There is a small crowd of 20 gathered at Kowdiar Park. The group, members of Iten, a city-based team of runners, are set for their morning run. Soon a steady beat of sneakers resonates from the pavement. Since it’s a weekday, the members are doing a 10 km run. On Sundays, they go on 15 km and 21 km runs. “We have run from Kallar to Ponmudi several times and recently, did a 46km run from Thiruvananthapuram to Varkala,” says Shantala Keni, one of the runners of the group.
Iten was founded by Sankar Ram, a doctor at Rajiv Gandhi Sports Medicine Centre, Akash Ravi, a government employee and Calvin Miranda, a former basketball player. It came into being when a few runners, who were then solo runners, started getting together on runs. Most of the members of Iten are above the age of 30 and come from all walks of life.
Dr. Sankar provides the runners guidelines and tips along with the other doctors in the group. While some run to lose weight, others run to maintain their level of fitness. Some see it as a fun group activity. “But essentially, we are a group of people who love to run,” says Dr. Sankar.
For Deepa Bhaskaran, a paediatrician at Child Development Centre who started running a year ago, the runs are her “me” time. “My mind is free from thoughts when I run; I find this an excellent stress buster. As we run in groups we often explore new routes and, as a result, discover new places and sights,” says Dr. Deepa.
Akash enters a state of nirvana during his runs. “While running my mind is blank as I focus on the run. There is a rush of energy during the run which lasts through the day. A friend of mine, a businessman, charts out his entire day during the run, while an army man, a former group member, used to visualise the finishing line while running,” he says.
The group, however, has now shifted from running for pleasure to running in earnest. “I think it started with the TrivandRUN in 2014. A few of us participated in the marathon and were hooked. The passion soon caught on with the others,” says Dr. Shantala.
It’s the sense of achievement says Shantala that has her participating in marathons such as Chennai Run, Spice Coast Run, Goa Marathon and Mumbai Marathon. “I feel amazing each time I cross the finish line, especially if my timings are better than that of the previous marathon,” says Shantala. Techie Jyothika Prabhu, who works at Infosys, too tries to better her timings at the marathons. “For instance, if I complete a five kilometre run in 40 minutes, I will try and complete it in 38 minutes the next time and aim for a lesser time the following times. I am on cloud nine whenever I manage to reach the target I have in mind. Although we receive medals at the end of each run, that feel of accomplishment is the best prize,” says Jyothika. She also regulary participates in marathons.
The practice sessions varies from day to day for the members. If its a 10 kilometre run one day, it’s a five kilometre pace run the next day, a hill repeat (a high altitude run) on another and so forth. This is so that the runners are used to running on various terrains and helps build up their stamina. However not everyone participates in every marathon. “It depends on who is free and interested in participating in the event,” says Akash.
Shantala laments on how there are no marathon clubs in the city. “Most cities have such clubs. These clubs host frequent local runs which is a good training ground for aspiring marathon runners. By the way, did you know there is a season for marathons. It is usually from July to February and spread across the country,” says Shantala who has her eye on the Satara Hill Half Marathon. Fifteen members have registered for the event so far. “But nearly all of us will be participating in the Spice Coast Marathon in Kochi in November,” says Dr. Sankar. And with that we leave the group to carry on running.