I started regular running in 2014 and until 2019 I had run few marathons. But my dear friend Bikas nudged me to try for 50K – Ultra Marathon.
I took his guidance and prepared for 3 months for Bangalore Ultra scheduled for Dec 2019 at picturesque GKVK agricultural campus. But two weeks before the run, my shoulder had developed nagging pain bringing my practice to a grinding halt.
As the pain didn’t alleviate after trying home remedies, I met Dr Ashaf Ali, cofounder of Curolive Multispecialty Centre, Bellandur.
I followed his advice for a week and the pain seemed to reduce significantly. But the moment I resumed running, the pain resurfaced and crushed my confidence. With just 5 days to go for the run, I completely gave up the hope of running my first Ultra Marathon. I spoke to family members and friends, and everyone suggested to give complete rest to body and skip upcoming event.
I revisited Dr Ashaf for further consultation. I asked him “Sir, what are my chances of running?”
He replied, “Sambit you still have 5 days before the event. You have practiced so hard in the last few months. Focus on your recovery. Don’t give up at this moment. Take the final call on Saturday based on your recovery”. His simple words were enough to bring me out of despair.
For next 4 days, my mind crisscrossed through various emotions. It was like all unwanted emotions Zumba dancing in front of me. It’s easy to listen to motivational talks but keeping the head high when the chips seem to be down is a different ball altogether. I lobbed a silent get-me-out-of-this expression.
I got lot better by Saturday and decided to run the next day.
On 22nd Dec 2019, I successfully completed my first Ultra Marathon.
It has been almost 2.5 years since that day. But those 14 days of pain and anguish taught me something very special.
“There will be times in life when we may not have an iota of confidence on ourselves. During such times, some people come as guardian angels and give us hope. They make us believe. They help us to regain our lost confidence”.
I am really thankful that Dr Ashaf didn’t give up on me when I went through such phase. That experience helped me to write the book “Anybody Can Run”.
It was indeed a great pleasure to meet him yesterday and present a copy of my book.
Have you experienced such magical moments in life? Do share your thoughts in comments.