...AND THE UNIVERSE CONSPIRED.

It is almost 3 weeks since I realized my dream and now found the time to write about it! Yeah, I can be lazy disguised as busy.

It all started some 12 years back. We had shifted to Mumbai and one day I happened to watch the first Mumbai Marathon on TV. That day I said to myself that I would run the Mumbai marathon some day. No big deal because all I have to do is run! Little did I know what I was getting into!

5 years back, I started going to the gym and thought it was time I started training for the marathon. I did not have any trainer to train me as such…well; all I had to do was run right? And so run I did. The more I did, the more I questioned myself as to why I was doing it. It was punishment. It was painful. It was distress…. yet, I loved it. And I ran diligently every day. And when I had aches and pains, I went to the orthopedist got myself checked and followed the doc’s advice.

Before running the Mumbai Marathon of 2012, I ran my first ever Marathon, the Bangalore Ultra Marathon – 15 k in November 2011. I stood 8^th in the women’s category!! Yes, I surprised myself and believe me it was a huge boost to my morale. My effort was paying off and half marathon was within my grasp.

15^th January 2012. I was nervous, apprehensive and scared. I had an injury and I had not run for more than 2 weeks before the marathon. I was in pain and still limping. I had so much invested that I could not call it quits. And so I ran. Actually, I could not run at all, I limp walked. I walked for 14 kms and my leg could take it no more. I did not quit, my leg did. It broke…I mean I fractured my femur bone. My dream cost me a fracture, a surgery; lot of money and slow healing process and it had certainly scared my psyche. I was scared to run.

End of 2014, I joined a new gym and it was one of the best decisions of my life. I got someone who understood my passion for running and encouraged me to do so…reinforcing my belief that I was capable of it. I had to work on my fears, which I could do by running more…had to help myself there.

I ran a 10k marathon in the month of June and completed it in 1 hour 10 minutes and I felt just awesome. It was a comeback I was hoping for!

Then, I ran the Pinkathon10k, which I completed in 62 minutes. Was I back in the game or what? You bet I was.

And on 17^th January 2016 I crossed the finish line of the Mumbai Marathon 21k in 2 hours, 13 minutes and 19 seconds. Later I found out that I was the 34^th in my age category (40 -44 years)  out of 465 and 165^th in the female category…that is among 2023 women of all age groups. Was I stumped! It was and still is an amazing feeling. I know I can do better, I know where I went wrong and I know where I can improve but I couldn’t have asked for a better debut performance.

I could not have done this…or I could not have imagined such great results if not for my coach…. who is also my gym trainer. He told to invest in a good running shoes and a heart rate monitor. He also told me the importance of breathing properly and also the posture while running.

**The heart rate monitor is to ensure that you run to your optimum level and stay there for hours. That also determines your speed.

The information is all there on the Internet. I would not have looked it up though.

Not everyone who runs a marathon has a coach…but it does help to have someone to guide you. You will discover yourself and your potential.

My schedule was to run every alternate day and the other 3 days was for my strength training. Core strength was given importance…of course it is called core for no reason. The other two days was for my upper body and leg exercises. The sessions were grueling. I lost weight and inches. I looked fit and good.

My practice run sessions were irregular though and the farthest I had run was 14k. Shin splints, calf cramps, knee pain…I was living with them not to mention the constant physical fatigue. As the day of the marathon neared, my stress levels went up. On the advice of my coach, I met up with a physiotherapist…and it was a boon. She helped me further by clearing all my doubts. A couple of sessions with her and I was good to go.

“When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”

Paulo Coelho’s quote is my mantra. It may take a day, months or years…but dreams do get fulfilled. It is for us to recognize those opportunities and make those choices.

And I owe this to my coach Tapan.

FOOT HEALTH AND CARE.

“The human foot is one of nature’s works of art and as such, it has not yet been fully recognized and explained. It will require a deal of scientific investigation before this structure is fully understood” – George Hohmann.

The American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) considers your feet a marvel of engineering. Together, your two feet contain more than 50 bones, accounting for about one-fourth of all the bones in your body. And somehow they also make room for more than 60 joints and 200 muscles, tendons, and ligaments that hold them together and help them move. (Source: Google)

The health of our feet can affect our overall health. The simple walking around an average puts tons of force on our feet. We must not ignore any foot related condition as it seriously affects our quality of life we live.

I love running. And every time I run, I end up with shin splints that severely inhibit my speed and endurance.

It wasn’t till a couple of months ago that I learnt about Orthotics. I got myself a customized insoles made and it has made a lot of difference in my posture and gait.

Rushabh Shah is the founder of Podiapro, who make custom orthotic insoles for sport and medical uses, using state-of-the-art French technology and material. 4 years back, Rushabh had a severe ligament injury in his right ankle while training for Parkour, a sport also known as Free Running that needs ballistic strength. He never fully recovered from the injury and would experience pain in his ankle whenever he tried to run or put impact on the foot. He then learnt about this technology and got a pair of insoles make from Sidas, France. They provided him with much relief and restored his ability to run. And that’s how he decided to offer this technology in India and launched this technology under the brand Podiapro. He is also a freelance radio jockey with All India Radio’s FM 107.1 since 10 years.

He answers a few questions for us.

How different is sports orthopedics from the general orthopedics? Do you think sports orthopedics has come of age or is there a still long way to go...in Indian scenario?

Sports orthopedics is a part of general orthopedics. It revolves around the well being of an athlete. The focus of a sports orthopedic professional is the diagnosis and treatment of a sports injury that has affected the musculoskeletal system and complete rehabilitation of the injury so that the patient is able to get back to being able to participate in the sport, as they normally would have.

Sports medicine has recently started becoming noticeable in India, mainly in metros like Bombay, Bangalore, Chennai. There are physiotherapists who specialize in sports medicine as well. Of course it has a long way to go as we have only a handful of practitioners compared to the burgeoning number of individuals taking to sports and fitness activities like running, cycling, fitness training etc. We also are far behind when it comes to technologies that are available to treat sports injuries.

Podiapro contributes by bringing in world class custom insoles technology to help athletes improve their efficiency, reduce their chances of getting injured, reduce recovery times and also help in rehabilitation and pain relief in case of an injury.

    How important is a good foot wear and how does a person choose a good foot wear according to his/her needs?

Correct footwear is of prime importance for an individual regardless of whether or not they are into sports and fitness. Ill-fitting footwear can damage your foot anatomy which lead to incorrect foot and lower limb biomechanics. This can cause pain in areas like the ankle, knee, hip, pelvis, lower back, spine, neck.

Good footwear is one that has a flexible forefoot, a toe box wide enough to accommodate your toes without having to cringe them, and that has a length that is one centimeter more than the length of your foot to allow the foot to expand after a long day of walking. The shoe should not be too heavy or made of very rigid material.

The problem is that most off the shelf footwear is mass produced and forces the feet to adapt to the footwear. This is the main cause of foot damage and related foot pain. Custom insoles made as per your foot profile can help the footwear adapt to the feet. 

Is orthotics a latest trend or have we started realizing the importance of it? How aware are people about it these days?

Foot orthotics is yet to become a trend in India. It’s a trend in most developed countries and it’s been around for more than 25 years. The awareness of podiatry and foot orthotics is very low in India and that’s what we aim to change by conducting foot assessment camps and workshops.

Orthotics are extremely important for anyone into sports and fitness as they restore a more correct ankle-knee-hip alignment and this reduces excessive loads on the knee and pelvis and reduce the micro-damage that is caused to these joints otherwise.

 

I have been working out in the gym for the past 5 to 6 years. But not all the gym trainers are aware of this foot bio mechanics. Are you doing anything to create awareness among   the trainers?

Yes, we are aware that we haven’t been able to reach out to fitness trainers and we are working on a training module by which we can help them evaluate basic foot posture and gait pattern of their clients, and educate them on how Podiapro’s custom orthotic insoles can be used to alleviate pain in a wide range of cases. Last week we conducted a training seminar on the importance of orthotic insoles at Vesoma, Bangalore – one of Bangalore’s premium fitness and sports rehabilitation centers, where we have recently started a Podiapro clinic as well. The response was encouraging and now we plan to conduct workshops to help the gym trainers do basic gait assessments themselves.

 

 For whom do you recommend Orthotics?

Sports persons and athletes should absolutely use orthotics as the shock absorbers used in them provide protection to their feet and knees from the shock (Ground Reaction Force or GRF) that enters the body as a result of the impact of the foot with the ground. Insoles improve your posture and alignment and thus reduce the chances sprains or stress injuries. Those who have flat feet or excessively pronating feet should also use orthotics. Anyone who experiences pain in their feet, ankles, knees will get pain relief with orthotic insoles. Patients of diabetes should use orthotics to offload excessive pressure points on their soles as these could lead to corns or ulcers. Seniors can get more stability in their step with orthotics; children with flat feet can experience correction when insoles are complemented with the right exercises. Anyone who wants more comfort in their shoes can use orthotics.

A lot of individuals are taking to running these days; however they don’t have the right orientation and they take to running without having the adequate strength or training. They run a risk of getting foot, ankle and knee injuries due to overuse. Running insoles are strongly recommended for this group in order to prevent injuries. At Podiapro, we have a special module for running and other sports like cricket, football, tennis, badminton, cycling, golf and skating. These are designed by French podiatrists in association with sports authorities. These are excellent to be used in these sports to improve efficiency and reduce the chance of injuries. 

Thank you Rushabh for this informative Q & A session.

CARDIO EXERCISES.

There are two types of activities in fitness – aerobic and anaerobic. Let us talk about the aerobic activity.

The aerobic activity includes cardiovascular endurance and muscular endurance.

To improve this type of endurance you will have to improve your cardio activities.

No fitness routine is complete without cardio exercises. It may sometimes be monotonous or too exerting that you would want to skip it completely.  But let us not undermine the benefits of a cardio exercise.

Why are cardio exercises good for us?

Running, swimming, cycling, dancing, elliptical training and even brisk walking are examples of cardio exercises.

Our heart does not function at its optimum level when we are doing our daily chores. Done in a proper form and technique, we can achieve levels of performance, which we could not have imagined earlier.

Technology is improving at a lightening speed but human body is still the same. To improve the efficiency of our body we have to challenge ourselves.

The production of Endorphins or the brain’s feel good neurotransmitters is promoted by the cardio exercises. (Guaranteeing you to be in a good mood the whole day ) 

Cardio exercises helps in managing diabetes by increasing the muscle's ability to utilize glucose. Those who exercise regularly are able to control their blood sugar levels better than those who do not exercise.

POINTS TO REMEMBER WHILE DOING CARDIO EXERCISES -

First and most important is to take the consent of your doctor, check your blood pressure or if you have any other health issues.

To get the maximum benefit of a cardio exercise, it is important to do a particular exercise for more than 30 minutes.

Proper Footwear – helps to absorb the shock, which directly impacts the joints.

Heart rate Monitor – shows your heart rate and helps you to reach your maximum heart rate level where the heart beats slows down but the pumping of the blood is maximum.

Strengthen you surrounding muscles – which acts as a shock absorber thus reducing the stress on your joints.

Proper Form and Technique of running as well as breathing – helps your reach your goals without any injuries.

Stretching – which also helps in flexibility and decreases the risk of injuries by helping our joints to move in their full range of motion in turn making our muscles efficient.

Rest – The last and the most important thing is rest which helps in improving your progress.

 Shall we start? ;)

SOYA BEANS - QUINOA DOSA / PANCAKES.

Though I have been exercising for the past 5 years, I never gave importance to my diet as I am doing now.

As long as I was burning those calories, I need not diet…this was my thought and I convinced myself to do that. But I was wrong.

I went on a gluten-free diet for two months and I lost 3.5 kilos, of course combined with exercising.  And being a vegetarian and very rigid about my food preferences and tastes I was forced to research the Internet to make foods that I can eat and yet not feel bored eating the same things over and over.

I came upon the recipe of soya bean dosa here - veg recipes of India.

All other recipe website/blogs had rice, urad dal, rava as an ingredient either as flour or as a whole grain. I wanted to modify this a bit.

Ingredients: -

Soya beans – ½ cup

Quiona – ½ cup

Flaxseeds – 2 tbsps.

Whole black pepper – 1 tbsp

Salt to taste.

Makes about 8 to 10 medium sized dosas/pancakes.

Method:

·      Soak soya beans, quiona and flaxseeds overnight.

·      Grind them together in the morning by adding salt and whole black peppers to the dosa batter consistency.

·      Place a non-stick gridle or tawa on the gas and heat it on a medium flame.

·      Pour a big spoonful of batter on the gridle and gently spread it like a dosa.

·      Flip the dosa and let it cook the other side too.

·      Serve hot with chutney or curry of your choice.

NOTE – Like the regular dosa batter, this does not need fermentation.

You have to use the batter immediately after grinding it. If the batter is allowed to ferment, the dosa/pancakes will start breaking.

The batter is a bit thicker than the regular dosa batter and hence you cannot spread it out. These dosas are medium sized and bit thick.

HEALTH BENEFITS – 

SOYA BEANS – is rich in proteins and hence called the ‘meat without bones.’ The discovery of very small and unique proteins in soya called the ‘Pepticides,’ is now known to provide us with health benefits like better control of blood sugar levels, regulation of blood pressure and improved function of the immune system. Soya beans are rich in Vitamin K2 and B12.

QUINOA – the grain that has taken the super food status lately, is rich source of B vitamins, folate, zinc, iron, magnesium and phosphorous. It also has a sizeable amount of calcium. It is gluten-free and easy to digest.

FLAXSEEDS – contains both soluble and insoluble fibers, omega 3 fatty acids that are good for the heart and also is rich in Lignans with antioxidant properties.

Eat Nutrilicious foods and stay healthy :)

RAGI / NACHNI OR FINGER MILLET LADDU.

I have been exercising for about 5 years now. Yet, there was a time when I reached a plateau. No matter how much I exercised or changed my workout routine, I never dropped even 100 grams. In fact, I was gaining weight steadily.

Next wise thing I did was to change my gym, a decision I never regret. Here, the importance was on agility, endurance and core strengthening. For a person who was used to working out on machines, this 'functional training' was fun and challenging.

Apart from the workout, the owner of the gym, Kruttika, asked me to take up gluten free diet as a challenge, of course on a trail basis for a period of two months. I lost 3.5 kgs during this period.

As I am a vegetarian and very rigid about food choices, I had to come up with foods which were naturally protein rich and gluten free...I also had to take care of my weakness for sweets without touching the sugar.

I came upon this recipe while browsing the internet for health foods. Ragi being the staple of Karnataka, I was thrilled to try this. In this recipe, jaggery has been used. I wanted to use something more nutritious and not compromise on  the sweetness of the dish. So I used dates!

RAGI LADDU.
PREPARATION TIME : 20 Minutes
MAKING TIME : 40 Minutes
MAKES 15 medium sized laddus.

INGREDIENTS:
Ragi flour - 1 cup.
Peanuts - 1/2  cup.
Sesame seeds (white) - 1/2 cup
Dates (wet) - 1 cup
* You can also use dates pulp, just reduce the quantity to 3/4 cup.
Ghee - 7 to 8 tbsp
Elachi - 2 to 3 pods

METHOD :
- In a pan, dry roast peanuts till the skin becomes dark. Allow it to cool.

- Dry roast sesame seeds till they are light brown in colour. Allow it to cool.

- Roast the ragi flour with  2 tbsp of ghee until the raw smell gives way to a fragrant smell. Roast on medium flame stirring frequently.

- Now in a mixer jar, powder roasted sesame seeds and peanuts ( removing the skin off peanuts is optional. Remember peanut skin is packed with nutrients)

- To this powdered mixture add roasted ragi flour and grind  them together along with elachi seeds.

- Remove and empty it into a bowl.

-Now grind de-seeded dates. Note: use small quantity at a time to grind as it may not get evenly ground.

- To this date pulp add the powdered mixture and pulse for a few seconds so that they are mixed well.

- Empty this into a bowl. Add the remaining ghee and take a portion and make the laddus to the size you want.

Nutrients present in each ingredient:
1. Ragi - Contains important amino acids like isoleucine, leucine, methionine and phenyl alanine which are not present in other starchy meals. It has the highest amount of calcium (344 mg %) and potassium (408 mg %). Ragi is a great source of iron making it beneficial for individuals with low hemoglobin levels. It is a remarkable source of protein, a perfect vegetarian diet. Millets also contains B vitamins, especially niacin, B6 and folic acid. Due to its high content of polyphenols and dietary fiber ragi exhibits anti-diabetic and antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. Being low in fat and gluten free, ragi is easy to digest. It is therefore, given as first foods to babies in the form of ragi porridge.

2. Peanuts - Excellent source of biotin, protein, vitamin E, vitamin B1 and B3, managanese and folate among others. Rich in monosaturated fats, it is good for the heart. They have a high concentration of antioxidant polyphenols, primarily a compound p-coumaric acid, and the roasting increases this p-coumaric acid's levels boosting the antioxidant levels to as much as 22%. Reservatrol, a flavonoid present in peanut helps in improving the blood flow to the brain thus reducing the risk of stroke.

3. Sesame seeds -  Rich in mono-unsaturated fatty acid, oleic acid, which comprises up to 50% fatty acids in them. Oleic acid helps lower LDL or "bad cholesterol" and increases HDL or "good cholesterol" in the blood. Also a very valuable source of dietary protein with fine quality amino acids that are essential for growth, especially in children. Just 100 g of seeds provide about 18 g of protein.  contain many health benefiting compounds such as sesamol, sesaminol, furyl-methanthiol, guajacol, phenylethanthiol and furaneol, vinylguacol, and decadienal. Sesamol and sesaminol are phenolic anti-oxidants. Together, these compounds help stave off harmful free radicals from the human body. Sesame is among the seeds rich in quality vitamins, and minerals. They are very good sources of B-complex vitamins such as niacin, folic acid, thiamin (vitamin B1), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), and riboflavin.

4.Dates - Rich in natural sugar, fiber, potassium, copper, vitamin B6 and megnisium. Good for the heart, it also helps in reducing blood pressure. It has anti inflammatory properties. Helps in weight loss, promotes respiratory and digestive health, good for pregrant woman, helps prevent hemorrhoids and reduces colitis risk.

5. Ghee - Rich in oil soluble vitamin A and E. Acts as a natural preservative. Rich in K2 and Conjugated Linolic Acid, an antioxidant with anti-viral properties (sourced from grass fed cows) Is converted directly into energy like carbohydrates. The energy from the medium chain fatty acids present in ghee can be used to burn other fats in the system and lose weight. Helps in digestion and strengthening of the immune system. It also builds appetite.

6. Elachi Seeds - Is carminative in nature and aids digestion. Reduces the inflammation of the stomach lining there by reducing the heartburn. Relieves the symptoms of actidity and upset stomach. Increases circulation of blood within the lungs aiding relieving the symptoms of asthma, cough and cold. Is rich in copper, iron, riboflavin, vitamin C and niacin, it helps in fight anemia. Is a great source of manganese which helps in detoxifying the body and destroying of the free radicals.

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WARM UP - WHY?

I must admit that many times I found warming up boring and I do tend to cheat. Warm ups can be boring but there is no denying that they do much more than preparing our body for the work out.

Our muscles are like elastic, they expand and contract. And if we are not adequately warmed up, the sudden jerk or movement will cause the muscle to tear. Warm up increases the blood circulation thus increasing the blood flow to the exercising muscles delivering nutrients required muscles for energy production. The same thing applies for ligaments and tendons, the injury to which may put you out of action for weeks.

Warm up can be exercise specific. For example, to prepare for jogging, you may warm up by running lightly on the treadmill. This helps in warming up the specific muscles...by waking up the muscle memory which in turn will help you in performing better.

The bones and joints are other susceptible areas which are prone to injuries during an exercise session.
To prevent the joints from corrosion and locking, warming up is necessary as it helps the fluids reach the joints making them subtle.

Warming up also prepares your heart for action and sometimes warm ups can save your life.

Stretching muscles and holding them for 10 to 30 seconds is best method of stretching. Ideally, this form of stretching...the Static Stretching is done after the general warm up, the reason being the same that it may cause muscle tear when the muscle is not warm.

For the general exercise session a warm up of 15 minutes is ideal which can be either on the treadmill/ spinning or rowing. Dynamic Stretching improves mobility of the muscles. Some of the warm up exercises and stretches are - Leg raise, trunk rotation, shoulder rotation, leg abduction, side run and spot jogging.

So, before you take the plunge get rid of the scrunch!

ROLE MODEL - KRUTTHIKA RANJANE.

THE QUEEN BEE OF THE HIVE!!

She is the force behind The Hive Gym, the gym I go to. Independent, no-nonsense, kick-ass is the names I associate with her. Extremely fitness conscious, she inspires us all to achieve our optimum level of fitness. I first felt strange that there were no machines in this gym...there is one treadmill, one stationary cycle and one rowing machine...to appease some members I guess :) And as I began to understand the routine and the functioning of the gym, I quiet liked the idea of not having any machines. And there is a reason for this. Kruttika has devised exercise routines that lets us test our limitations and overcome them. We can see the results within weeks. She is an example of living your passion.

1. How were you drawn to fitness? Tell us about your journey of committing yourself to fitness as a way of life.

I have totally been a active kid since childhood (well I m still), so playing a sport was in my DNA since. So fitness was never a new game for me. I always wondered if there was something I could take up playing as my future, Lol. So here I am, built The Hive gym an indoor playground, which reminds everyone of their childhood days and giving them a high intense workout. A decade back I tried my hands on graphic designing as I have had the creative aspect in me, but the computer screen and sitting in one place got me impatient. Hence my elder brother, Vishal gave me this bright idea of getting into health business. Now being a fitness freak my aim is to transform all who come my way and encourage them to a healthy living.

2. Who was or is your inspiration?

Athletes and sports person have been my prime inspiration since young age. Steffi Graf was one of them till now. Big fan and respect for our Indian wrestlers. Looking at their fitness levels and effort they put in their training and practice sessions are highly motivating. Personally I am drawn more towards track & field athletics and wrestlers.

3. How did The Hive Gym happen?

Sometimes impromptu plans work the best. The same goes for The Hive. I literally had no plans of it, no layout just went with the flow and ideas just sprung up. got the opportunity and was given a week  to decide. Believe it of not with the help of my friends I built this place from scratch in 2 months with renovations and innovative ideas. I Thank all my friends who've been a part of making of The Hive gym and currently the Team Hive who are making it the best place to be.

4.What's the difference between the normal gyms we come across where there are lots of machines, weights and the works as against The Hive?

The Hive gym is a complete functional fitness training gym, here you will not find any machine but you will be the machine. Human body is designed for movements, considering that we prescribe movement based exercises, which enhances muscular endurance, flexibility making you light and agile. Unlike other conventional gyms the machines restrict your movement, which leaves you stiff and heavy. Not to forget the most essential strength training, core, balance and conditioning. At Hive gym we Gain immense strength with some isometric exercises. So come for a power pact workout, indoor bouldering, plyometrics, bar training, commando drills, pehlwani routines, core training and list goes on.




 

5. Memorable incidents..

Several moments shared in past so many years but my personal favourite has always been a Big wide smile on my students face when they achieve their goals. I still recollect each one of them who have transformed their body and changed their lifestyle. Well that’s my reward. I m glad that they chose me to be a part of it.

6. Future plans for Hive..

Currently apart from functional fitness we have Zumba going on. Would like to incorporate other activities at the gym.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KRUTTIKA...May you keep inspiring us all.