Pushing my limits for iron man training.

I was reading an article for iron man training. It said I need to put in my base kilometers on cycle before I start rigorous training. I have been cycling for about 3 months now but I never did any base training, usually I just went all out on cycle for one hour. After going through many articles and training fad, I was convinced to do long rides at lower heart rate (zone 2) for over 2 hours. That was supposed to make my body get accustomed for harder training, and my muscles get used to burning fat rather than glucose store. Wondering if this works or not, I decided to try out this new thing so decided I should do a longer ride at lower pace. To add to my experiment I decided to eat less so that I can burn even more fat (not so bright am I?). 

Initial plan was, me and my friends go to Nandi hills and come back making it a total of 150km with 10km of hill training. But thanks to my friends who promptly said no, I had to change my plan. Just before I left early in morning I decided to head towards Mandya and return back making it a total of 180km (perfect iron man distance). Since my light mako 150 fell down and broke, I couldn’t head out in dark. I had to wait for sunrise which meant heat will be my partner for the day. GPS said 6.15 in morning and I started off from home with good mood. First couple of kilometers were quite boring. Trying to keep heart rate below 150 meant that I had to go slower. It seems easy when I was reading the articles, but in reality going slow is hard. I reached Kumbalgud industrial estate and was already frustrated. I was thinking who ever who devised base training knew that it won’t work on idiots like me. It was like the self help books which teach something great but damn hard to follow. After some thought, to hell with heart rate, I picked up my speed. I averaged about 29kmph for the next 60km. Since I had decided not to eat much on this ride I had taken only 3 bananas and 2 liters of water. That seemed to be a bit too low for such longish ride. The thought of not having food makes hunger pangs quicker and stronger. 2 out of 3 bananas were finished even before I reached half way. The summer sun and hunger combined together was not helping my cause. I reached Maddur (72km) and was already feeling “shit this was a bad idea”. The thought of going another 90km without food was not great feeling. To hell with 180km I will cut it down to 150km and decided to head back from Maddur.

I started back from Maddur at 9, by the time the sun was on full blaze. The food and water limitation started to look like impossible task now. I had one banana and half liter water. That won’t last more than 20kms at best. I finished the banana water with best mileage and reached Chennapattana.  My body had already started to feel stiff. My gluteus (backside) started to hurt which meant low on water. At Chennapattana I had to eat a Samosa and buy 2 liters of water. I also picked up 1 more bananas for the road. With lot of determination that I should not eat more than that I continued my painful journey.

As I passed Ramnagar a senseless tractor driver was headed in opposite direction of the flow of traffic. I made him hand signs to tell him go left. But that nutter came right in the middle of the road. Well the bigger vehicle always rules the road, I went off road. Pttsssssssssss, the dreadful hiss of the flat tyre. At this point I was like...................come on!!!! Not now. The Bontrager tyre had chipped because of sudden off roading. There was a 1mmx3mm patch of rubber sticking out of the tyre. My stomach was already empty, now it bottomed. It felt like I am never going to make it back. I was thinking why the hell did I chose today to go on hunger ride. I thought of calling back home and asking for a pick up since I was only 40km away now. But i thought to myself, I will fix the flat then decide to call for a ride or not. Luckily the chipped of rubber was just a thin layer on top and the tyre held on pretty well. I fixed the flat in 20 mins and was back on saddle again.

The next 20 km was uneventful other than me thinking why do I undertake such idiotic rides. I must be demented to try to cycle 3000+ calorie ride with intake of less than 800 calorie. I must be plain crazy to put myself through such pain. I didn't even have someone along with me to complain, I had to suck it up and continue. The last 20 km was like nightmare. Most of it was blur and painful. As i neared my home it was catch 22 situation. I wanted food desperately, but I was less than 20 km from home. This meant that I had barely 1hr ride left. If I stop and eat then it’s shameful after struggling for so long, but I barely had energy to continue. With couple of more happy thoughts I decided not to eat and continue.  The sweet smell of fruit shops on roadside was all too tempting, but I had to resist and continue. 2kms from my home there is a slight gradient, which on regular days I would whizz through over 20kmph, but today it felt like Himalayas. I was so much energy deficient that I had to stop in-between. Thankfully there were 2 trees and that happened to be Jamaica cherry tree (gasagase mara). What a relief. I let my cycle fall to the ground, plucked couple of cherries and ate happily. At this point my body water level was so bad that I was having cramps all over. I stretched my body to pick a cherry up above, my calf and back froze immediately. Cramps again!!!! I must be getting old.  This doesn't happen so often. After resting for couple of more minutes of rest, Finally I was back home at 12.30.

This idiotic ride cost me dearly. I lost 750gms in 6 hours. For anyone who plans to do such idiotic journey I suggest please get a brain and listen to your body. If you do, please get some company because you won’t be as lucky as I am. After I got back home, I could barely move. I ate food, my body was in such bad shape, that I could not get up because I had cramps in my hamstrings. My back was throbbing with cramps. I went straight to bed without even bothering with shower. Even in bed I couldn’t be comfortable because my entire body had cramps and I couldn’t move. Seriously I was luck these symptoms showed after I got back home. I don’t think I have ever pushed myself like this before. For all the effort it was completely useless trip. I did not gain any base training or what so ever training. All the pain I went through for such a lousy ride. Only good thing about the ride was that I know exactly how my body breaks down. Now I know the feeling when I am out of food and energy and how my body reacts to the requirement. I don’t know if I am more mature rider because of this but I certainly know when to eat. Overall I learnt how to condition my body better.

My first triathlon

After contemplating the idea of being iron man for 1 week I finally decided that I should participate in CTC half iron competition. I arrived in Chennai on Saturday morning with one day buffer to the event. It was pleasant morning; I got my Fomas road king out of the bus and started riding from Koymbed station to Velacheri swimming complex. I did a recon lap of the cycling area just in case so that I don’t get lost. The Chennai heat was known for being troublesome, At 8 in morning it was already burning me down. I finally reached the running track and decided to help the organisers. It was fun to see some old faces and made friends with new ones. Later I headed to IIT campus to meet my host for the night Ajey. This guy started cycling 3 years back and great cyclist. He is crazy enough to do Chennai to Bangalore (350km and 1k altitude gain) as first long distance cycle. 

Me and Ajey went for a small cycling trip, had mega biryani and decided to call it a day. I was so excited for tomorrow’s event that I couldn’t sleep. Another reason was; there were mosquitoes that were bigger than butterflies which nearly drained all my blood. After sleeping for nearly 1hr I got up at 4.30 in morning and finished my usual chores. Finished couple of Chikki and bananas and started off to Velacheri pool. The sun was barely up and there were over 50 athletes out near the pool eagerly waiting to get started. I realised that for my category there were total of 15 participants. I was happy because I expected 25 participants and I was thinking I should not come over 20. I already finished my goal of being under 20th position without even starting the event. Before we all started the struggle I was talking to other half iron participants and some were capable of swimming 2km in under 45 mins. Which was nearly 30 mins quicker than me. That was a bit scary at first then realised they were all jolly folks. At that time Vallabh ortho our amazing physio started his warm regime. I was tired at the end warm up (never happened before). Later we all got into the pool and slowly started the long race. Rudra who was captain of water polo team went like rocket in the pool. I even tried to draft him but he was plainly too fast. At 1.2km something went wrong with my left calf muscles and it cramped. In my entire life I had cramps twice, first time in ocean sprint swimming with friends and now here. That was my OH SHIT! Moment. I thought I would quit without even finishing the first leg of the race. That would be pathetic so I decided I won’t use legs to paddle, Just hands. Using hands alone was a bit more tiring but it worked. I got out of pool and i was surprised that I finished 1.9km swim in 47 mins. That was my personal record and I was in 3rd position. I was happy with my time and did a quick change and started my bike ride. 

Me swimming

Bike was my strong point so I was telling myself I should be faster than others in this. To fix my cramped calf muscles I drank 1.5 liters of electrolytes in under 20 mins of cycling. That changed everything like magic. Now I was fast catching up on the other two guys who were ahead of me. I had read in many blogs that cycling is like buffet on wheels, and I should eat as much as possible on bike to help while running. I followed that advice and started eating like cow. Within 15 km I caught up with raghul. He had a big knobbly MTB, no wonder I caught him so early. Just one more guy up ahead of me. I was hoping that I can catch him in cycling before half way because I was bad at running. But the heat was killing me, Everytime I bent my head down it was a waterfalls from my helmet. I remember rahul dravid playing cricket and he was doing that. With all the water out of my system I had to refill it. Thanks to so many volunteers on road (in the heat) they gave me a quick refill. I rode at avg of 30kmph and The volunteers on the bike caught up with me and offered bananas and water which felt like heaven. Finally just after mahabs turn I saw a lone cyclist pumping away. Got him finally. Rudra also had an MTB, I was shocked. With an MTB he had such a huge lead, OMG he is good. I thought I should slow down a bit and started to cycle along with him. In an MTB he was doing avg of 25kmph after 50kms of cycling. I was thinking he must be zrazy to have this kind of endurance. We both talked for about 1hr. He gave me electrolyte which saved my life. I had the filled up two 600ml water bottle with 360 cal glucose. Out of which I had finished 750 ml, but to finish the rest it was impossible. My stomach had stopped working. Both of us tried to eat a banana, but both of us were unable to swallow it. It was miserable, at one point I felt like throwing up on the bike. Somehow my stomach managed it and did not give in. We were nearly 30km from end point I decided I should keep my original pace. I said bye to rudra and started my 30kmph avg. 20Km to go, rakesh in his car came next to me. He provided chocolates water from his car. It was like tour de france style. I felt really good when he came. I had run out of water and he was like god send. Last 10km were even faster and I did 35km average. Finally i saw the cycle to run transition point. Phew I had done 100km cycling in 3:20. Not bad after the swim. 

Me eating something and cycling

The gruelling part of the race, running, started. Since I was already low on water, I made a big mistake of gulping quarter litre of water just before I started running. Big mistake! My legs were already like jelly now the stomach became bouncy like water balloon. Jogged for 300mts, and waaaaak. Everything came out. I threw up all the water and banana. It was kind of relieving that everything came out but still felt uneasy. I ran another 100mts once more everything came out. The third time cleared everything from my stomach. I was happy at that time because nothing was left inside so no more vomiting. Now the real race started, started running at my regular pace. 2km(2laps) down I saw Rudra coming in for the run. I was happy I had 2km lead over him. But 4km down, feeling of diarrhea started. Another Oh SHIT! Moment. Thanks to organisers, there was a handy toilet nearby. I lost about 5 mins in the toilet, so Rudra was now 1km (1lap) behind me. I started my regular pace again and finished 10 km without stooping. At 13km fatigue started to kick in. 14th km was hell, I started to walk. I had to walk and run alternatively. Rudra over took me after couple of laps. I felt pathetic and lost steam thinking I will be coming second (damn!). With some effort I ran the rest of the distance at lower pace. Every time I finished a lap the volunteers and other athletes would cheer, it gave a huge boost. That stretch where there were lot of cheering I would run faster. And rest of the lap it would be gruelling slow pace. It was like sling shot for 100 mts. 4km to go, the sun was at its full fury (1 o’clock). Suddenly I could barely run, only walk. I thought I bonked (hit the wall). But after half a lap realised that it was because of the sun. I poured 2 mugs of water down my head and then back to normal. Phew that was a bit scary. Two more laps to go, completely tired I was walking. Sucharita came next to me and said I will jog next to you for motivation. It was really helpful, and lifted my spirits. She asked me to run faster, but I said I am coming second anyway so let me finish a bit slower. She shouted back at me, noooooo you are still leading. You have 2km lead so run. I was like whaaaaa????. Apparently he had rested for 2 laps and I missed that. I was super happy and started sprinting. Woot full steam ahead. The next 2km was like dream. I could see the finish line and all of them waiting for me. I was feeling super happy. The cheering was mind blowing. At the end for a nice finishing picture I leapt in the air. Yaay I finished. 

Me jumping with excitement

I finished the entire event in 6:33 hours. That was awesome timing for me. I was hoping for less than 8 hour finish. But I came in way earlier. I finished swim in 47mins, cycling in 3:20 and run in 2:24. So a total of 6 hours 30 mins. Yaay! 

vallab and rakesh lift me high in the sky :)

This would not have been possible without so many people. I would like to thank Akshay for all the training he did with me. I remember him saying your head still got to go underwater to be more streamlined. Man, all the effort paid off. Thanks to ajey for starting cycling and motivating me to do my first long ride to Mysore, and for hosting me even tho me being a pain in the ass. Thanks to Sucharita for all the cheering and time keeping and motivating. Thanks to many other organizer Vani, shumon, prabakar, rakesh and many others I don’t remember the names. Thanks to all of all your help.

Tag: chennai, bangalore, CTC, chennai trekking club, triathlon, half iron man, akash, cycling, road bike, fomas

Bangalore to chennai on hero octane cycle

I had planned to start at 4 in morning from home in Uttrahalli, so got up at 3.20 and was ready in fifteen minutes. ate a pre cooked chapati and packed 2 for later, picked up everything and I was off by 3.50. by the time I reached Hosur road I was chased by dogs at least 5 times. they are really king and night life in Bangalore. I started out quite good and was hitting 25kmph avg easily. Ii stopped only for a picture the end of electronic city, after which it was a straight shot to krishnagiri. thanks to lights that i bought from bums on saddle on the day before, it really illuminated the road and lorry drivers gave me good margin on road. i reached krishnagiri (100km on odo) at 8 am and felt really good at the speed I started off. finished the 2 more chapati and refilled my 1.5lt bottle and started off at 8.30. 

After 10 the sun started to have its toll on me, my speed reduced to under 20. I had aimed to cover for 170 km by 12 o'çlock but had made only about 150km. Exhausted I stopped for lunch break. I ate an apple and a bunch of grapes that I got from home. I started out again at 12.30 but had no energy. I covered about 15km in one hour and felt horrible in the sun and pitied at my speed. At 1.30 I was completely burned out and decided to take longer break and ended up sleeping in a paddy field under a tree shade. I slept for about 30 mins and started out at 2.30. Even tho I had rest the sun and wind was too strong. I set a goal to reach vellore(210/220km) by 4 and end the journey. This part of the ride was absolute horrible, I ate couple of energy bars(lots of stops) that I had picked up at decathlon, but they were completely useless(or my stomach didn't agree with them). Utterly exhausted I reached Vellore, called my friend to come near the Vellore fort and asked him to take me to eat. he took me to a really nice hotel next to the fort. I ate 2 plates idly and a Masala dosa with the idea of stopping..........

After about 1 hr 30 min break, and some air conditioning I started to feel good and decided that I should try till I feel completely miserable. With sun nearly down and energy back I set off at good speed. I hit 40 kms in 2 hrs and felt good. fatigue and soreness started to kick in at 8pm. My crotch felt like wood. i had realized that I was tired early in afternoon due to food shortage I decided to have food again by 9 so that I can continue into the night. ate 2 paratha and omelette and started off again by 9.30. With loads of energy I averaged 20 again and was covering good distance. I had to take lot of breaks because my ass hurt as soon as it touched saddle, so most of the time I was standing and peddling or stopped for cool off. I nearly reached Chennai(320km) by 12. next 20 km was happy time, I was in the glory mode. at 1.15 i reached Poonamalle completely exhausted and I had covered 340km. I was happy that I completed it. I was so tired that I slept in a bus stop for 1.5 hrs before my friend picked me up and took me to IIT.

the end.

total distance traveled from Bangalore to chennai

only one pic that I took in the entire ride

PS: I was stopped by police at least 3 times, and with my broken tamil i explained them my purpose and they were all super happy and surprised. On one occasion i even had police escort for about 1hr