Salvaged workouts and Sunday lunch

On Satuday I had one of those workouts that could have been relegated to the log as "junk miles" had it not been for a tip from Matt Fritzgerald' (Author of "The cutting edge runner") book on converting a failed workout into a "partially" successful one. I had started out on a "hard tempo" but bonked miserably because of, what I can analyse, as "psychosomatic imbalance". I managed, however, to do part of the speed-work with my tongue hanging out:-))) I returned home resolving to do a long run the next day so that I can salvage some training benefits.

Sunday turned out to be surprisingly cheerful for me: I started my long run at 6:10am and wound up at 9:00 having covered a fairly long distance at an easy pace. I felt real good cause it had saved me the usual pangs of guilt and depression that accompany failed work outs, when time is short and a race is coming up. I returned home, freshened up and left with Monsoon, to watch Bryan play his school match at Azad Maidan. It was an endearing sight to watch Kuku-boy and his team yelling at each other about "buckwas" passes, "faltu" kicks, missed goals ("tu chutya hai!!!") and full-blooded tackles:-) The game turned out to be a goalless draw though Kuku-boy' team was the better of the two (its the reason for all that yelling:-)).

Post-game, we went cruising around town, which is so beautiful and serene on a Sunday morning, with scant traffic on the roads. I showed Monsoon and Bryan my office building, Holy Name Cathedral and Colaba causeway. We then went to pick up Bamoo and had to make necessary adjustments to our car seats to accomodate Bamoo' "Sumo-sized" frame:-))). Lunch was at "Pratap", where Bamoo, as usual, jokingly pushed around the staff, yelled at them and ordered a "banquet": there were King Prawns salt-n-pepper, Giant Crab schezuan, King Prawn sauteed, Bombay Duck fry, Large Pomfret tawa fry, Squids in butter & Garlic and "Neer Dosas" - not to miss the copious beers that mysteriously seemed to appear out of nowhere:-) We regaled Monsoon and Bryan about our child-hood escapades, the pranks we pulled on friends and our "live-life-to-the-hilt-on-a-pittance" ability - this included a narrative on how I pawned my wrist-watch for Rs 40/- (actual price Rs 200/-) so that we could go to the movies and eat burgers:-))))))))

I called for the bill fully apprehending Bamoo' growl; which he did and with a jovial ferocity that got Bryan to snigger. I had to contend with Monsoon' complaints that I should have actually paid up the cashier by pretending to go for a wash, to which Bamoo laconically stated that the staff wouldn't dare. Bryan was in fits of laughter, later in the car, recalling how Bamoo "terrorizes" the staff:-)))) All in all, a beautiful Sunday outing, with family and a dear old friend. It did a lot to bring me much needed cheer in times when my professional life seems so depressing.

Colpal Team' smile shines!

The Colgate-Palmolive team decided to meet at National Park (and about time too) for a long run to test the endurance developed so far, based on the training I'd prescribed for them. There were seven of them and we met at the NP entrance just as a grey dawn was breaking. They all had their target distance planned in advance and after some hand-shakes, greeting each other, we set off. Aalok, the fittest of the lot ran with me as I wanted to "push" his pace up a bit.

Aalok and I did the first 12K at an easy pace after which I stepped on the gas but he found it difficult to keep up. I advised him to slow down and fall back since he might not be able to complete the scheduled 24K at this pace. I wanted him to do this "extended long run" so that he could build up a "reserve" for the half marathon distance. As I went into my second lap, I waved to Saurabh, Gunjit and Roshni, who seemed very comfortable doing 12k. I looked out for Madhu but she was no where in sight. A lot of thoughts raced thru' my mind, some of them about her having given up due to a bad stomach, lack of sleep or plain, having paced too fast initially. I somehow had to fight off morbid thoughts of leopards and rapists, though these are not to be discounted as impossibilities in this particular forest. I am responsible for the safety of the team as their coach though my responsibility should, technically speaking, be limited to the training regime and the inherent risks built into it. Well, I brought them over to NP and I better get them back in one piece:-)

I was relieved to learn that Madhu had just taken a wrong turn somewhere and she was in fact on her way to completing, what to her, is a dream distance: 19K!! Roshni and Aalok too finished their target distances of 18K and 24K; though Aalok seemed to have found the last 3K rather exhausting. The rest of the team (Saurabh, Gunjit, Prabhu and Ravindran, who was on his first training run) did 12.5K; much more than they have done so far. When I met up with the group after the run, I saw bright beaming smiles which one need not attribute to the Colgate toothpaste that they are compelled to use:-))))))))

Vernon' "realty bites"

Vernon is single, earns reasonably well (FC with Emirates, Dubai) and owns at least 4 properties in Mumbai. He called Bamoo and me over to "Pratap", a small eatery near Fort, so that he could discuss the out-of-court "settlement" that he was negotiating with his landlord, who had broken into his apartment in Byculla.

Bamoo and I decided that we'd make the best of the occasion given Vernon' parsimonious nature:-) We ordered King Prawns, Huge Crabs and Squids; a veritable gastronomical delight, all of it washed down with "appertiffs":-) We acted like stern solicitors so as to, at least superficially validate his trust in our capacity to advise him. We emboldened him on how to take a hawkish position on his "settlement", encouraged him on marriage and on how he could live life to the hilt, given his (notional) wealth embedded in his properties. We concluded the evening with a raucous toast and a promise to go together for the carnival in Rio during which they burst into a guffaw (which drew annoying looks from other tables) when I told them that Monsoon had promised to sponsor my trip to Rio :-))))))))))))

When the bill arrived, it seemed like we had not done enough justice to testing Vernon' parsimony. Its his good fortune that "Pratap" is a budget but outstanding eatery & bar, added to Bamoo' "influence" in getting us a discount - they should actually be adding a "surcharge" considering that Bamoo orders everyone around like he goddamned bankrolled the eatery:-))). Maybe we should make up for the shortfall by getting Vernon to finance our "participation" in the revelry at the Carnival:-))))))))))

Of commitments and priorities

I have an assignment (nay, a commitment) to drop Bryan off at his school bustop at 7am. This gives me just enough time to do a 5K (not good enough for a marathoner like me) and return home so that I can leave for work at 8:10am. On one day in a week, when I have a "hard work-out" scheduled, I make a deal with Bryan and the maid so that she drops him and I can leave for my work-out at 6am.

Last night, I mentioned to Bryan that the maid would have to drop him and hearing him sigh, "Ooookay", I realized that for some reason he didn't want to walk with the maid, to the bustop (we go on my Yamaha). Maybe it was because he did a "long" run yesterday, in preparation for his upcoming 4.2K race, and his legs were aching. I told him that I would try and leave late for work and that I would drop him. This lit up his eyes.

When I woke up this morning, I realized that I am scheduled to reach Mahim Church for the Novena at 8:30am (a commitment that I try to keep). This would mean I would have to leave the house by 8am; which in turn would mean that, after dropping Bryan I would have hardly any time! I immediately modified my workout so that it had the "zing" but the time taken would be half. It was a "compromise" so that I could keep my commitment to Bryan and God intact. I made all three; Bryan' drop, the workout and the Novena possible.

Impossible is nothing!!!! :-))))

The best laid plans......

On Tuesday evening as I went to meet "Bamoo", my "bum-chum" (we grew up as "chaddi dosts"), I was reviewing in my mind, the "hard tempo" work out that I'd planned for the next morning (it being Ganesh Chaturthi and a holiday for me). Little did I realize that these plans would vaporize (literally) as I met Bamoo at the Catholic Gymkhana. We caught up on old times and where we are today and settled, after much argument, that we would have "just one beer" each. As our discussions got underway, we were joined by another friend who happened to be a media planner for "Gitanjali Gems". He narrated the sleaze in the adv star world and enlightened us on the ouster of Aishwarya from "nakshatra" and her replacement by Katrina. It wasn't such conversation that was captivating, but its just that Bamoo kept urging me for "one more"; emotionally black-mailing me about how old friends shouldn't be in a hurry when meeting after such a while. There goes my "tempo" workout, I rued as the 8th bottle of beer got opened with a "kishhhcchh"!

I returned home at 11pm and decided to set the alarm for 5:30am anyway. It was a good decision cause I woke up feeling refreshed but not in a state to do a "tempo" run. I set out at an easy pace and carried 3L of diluted tang just in case I found some miraculous reserve to do a long run and whaddya know! I did 31.7K at a puttering pace but who cares; I got my engine revved up and running slowly on fat! I could clearly "see" muscle mitochondria, shaking their heads in disbelief and irritated disgust, muttering: "This jerk screws up "homeostasis" with his friggin' copious alcoholic beers, beef and pork chilly fry dripping in fat, sleeps fitfuly, gets the "commander" upstairs woozy, destabilizes neural-networks and now wants us to toss fat in the furnace to provide steam for his run. Who the hell does he think he is!!!!". The "commander" replies in his stupor, "He is Daniel, which in Hebrew means hard & strong, and you better get used to it and start kicking ass on those enzymes".

I returned home feeling triumphant not only because I nudged my endurance a notch higher, but I staved off any weight gain from the night-before binge!

The best laid plans don't necessarily go awry:-)

32K-ebabs and eggs for breakfast

I woke up on saturday morning with a plan to put in a long overdue 20 miler as I was getting a bit "rusty" on the long run front. I also have a marathon coming up soon which made it all the more compelling. I set out with the usual thoughts clouding my mind: will I "bonk" after 25K?

The run started on a dismal pace and I kept expecting the worst as I found my breathing too hard for such a "crawl". 10K into the run and I felt a surge build into my legs. What had happened? Did I suddenly have a rush of "glycogen"? I am still trying to evaluate this strange phenomenon. I went to finish 25K and still had some "gas in the tank". I felt relieved as I reeled out the last 7K and went on to log 32.6K for the day. The eggs and ham were a well-deserved treat. I feel vindicated and know I have my endurance in place. I have perhaps to lose a little weight in preparation for my race as every additional kilo slows you down.

Malshej Falls

The office team organized a trip to Malshej so that they could let their hair down. I joined for the day (the rest stayed overnight) cause I too needed a break. The drive thru' the "Ghats" was very scenic with myriad waterfalls, lush green hills and nary a soul in the wilderness.

We checked into our very "maharashtrian" hotel and settled into a "tipple" without losing any time. While we raised a toast to our good health, we gorged on "bhajias, paneer chilly and chicken chilly" and indulged in some inane banter. After everyone had agreed that they'd got the customary "buzz" in the head:-), we trudged to the rock face along the road, seeking a sufficiently large waterfall to "neutralize" the buzz in our heads. We found one alright but it was so bloody cold, I actually staggered out with my body jerking as if I was going thru' the withdrawal symptoms seen in a "wasted drug addict":-). After we had gotten well and truly frozen and wet, I called it a day as it was almost 4pm and time to leave. I got my driver to drive me back home as I snoozed fitfully. All in all a very nice day with office friends