Half Marathon Journey: Me Becoming a Runner

Sarthak Niwate
Sep 17, 2019
3 min read

Unleash your potential.. these words always motivate me to train hard and run much better than ever. I am running half marathon since I was in 8th standard i.e. may be 12 years old. Ohh! For those who are not know about types of marathon; half marathon is of 21.1km and full marathon is of 42.2km. Continuing my story… since 2012 I am running half marathon. You know my first ever timings to complete 21.1km was 2hrs 44mins. And that was okay-okay time as per my age, but after listening to records I didn’t stop myself to work hard on trainings. And the journey to complete half marathon in 1hr 32mins started…

I started running early morning at 5am; just put on shoes and run anywhere you want to that was my only route. At that time, while training I was not keeping any track of time and distance. I didn’t know how far I am going in say 1hr or 30mins. For some weeks, I was running with a set moto, but it was not having proper direction that time. Then I came to know about some apps which records the time and distance of our run. I started using one of them and I was really getting better results than last time. Slowly, I acquired the traits and tips of running. That how you should run? How you put steps? Saving stamina for long distance? How you should breath? And many more.

In 2013, I participated in Running and Living XC Half Marathon 3. This marathon taught me one important lesson that how to keep generating stamina while running. I completed the marathon in 2hrs 16mins. Many people advised me to skip running seeing at my age but, that only person to encourage me to keep running and living was my dad. He insisted me to do better in every coming marathons. I put myself on the fire and started training hard.

You can imagine the consistent training from 2012 to 2016 has gifted me success. Success of becoming one of youngest to run half marathon in less time at the age of just 16 years. I participated in near about 14-15 half marathons and I achieved my target to complete the 21.1km half marathon in just 1hr 32mins at the age of 16 years.

Listing some marathons following:

· Maximus Nagar Rising Marathon 21.1km completed in 1 hour 56 minutes. I Ranked in Top 10 Runners where First Three Rankers were Army Soldiers. The Route was, Bhuikot Fort to Chandbibi Mahal and Again to Bhuikot Fort. In the Route 9km to 13km was Hill Run and Height of the Hill was 920 meters high. It was India's One of The Toughest Marathon.

· BNP Ultra 50.0, 25km completed in 2hrs 15mins. This one of the marathon which has toughest route having 800m upside inclination in the Sanjiv Gandhi National Park, Mumbai.

· 4th Running and Living Half Marathon, 21.1km completed in 1hr 44mins. I was hard to keep myself hydrated on the tough route in Aarey Forest.

· Mirchi Monsoon Half Marathon, 21.1km completed in 1hr 53mins. Whole route was on tar road which consumed maximum stamina and that was a challenging marathon.

· Running and Living Half Marathon, 21.1km completed in 1hr 32mins. Location was Aarey Colony Forest, Mumbai. This marathon route was having loop of 5.5km running 4 times to complete the distance of 21.1km. This is also one of the toughest marathon.

· There are many marathons but then it will be boring for you to read many timings and routes. That’s I am keeping this blog short.

Running has given me a better lifestyle. Everyone should run as per their stamina keep them alive. Now, I am preparing myself for full marathon. Let’s hope for the best. Stay healthy. Keep Running. Keep Training.

If you are interested to know more stories feel free to ask me. And also, you can contact me for any tips regarding running or if you’re preparing for marathons then it’s always welcome.