telling them how important this cause and effort was for me - and I could just imagine what they'd think if I were to give up now!! So I mustered whatever little energy I had left and walked up the hill I was in....to my pleasant surprise, I could see the end of Balcones right ahead AND I found a Rogue watersop!!! Coach Scott was just clearing the waterstop but waited for me, and filled up my water bottles. I explained what had happened, and he devised a new route for me to take. He said either ways, I was going to end up doing more than 18 miles!! He also said that I'd come this far - and well, that I should really try to motivate myself and enjoy the last 8 miles, which would be mostly downhill!...He made me consume my Gu and sent me off....I ran on 2222 to Shoal Creek and was greeted by a group of runners - all part of Gilbert's Gazelles - another major running group in Austin!....the run along Shoal Creek ended up being quite pleasant - it's amazing how having people running around you can really bring up your spirits - even if you don't know any of them! The GG water stops also helped me along the way, and I ended up hitting 38th Street....I took 38th and then took a right on Lamar and ran all the way back to the Town Lake Trail....

The run on Lamar was a little tough - but this was just the usual soreness I got during all my long runs - but the route itself was quite pretty, especially near the Campus Area....I got a little cramp along the way and walked for a bit - a GG coach found me walking along here and stopped his car and asked if I needed a ride back. I was very very tempted but declined. Once again though, I was really touched by the offer for help...the Austin running community is truly an awesome community to be part of and I felt more motivated then and managed to run the remaining 4 miles relatively well.....

I had never been so happy as I was at the end of that run to see the RunTex store...and I was even more thrilled to see Lindsay, a fellow Iron Chick and massage therapist, who was there offering massages to all the runners....She gave me an AMAZING massage....I remember telling a friend right after that it felt like my legs had an orgasm! ;)....hahaha...I met the Asha men there, who were there for the AT&T kickoff...I still had a dazed look on my face though, and I got quite a few concerned "Are you Okay??"s from them!! :)

I went home after that and soaked in my tub for a bit, in icy cold water....then ate and SLEPT for nearly 5 solid hours, and woke up feeling all renewed again, and the miserable morning run felt like it happened ages ago!! I thought at that point about how close I'd come to giving up that morning and felt really glad that I hadn't!!....I had done 19.5 miles and survived the run with no major physical strains (touch wood!!)....I knew though that I had to really focus on my mental energy and training for the weeks ahead!! My next big milestone is going to be a 20 mile run 2 weekends from now...but thanks to my little adventure last weekend, I'm not going to be running a significantly longer distance, but I really do hope to have a much better experience, and a much stronger finish!! Meanwhile....my dear readers....Charanya's gonna STILL be running! :)

On a completely different note....HAPPY 60TH INDEPENDENCE DAY to my dear home country and all my fellow Indians!!! VANDE MATARAM!!!

MAJULAH SINGAPURA!!

2007-08-09T11:39:00.001-05:00

I am an Indian citizen, but having been brought up in Singapore and having lived there for close to 14 years, I pretty much consider it as one of my homes!! Singapore celebrates it's 42nd Birthday today, and one of my fondest memories of this day is of singing the National songs together in school and during the National Day Parades!!....

My favorite song amongst those was Singapore Town! I wish I could sing it for you - but you'll just have to settle for this - if you even care to listen!! (Shasha is probably the only one who will!!! hahaha....)This song even has cool hand actions and all!! ALAMAK - I am such a dork!!!!!!!! :D

http://nettv.1-net.com.sg/SingSingapore/Songs/SingaporeTown.asx

Singapore Town
Music & Lyrics: The Sidaislers

You could take a little trip around Singapore town
In a Singapore city bus
To see Collyer Quay and Raffles Place
The Esplanade and all of us

Chorus:
Because in Singapore, Singapore
Their hearts are big and wide you'll find
Because in Singapore, Singapore
You'll find happiness (chachacha) for everyone

Let's go down to the riverside, it's an unforgettable sight
To see the sunrise on a faraway isle, turning darkness into light

( Repeat Chorus )

The buildings are climbing all the way to the sky
And there's a hundred other people who are striving
For people like you and I

( Repeat Chorus )

HAPPY NATIONAL DAY TO ALL SINGAPOREANS!!! (Blue ICs can consider also lah!!! :) )

Thumbs Up!

2007-08-01T16:11:00.001-05:00

We did the Marshes x 1.5 for my Marathon Quality workout this morning....My fellow Rogue'ers will know what this is....for the rest...it's essentially a nasty hill workout!!....When I was doing the Half-Marathon training, we used to do just 0.5 (so one up)....As part of my Marathon training, we had to at least 1.5 and optionally 2.0 (so up down up down).....My legs were crying as I finished the workout but as always, I felt good after!!! :)

My coach talked to me at the end of the workout and told me that while running, I fold my palms into a "Thumbs Up" position and grip it tight - adding unnecessary tension!!!.....I had absolutely no idea I did that, but apparently I do it a lot...and well unfortunately....although the actual hand position has a positive connotation (~ Good Job!) and pple who run past me probably thing that I am constantly encouraging them :) , for me, it actually has negative results!! I went and looked at some of my old running pictures (and NO...I don't take pics of myself running and analyze them :)...these are from old races)...and noticed that I really do do (Chandler flashback!!) the "Thumbs Up" a lot!!....So now I need to focus on keeping my hands and palms much more relaxed while running...One of my other coaches told us to imagine that we were running with a egg in our hand and our goal should be to ensure that the egg is intact and not broken by the time we finish our run!!.....Hmm....

Other than that, we are doing 16 miles again this weekend - but this time it's going to be a much more HILLY route (yuck!!).....the run has been aptly named "The Run from Hell"....thank god I have nothing else planned for Saturday morning/afternoon....cuz this run is defn gonna put me into bedrest for at least half the day!!!

I also went ahead and signed up for Skeese Greet's...an all-women's Sprint Tri due to happen at the end of the month....so pretty psyched about that....I'm not going to be able to train that well...since my primary focus will be my running....but I hope to be much better prepared than I was for the Couples Tri! And this will be the first race I'll be doing with Sha....so I am super duper excited!!!

The Joys of being a Female Engineer....

2007-07-30T13:44:00.002-05:00

Being one of the 3 female engineers in a team of 40 people has always been interesting....for various reasons.....and here's one of those reasons!

This is a conversation between me and one of my female colleagues at work!

Background: We have a team offsite tomorrow where we are all renting a party boat and heading out to the lake! FUN!!!!!!

Colleague: Are you planning on swimming tomorrow? I don't really want to be the only chick in a bathing suit ;) I have a 2-piece that's not a string bikini that I was planning on wearing. Can't be baring it all for my coworkers. LOL

ME: Yeah - I'll swim….prob sticking to a 1-piece though! :)

Colleague: Sounds like a plan :)

ME: The funny thing is we're gonna see guys of all shapes and sizes baring it all…and not worrying one bit!!....:D

Colleague: Ha ha good point! The 2-piece I have is a halter top with full coverage bottoms. I'm sure it'll be ok. If I have to look at some of these guys' hairy bellies, they can look at mine. Ha ha!

ME: hahahahha....WELL PUT!!!!

My crisis at work is FINALLY over and I had a fabulously chilled out weekend recuperating.....watched THREE movies in the theatre....ran 10 miles around Town Lake....went Kayaking with Areille...ate some good food... made dinner for friends and watched like 6 episodes of That 70s Show with them!!....

Aaah....Life is Good! :D

Friday Evening Venting

2007-07-20T09:54:00.001-05:00

It's Friday evening....6pm...and here I am.....still sitting @ work!!....quite sad indeed...the rest of my team just bid adieu and are off to Happy Hour!! Ugh...I could totally use a drink right now!!

This whole week @ work has really been a blur...All the enthusiasm I had on Monday morning post-Triathlon pretty much fizzed out by mid-day Monday and well it's just all been downhill since then....

We have this crazy issue that we are trying to debug at work right now....and it is just creating a big mess in my mind....all our minds really...we have a lot of data...but none of them really helpful...we have a lot of theories but nothing really to back them up....and everyday we get yanked in a different direction which is annoying...and the biggest problem is really that the issue we have just seems to reproduce when it wants to and chooses not to otherwise....it's unbelievably frustrating and I am just absolutely mentally tired....I really just want to go home, but can't until I have all the systems that I need running overnight completely set up....ugh ugh ugh....can you believe that I've actually been having nightmares about this issue?? How absolutely sad.....

My original Friday/Saturday plans were to go home, take a nice long nap, get up , have dinner and head to a Potter Party with friends....watch little witches and wizards run around...get my Book 7...head home....try very hard not to read the last chapter first....go to sleep instead....get up in the morning...go for my run....come home, shower and chill out on my couch all day reading Book 7.....with a side of Haagen Daz coffee icecream....

Instead my plans look like the following: Go home whenever I am done, eat, sleep, wake up, run, go home, shower, eat, come to WORK!!!! :(....It's quite depressing really.....

I am actually looking forward to my run tomorrow - we're going to be doing 16 miles!! This is the longest distance I have ever run and I should be feeling extremely nervous.....but for some strange reason...I am not....I can't wait to get there and start running - cos this is going to be my "vent run".....I plan to channel all my current frustrations into that run.....hopefully I succssfully do that and not collapse out of exhaustion instead!!! haha...a highly likely possibility!!......I've been visually drawing out the route in my head - it goes as follows..........

The South Austin Ramble - 16miles:

From RunTex Riverside
Head South on S. 1st St.
Right on Barton Springs Rd.
Left on Bouldin Ave.
At W. Annie St. jog Right
then Left to continue on Bouldin.
Bouldin T’s at Live Oak.
Right on Live Oak.
Left on S. 5th St.
*Water stop at 5th and Cumberland*
S. 5th T’s at Cardinal Ln.
Right on Cardinal.
Left on Garden Villa.
Right on Banister.
Cross over Hwy 290/Ben White.
Continue on Banister until it splits at stop sign
Go to the Right onto Richmond Ave
*Water stop at Richmond and Lansing*
At Lansing turn left onto small dirt trail and
over the rail road tracks.
Run straight ahead for 1 block
Right onto Emerald Forest.
Cross Stassney Ln.
After the church,
Left on Armadillo Rd.
*Water stop at Armadillo and Emerald Forest*
Right on Cooper Ln.
Cross William Cannon Dr.
Continue South on Cooper.
Cooper T’s into Dittmar Rd.
Right on Dittmar.
*Water stop at Dittmar and Forest Wood*
16 milers right on Forest Wood
Right on Matthews Ln
***Be AWARE on Matthews
Narrow street no shoulder.***
Left back onto Cooper Ln.
16 milers: north on Cooper
Cross William Cannon
Left on Armadillo Rd
*Water stop at Armadillo and Emerald Forest*
Right on Emerald Forest
Cross Stassney Ln
***PAY ATTENTION!!!!!***
After the bridge
Take a Left on Lansing Dr.
***DON’T MISS THIS!!!***
*Water stop*
Cross the RailRoad Tracks
via the dirt trail & then
Right on Richmond
Richmond becomes Bannister
Take Banister to
Cross Hwy 290/Ben White
*Now pick up pace to MGP or no faster than HMGP*
Left on Garden Villa
Right on Cardinal
Left on S. 5th St
*Water stop at 5th and Cumberland*
Right on Live Oak
Left on Bouldin
At W. Annie St. jog Right then Left
To continue on Bouldin
Right on Barton Springs
Left on S. 1st St
Back to RunTex

YIKES!!!!!

Oh well....back to work....hope ya'll have a much better weekend than the one I'm gonna have!!

Couples Tri Post-Mortem....

2007-07-15T12:50:00.002-05:00

Every morning of a race - be it a fun 5K or a full-fledged Sprint Triathlon...I always wake up wondering why I am doing what I'm doing - getting up at ridiculous hours....putting on my sporting gear...eating my nutrituous breakfast (ie. tasteless)...trudging to the race venue half-asleep...trying to compete for parking with all the other hundreds of participants..etc..etc...

And the next thing I know...I am at the race start...the gun shot goes off...then I go off!...And that's when all the fun really begins....once the race starts...you forget everything...and your mind begins to just focus on one thing....getting to the finish line!...And when you are doing a triathlon....you are focusing on getting to not just one..but THREE finish lines!!.....

I did the Couples Tri yesterday morning with Amit...we signed up just 2 weeks ago on an impulse....I completed my first ever Sprint Tri almost 5 weeks ago (Danskin) and had not gotten on a bike or into the pool since then!....My only real training before the race was a 5mile bike last Friday and a 800m swim at Deep Eddy's last Thursday....the only thing I have been doing consistently is my running....and ironically...my timings for both my swimming and biking improved in this race whereas my running absolutely showed no improvement....a result I am extremely bitter about (maybe that's why I called this a post-mortem improper bostonian? :) ) But the one thing the running did help is give me the stamina to finish this race with almost no training...so thank god for that!

The Swim...800m

Danskin: 23:05

Couples: 22:39

The Swim course was slightly different from Danksin - but was in the same lake. The water temperature was also almost the same. This swim was slightly more comfortable than Danskin, just because there was less people in the water (Note: Danskin has close to 2600 participants - compared to the 700 participants at Couples). I improved by 26 seconds which I am quite pleased about considering I hadn't really done any swim training since Danksin. I also managed to get in more freestyle this time, which I'm also pretty happy about. Overall felt good about the swim.

Transition 1...

Danksin: 6:11

Couples: 4:54

My Transition 1 time was also much better for the Couples. I attribute it mainly to the fact that the transition area itself was a lot smaller than Danskin, and it was much easier to find my bike amongst all the hundreds of bikes. As for the actual transition activities (dry myself..put on my shoes...bike helmet..gloves)...I still feel that I can become more efficient and this is something I want to work on before I do my next Tri.

The Bike...12 miles

Danskin: 1:00:05

Couples: 58:46

The Bike course was almost exactly the same as Danskin (including the 2 nasty nasty hills)...and although I could have done much better considering that I was now familiar with the route and knew when to anticipate the tough portions of the bike course, the lack of training really played its part here. I had a slightly better timing overall but it was still as tough as Danskin was and my legs during this course started to show signs of becoming tired!

Transition 2...

Danksin: 2:54

Couples: 1:56

Once again, a slightly better transition than Danskin - and once again attributing this to the smaller size of the transition area and also to the fact that I knew exactly where to go to start the run...I was a little lost during Danksin! Efficiency-wise, not sure I could have done anything better - I thought I was pretty quick in taking off my biking gear...putting on my run cap...and well really...that was it!

The Run...3.1 miles

Danksin: 44:24

Couples: 44:13

Now this is the leg of the race that I am truly upset about...yes I did improve by a grand total of 11 seconds...but it's not something to boast about considering all the running I have been doing since Danskin as part of my marathon training. I was hoping to complete my running in at least less than 40 mins! Even my half-marathon pace was MUCH better!!!...I was thinking about it all day yesterday...and I figured the way I train for a marathon is completely different from say how I would train for a 5k - for the former, my key focus is on endurance - whereas for the latter, it is more on speed. I did finish the run without feeling like I was going to die, which is always good...but I was still slow...some of it probably due to my legs hurting after the biking...but a lot of it mostly due to the fact that I "felt" so tired mentally...I believe that there is still a lot of room for improvement in this leg of the race...I'll defn need to do more bricks (bike+run training together)...focus a little more on speed and trying to push myself even though my mind is telling me to do otherwise... and try to achieve an overall more powerful finish!

Overall Results:

Danksin:02:16:41

Couples: 2:12:30.2

All said and done, it was still a fun race and I felt really good afterwards....The awesome post-race massage I got also helped (I wish I could have taken this guy home!!!! ;) ) It was also neat being in a race with my coaches!! And also even more neat to have been in a race with some top-class ironmen triathletes!!....

And last but certainly not least of course....this was the Couples Tri after all....and I couldn't have done it without Amit Bhai!!....He was extremely supportive throughout....gave me tons of good tips for the bike leg...was there cheering me on at the finish line (he finished waaaaay ahead of me!!).....and although we could have had a much better ranking overall if I had gotten some better results...he never once worried about that and instead focused more on our individual improvements!! Thanks Amit!! You're the best!!

And these are all the reasons I guess I keep wanting to race again and again!! :)

Next Race: Thinking of doing the August 26th Skeese Greet's Women's Tri with Sharanya...Let's see!

The Simple Joys in Life....

2007-07-12T21:31:00.001-05:00

Charanya: G3!! I found the most awesomest juice place today...near town lake...full organic stuff!!...ull loveeeeeee it
Gayathri: reallly???...is it daily juice?
Charanya: hmm didn't seem to have a name...its next to deep eddy pool
Gayathri: ya ya thats daily juice
Charanya: Aah ok
Gayathri: i have been wanting to go there for the longessttt
Charanya: so u know then...hahah
Gayathri: yayyy .... now i will go with u..i have never been there
Charanya: awesome!!
Gayathri: but i always wanted to
Charanya: i had their MANGO LASSI and it was out of this world!!!
Gayathri: wow really???...nice nice
Charanya: yeah totally yummmm...and they have VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP that u can add to smoothies...yummmmm
Gayathri: wowwww..niceeee..ok i am coming running with u next week
Charanya: yes yes
Gayathri: once i recover from wisdom tooth ofcourse..but yayyyyy
Charanya: OF COURSE...haha...ok let's start our one new place in austin at least every 2 weeks deal
Gayathri: i love new food places .. gets me so excited
Charanya: be it food place or anything else
Gayathri: yes yes...ok..done
Charanya: summer is the best time!!...yayyyyy
Gayathri: yayyyyy :D
Charanya: hehe
Gayathri: everyone around is gettoing hooked and we are getting excited on juice!!!
Charanya: wotever
Gayathri: how smart are we!! :D
Charanya: haha
Gayathri: hahaha...but i prefer juice anyway
Charanya: simple joys in life are the best
Gayathri: so it don't matter!
Charanya: the husband we'll get bored with anyways eventually...haha...but the food...will always be there for us!! :)
Gayathri: i know!!
Charanya: u shopped?
Gayathri: bought one pajama...thats all i cud find...one after half an hour of macys pajama dept
Charanya: haha
Gayathri: then i got bored and went home and started watcing scrubs
Charanya: i got Sabrina in my netflix today chick flick...and got spinach pizza from whole foods
Gayathri: oooh tell me how it is
Charanya: life is good
Gayathri: nice niceee
Charanya: LOL
Gayathri: :D...ya i got food from mr. N...and scrubs ...yayy...i think i am going to make some tea ...
Charanya: ohhhhh i got to go to that place again sometime soon!!
Gayathri: i feel like drinking tea..ya u do!!
Charanya: next weekend
Gayathri: we gotta go there on a saturday afternoon and order off the menu
Charanya: YES!!!!
Gayathri: instead of the specials
Charanya: next Sat...it's a date!!! ;)
Gayathri: done
Charanya: ;)
Gayathri: :D
Charanya: im so gonna post this conversation in my blog
hahahahhaa
Gayathri: heheh
Charanya: and title it "the simple joys in life"...hahaha
Gayathri: haha...very apt...alright i am going to make some teaaa
Charanya: ok shower time... i smell like a hippie
byeeeeeeee
Gayathri: hahahaha...ok byee

Go Chick!!

2007-07-06T09:42:00.000-05:00

I JUST found out that my Iron Chicks coaches Michael and Cecilia will be participating in the Couples Tri next weekend as well!! They are SO gonna kick Amit's and my butts!! :)....

It should be fun though to see them again....they were such awesome coaches!

On other news....my wonderful Singaporean namesake...(well I guess technically I am HER namesake!) Sharanya is doing her 1st Triathlon this weekend!!....This is kind of like the Rookie Tri I did a year ago - it's even at the exact same venue - The Texas Ski Ranch!!....I am soooo excited for her....and am quite a proud mother hen....considering it was my little Danskin post-mortem email that spurred her on to join the Iron Chicks program!!....She's gonna be riding my bike as well and I hope my Scarlett performs well for her! Here's wishing her all the very best for the race! I'm sure she's gonna do AWESOME!!

GO CHICK!!! :)

CLOSURE!

2007-07-03T09:49:00.001-05:00

Okok...don't get too excited looking at the title...this isn't going to be a blog about the dramatic closure to a tragic failed relationship or any such thing! :)

Recently at work, I was told by my lead that I would be contributing 50% of my time to another group....I was okay with that and figured it's probably because I had been complaining that I had all this bandwidth to spare but not enough work to do (yeah...I'm weird like that...)...turns out they are "sharing" me with another group to take advantage of a certain skill I apparently have....which is the ability to "take issues to CLOSURE".....

I thought about it and realized that this is someting that I do generally always try to do even in my personal life...be it relationships...a home improvement project...a fitness goal...a trip to the grocery store...etc etc....I really hate leaving things unfinished....goals not met...loose strings untied....if I decide to do something...I am usually on it as soon as I can...before I get the chance to change my mind...and I tend to do what it takes to make sure that I complete it...be it a 5 minute trip to fill gas...or a 6-month goal to complete my 1st marathon....

I kind of used to have a "Monica-ish" go-getter attitude about this for many years....and would be quite anxious about the outcomes of my actions/projects etc....but have slowed down more in recent times and learnt how to "enjoy the journey"a little more....which is where all the fun....and learning is....right?

But I guess your innate personality does still creep up sometimes though....be it at work or otherwise....in my case....I guess it has creeped up for the good...

Just some random thoughts while I wait to go home......

Going to H-Town this weekend to celebrate turning a quarter-century with the family....this is one era in my life I wish I din't have to "close" so soon!! haha.... :)

It takes two to Tri! :)

2007-06-29T09:08:00.002-05:00

Amit Bhai just signed us both up for a Couple's tri!!....

The couples Triathlon is a pretty new race. Teams of two, whether they be friends, spouses, or family members combine their ages and sign up in the appropriate category. Each person on the team does the entire triathlon, and then their times are combined for the overall results.

Should be fun.....only thing is ..the race is in just two weeks from now and I haven't biked or swam ever since I completed Danskin!! Need to get back on track!!

Meanwhile...I will be running 14 miles this weekend for my Marathon training...I'm pretty worried about this one.....I mean the last time I did a half-marathon, I trained for close to 5 months!! Now in just 6 weeks, they are making us do 14 miles!!! YIKES....And pretty much every weekend from now, I will be running at least this distance or more...

The madness officially begins....

Tri Tri Tri Away....How it all began!!

2007-06-28T10:34:00.000-05:00

My involvement with Triathlons began in late July 2005….my friend Amit, an avid cyclist, got bit by the Triathlon bug - BUT unfortunately couldn't swim and had to find someone to cover that portion of the race….he remembered me mentioning to him that I'd been swimming since I was a kid (mandatory for ALL kids in Singapore!) and asked if I'd be interested in doing a relay….I was absolutely intrigued by the idea of triathlons…I didn't know "normal" people did it…figured it was something that only happened @ the Olympic level! I did some research after that and found out that Texas was home to tons of awesome triathlons…some of the best in the country….and Austin itself hosted several every year….Most of these races do have an Elite segment…for the serious contenders…but for the large part, these races were open to really anyone…no prior Tri experience needed…

So Amit Ashwin and I formed a relay team and signed for the Dilloman Triathlon in September that year - Sprint distance... I swam (800m)…Amit cycled (12 miles) and Ash ran (5K)….and we had an absolute blast!!...And had a decent ranking as well - quite impressive for 3 absolute rookies to the Tri-world…Following this race, we did another relay in April 2006 - the Cactus Challenge, and came in SECOND!!...We even got a sweet little plaque to take home! After these 2 relay events, both Amit and I were eager to do more than just one leg of a relay...as much as fun that was! I mean we weren't really TRUE Triathletes...in order to be that...I had to get more comfy with a bike and Amit had to get more comfy with the water....I wouldn't say I was a good runner then....but somehow, that didn't scare me as much as the bike did!....

To ensure that we didn't chicken out from this new goal of ours, we signed up for the Rookie Triathlon that was to happen in New Braunfels in mid-May that year right after the Cactus Challenge...The Rookie Triathlon is an awesome race for newbies to the sport - it is a mini-Triathlon with a reduced distance compared to the Sprint distance - 300m swim, 12mile bike, 2mile run!...Amit signed up with Clay Madeson to learn swimming...and I bought one of his friend's old bikes and started biking....I also signed up for this accelerated Triathlon training course offered at the Dell gym! We probably trained for a grand total of 4 weeks....and next thing we new, the race day had arrived....

To cut a long story short...let's just say that it was an interesting experience! :)...I'd been part of Triathlons, but it was a whole new world doing the whole race on my own...there were several challenges along the way which I had not anticipated or been prepared for....but I guess what really mattered was that I got through them and reached the finish line with a big smile on my face! And that really was my main goal...

I just recently completed my 1st ever Sprint Triathlon - the Danskin Triathlon....an all-women event raising funds for the Susan Komen Breast Cancer Foundation... it was one of the most amazing experiences that I've everbeen part of...it really garners a whole post of its own though....

There's a Tri- quote that goes:
"If God invented marathons to keep people from doing anything more stupid, the triathlon must have take Him by complete surprise."
- P.Z. Pearce

I have to disagree though! Entering the world of Triathlons was one of the smartest decisions I ever made! It's made me fitter, stronger, and taught me how to appreciate my body and all that it is capable of ! It has also taught me a lot about sportsmanship and teamwork! (I did sign up for a Marathon recently though...haha...I'm still debating if THAT could be considered as stupidity!! :)....just j/k!!)

Back in Action!

2007-06-27T12:13:00.001-05:00

I got a new laptop @ work recently and have been transferring all the data from my old laptop - today I was moving all my old bookmarks and found the bookmark to my BLOG that I kinda started a year ago…yes…ME…I tried my hand at a blog…Round 1 was not too much of a success…I added about 4 entries...and then my laziness took precedence over my creative literary juices…. :)….

BUT…..I am going to try to give this a 2nd shot….and I am going to start with listing some of the key events in my life since October 2006 - my last post - (LISTS!! - I did mention that I was lazy didn't I?? :) )……

So…..here's presenting…..Charanya's Life - Oct'06 - June'07……..

1. AT&T Half-Marathon Training with Rogue - Sept 06: My 1st step into becoming a Fitter Charanya and it didn't hurt that this was gonna raise $$ for Asha for Education!
2. Om-Kara's 1st Mega Show in Austin - Oct 06: One of the most successful shows I've ever planned!
3. EOY Vacation in Espana - Dec 06: 10 full days of sheer fun!
4. 3M Half-Marathon - Jan 07 - My 1st ever-half marathon which I finished strong along with my fab running partner G3!!
5. AT&T Half-Marathon - Feb 07: My Asha Training Target race....although I wasn't a half-marathon Rookie anymore...still felt like the 1st time!! Unbelievable spectator support!!
6. Shaaaaaaaaaadi.com entrance - Feb 07: LOL..of course I had to include this one!! No success till date….BUT definitely tons of amusement! :)
7. Iron Chicks Training with Rogue - Mar 07: Apparently JUST running is not enough for me!!
8. "Vetti" Trip to San Diego - Mar 07: Gorgeous gorgeous city…You gotta love the ocean!!
9. Thyagaraja Aradhana Mar 07: Back on stage after many many many years belting Carnatic tunes!
10. Houston Drama - April 07: Bit role 1!
11. Eeyore's Birthday - April 07: My first attempt at vandalising random strangers!! haha...okok...actually I set up a Mehendi Stall with a friend!
12. Tamil Comedy Mazhai - Austin Drama - May 07: Bit roles 2 and 3 (After this I have officially become know as Bit Role Gujili)!
13. Trip to the Grand Canyon and Las Vegas - May 07: The GC was absolutely breathtaking and one of my best friends got propsed to at Hopi Point! YAY!!!
14. DC Marathon Training with Rogue - May 07: Yes - I think I was quite mad when I signed up for this one. But my running inspiration Anusha convinced me!!
15. Memorial Weekend - Trip to California - May 07: Wholesome Family Fun!! :)
16. A R Rahman Show - Jun 07: Fabulous show….fabulous music….some porikki actions from the stands!
17. Danskin Triathlon - Jun 07: One of the most fantastic races I've ever done - extremely inspiring and was all about GIRL POWER!!!
18. SIVAJI Release - Jun 07 - I can't believe I've watched this THREE times!!! :) This is officially known as "height of vettiness"!!

Hmm…not too bad me thinks…you might notice that you could probably lump all my activities into 4 categories - FITNESS - TRAVEL - THEATRE - Pure VETTINESS….and well…that's really what the past 9 months have been about….of course with some excellent accompaniment by my wonderful family and friends....

Life is Good!
Wonder what is in store for me for the rest of the year??

Bad Bad Ciara! No donut for you!!

2006-10-10T12:00:00.001-05:00

For any of you who looked at the title of this entry and saw the image above and immediately got reminded of an online networking community.....I have some interesting "facts" for you!! I put "facts" in inverted commas because I am not sure if all of these are 100% true:

Orkut Büyükkökten (the creator of Orkut) ...
-> Gets $12 when any person registers on the website
-> Gets $10 when you add somebody as a friend
-> Earns $8 when your friend's friend adds you as a friend
-> Gets $6 if any body adds you as a friend
-> Makes $5 when you scrap somebody
-> Earns $200 for each photograph uploaded
-> Earns $2.50 when you add your friend in the crush-list
-> Gets $2 when you become somebody's fan and $1.50 when somebody becomes your fan
-> Earns $1 every time you log out
-> Gets $0.50 each time you change your profile picture
-> Gets $0.50 every time you view your friend's friends list

Source: http://blogs.siliconindia.com/Shivani/

Does this sound extremely insane to you???? If it were indeed true, Mr Orkut is indeed going to end up being the richest man in the world by the end of this decade!!

Now how much money could you personally have contributed to his riches to date?? :)

ASSUMPTIONS....

2006-07-26T23:32:00.001-05:00

You know what they say about assumptions....The only real thing that assuming achieves is making an ASS out of U and ME....I never really understood the impact of this statement before....I just treated it as a funny play on the word.....and generally used to quote it when my friends made silly little assumptions about trivial little things....

Today however....this little saying has made a huge impression on me....ASSUMING definitely makes an ass of both the person who assumes and the person who is in the receiving end of the assumption.....in someways making assumptions is even worse than lying....because at least when you lie....it is a conscious action taken DESPITE actually being aware of the truth....However when making an asusmption, something is essentially being taken for granted or accepted as being true without proof or validation...

Why this sudden revelation today you may ask?

This past 6 months has been very difficult....I have never experienced such a crazy rollercoaster of emotions as I have this year...In just a span of 3 months.....I lost someone I loved a lot, an extremely unfortunate incident changed a valuable friendship of mine forever....the blind trust I placed on someone came back to bite me....interwined with these incidents....I have had a lot of wonderful moments as well.....there's no denying that....I have accomplished a lot that I have always wanted to but never took the time or initiative to, in this past 1/2 a year....I have also met a variety of interesting people...people who have made me think...made me smile....

But the above negative incidents affected me a lot...They changed the way I think and behave greatly...When previously I'd welcome any new person in my life with open arms and complete warmth, now I am a little more cautious and wary.....It has become so much more difficult for me to trust people and believe that they will trust me....For some reason however, these feelings of mine have manifested externally in a way that has made a lot of people in my life assume that maybe I care for them less, I do not value their company...that that I feel that they are not worthy of my trust....or in some extreme cases...that I even dislike them.... In addition I am afraid of getting too close to people lest they get taken away from me....

While the catalyst to these assumptions could very well be my own actions....It still hurts that such assumptions have been made....because more than any material possesions in my life....the people in my life matter to me a lot....I know that the people who matter will believe in me no matter what.....but it is still disheartening to think that I could potentially lose friendships I haven't yet even had the chance to cultivate because of these assumptions that stand between us....

Assumptions need to not happen....especially when it comes to issues or people that mean something.....it is better to talk it out...clarify...validate....one may not like what one hears or finds out or absolutely be thrilled with what one hears or finds out....but either of these is definitely better than sitting around and making baseless conlusions or opinions....

Meanwhile....I shall trying to open myself up more again and embracing people with more faith....It will not be an easy or quick process for sure but I sure do hope to get there as soon as it is possible for me too....

And that my dear reader....is the truth...and no assumption.............

I love and live Ice Cream

2006-07-20T14:03:00.001-05:00

Did you know.....

That July 16th in the US was National Ice Cream Day?.....Imagine...a whole day dedicated to one of the most wonderful edible inventions ever and to the people who love and live it.......yours truly included....

I am a dessert maniac.....and you will never find my freezer devoid of ice cream....which is one of the key reasons I will never ever be able to shed those last few pounds that I need to to reach my desirable weight.....and why I will probably never adorn a bikini in public....BUT......all that does not matter.....because once I put a spoonful of Haagen Dazs Coffee into my mouth.....all my troubles and shortcomings just fly out of the window and I feel like a complete person.....:)......It is indeed weird how the simplest...or seemingly silliest...things in life can take one to such a state.....

But Ice Cream can do that to me my friends....so the next time you see me blue....you know just what to do!........

Some fun facts about Ice Cream:

1. To this day, the history of ice cream remains a mystery. Some say that ice cream was a mixture of snow, nectar, fruit pulp and honey made for the Emperor Nero of Rome by his slaves. Others trace it back to China's Tang Dynasty, where King Shang had 94 men on his staff who helped make a dish made out of buffalo milk, flour and camphor!
2. The average American consumes 21 litres of ice cream PER YEAR.
3. Around 13% of men and 8% of women will admit to licking the bowl clean after eating ice cream.
4. The average single-scoop ice cream takes 50 licks to finish.
5. The ice cream cone is considered one of the most environmentally friendly forms of packaging. (Areille will like this for sure)
6. Baskin Robbins offers almost 950 individual flavours of ice cream!!
7. In 2005, the size of the ice cream market in the US alone was over 20 billion dollars.
8. A traditional name for ice cream is Hokey Pokey. The name originated from early ice cream vendors who peddled their product shouting “ecco un poco” which translates to "Try a Sample".

So anyone wanna do the Hokey Pokey with me this weekend?

Everybody Is Free to Wear Sunscreen

2006-07-19T16:13:00.001-05:00

I have accidently meandered into the outskirts of the blogosphere...Whether I choose to take further steps in is yet to be determined.....While I make this crucial decision....enjoy the lyrics of one of my favorite "songs" ever by the fabulous Baz Luhrmann.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97,
Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis or reliable then my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice....now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, nevermind, you won't understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded, but trust me in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future, or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum.
The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind: the kind that blindsides you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts; don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive; forget the insults. (if you succeed in doing this, tell me how).

Keep your old love letters; throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Calcium.

Be kind to your knees -- you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40; maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.
Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body: Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it; it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance...even if you have no where to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions (even if you don't follow them).

Do not read beauty magazines; they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents; you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings: they're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but what a precious few should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps and geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.
Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old; and when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse, but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you are 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia; dispensing it is a way of wishing the past from the disposal--wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me, on the sunscreen.