Running for Health- You can Even Start @ 50.

I had shifted to a new neighbourhood in NCR, where we had constructed our first house. We were young couple with very young children then. Middle aged  Sharma’s lived just opposite our bunglow.

Mrs. Sharma was a healthy middle aged woman, who was leaving no stone unturned to take care of her family of five. The typical middle class family with high dreams for her children, she used to be busy throughout the day managing the household, without any support system of maids.It was not affordable with three college going children for her. With  EMIs to be paid and saving for future, Mrs. Sharma had never given a thought about her health and approaching old age. I saw her giving milk to everyone, but she used to skip saying – I drink enough in my tea. She has kept herself at the lowest priority in the family. As time passed, all her children flew away to find their space in the world. They all are well settled and moved to upper middle class ranks. In the absence of any exercise routine, I saw Mrs. Sharma gaining much weight and then arthritis, diabetes and finally cholesterol and blood pressure followed. She was asked to lose weight to have relief from joint pains and her doctor advised regular walks for diabetes and healthy heart too. Going to gym was not any option for her.

During my life, I have lived in  many cities due to transfer of my partner and found that women keep themselves behind every one in the family. It’s very common and general behaviour of most of the women. I have discussed this issue with many ladies and came to understand that they were brought up like this. The values given to them were to look after the family and no one told them to look after self. Self love is actually seen as a crime. {Thank God, my parents were enlightened and I love myself to the core.)

This self neglecting attitude results in health issues. The most common issue  which the women in fifties and later find difficult to handle is the weight and allied diseases.

What is the best and easiest way to start on the fitness journey? Most of the women were of the opinion that any exercise schedule which is easy to follow and does not require fancy equipments or going to some other place is an option, they are looking for.

“Walking” requires no fancy gadgets and no fancy space but just a commitment towards healthy lifestyle. A simple pair of walking shoes is all which is required to start the journey.

Walking is in our genes. We learn to walk in our first year and keep walking since then. It comes most naturally to us. Jogging and running are not faraway, when we talk about walking. If walking is the first step towards a healthy living, jogging and running are the faster ways to reach the goal.

Before embarking on the “walking” journey , it’s of utmost importance to learn about the correct way of walking so as to avoid any injury during walking , jogging or running.

I met Ahmedabad based Coach Rahul Sharma, a running enthusiast who runs “CYRUNS”, a company which  is an attempt to bring health & fitness to all through working with them & providing them platform for achieving their fitness goals.

I met him and have an enlightening discussion about how to bring out  women in 50s and onward to have fitness and health goals. Leading by example, he shared how being diagnosed with high cholesterol and hypertension , he was put on lifetime medicine. The quest to be healthy and off medicine led him to running. This pursuit led him to become  a certified running trainer and nutritionist, leaving behind his 21 years of corporate life and venture into space of health and fitness.

In his own words – “I want to see everyone in the world to be fit and healthy. When it comes to running, it should set us free and it should be effortless and natural. Fitness provides us with the ability to enjoy a healthy active lifestyle.  Choose your own fitness adventures – the options are endless. As a passionate certified trainer, my role is to motivate, enable and make training a fun and rewarding experience. I love to see people achieve their personal health and fitness goals through a structured, tailored and scientific approach to fitness programs. Life is an adventure, filled with continual improvement and we can achieve our BIG Audacious Goals!”

CYRUNS is an organization dedicated to fitness for everyone through mass participation sports like cycling, running and swimming. CYRUNS has created a unique RATE Scale (Runner’s Assessment & Training Evaluation Scale) and based on the scale, they provide iFITT programming (individual Frequency, Intensity, Type & Time).

The goal of CYRUNS is to change the way people are trained in India for endurance sports.

Coach Rahul Sharma has students from all over the world. He is running online training courses also to learn correct and effective way of running. He may be contacted on –

Call 06351 580 588

E-mail: cyrunssports@gmail.com

Health is the most important ingredient for a happy and inclusive life. With an average life expectancy of around 80 years now , it’s very important to take care of life more as we age. Fitness provides us with the ability to enjoy a healthy active lifestyle.

Walking is an option which most of the  women can take easily. A simple walking shoes and a will to be healthy is the only ingredient to start on a “walking journey”. Walking comes naturally to everyone of us.

“Walk—it’s good for you.”

Paul T. Williams, Ph.D., a staff scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, in Berkeley, California, goes so far as to call walking “a wonder drug, except that you don’t need a prescription and you don’t have to pay for it.” He’s not exaggerating. Walking regularly will not only get you into decent shape but also do a whole lot more.

Walking is a low impact exercise with mood boosting effect and a proven ability to alleviate depression.

Let’s see what is the correct and effective way of walking.

Warming up – Cooling Down:

Just like any other exercise, warming up and cooling down is important for walking too. The best way to warm up is to walk slowly. Start off at a leisurely pace to give muscles enough time to warm up, and then pick up the speed. later on, gently stretch  leg muscles, especially calves, front and back thighs. Keep stretches  for about 20 seconds. Don’t bounce or jolt, or you could overstretch muscle tissue and cause microscopic tears, which lead to muscle stiffness and tenderness.

A gradual cool-down will also prevent muscular stiffness and injury.

Correct posture: 

An upright head , straight back , and  chin up is the correct posture while walking. It will keep the spine straight and take pressure off from  diaphragm while breathing. Resist the urge to hunch or slouch as you walk. The bad posture can lead to back pain, a stiff neck, and even more serious maladies with time.

Keep your shoulders pulled back, but relaxed.

Even though the majority of the muscles used to walk are in your legs and core, it’s important to keep shoulders in a relaxed, pulled-back position. It maintains a stable, “vertical column” of support while  walking and  stretching from  neck to  hips. This works in conjunction with a straight back and an elevated chin to minimize the strain on the back as you walk, preventing injury in the long-term. Also, it’s simply a good habit to get into to prevent slouching, which, as previously noted, can result in shoulder pain and strain.

Making walks interesting:

To continue any exercise regime, it’s important to make it interesting. Some suggestions to make walking interesting are listed below:

• change the  walking route often
• walk with the dog
• walk with friends
• join a walking club
• join any walking /running event in the city

 

The featured caricature is taken from google.