On Sunday 13th April whilst Sikhs everywhere were celebrating Vaisakhi I was amongst 35,000 runners who took to the streets of London and did battle with 26.2 miles for my first London Marathon.
Entering and completing the London Marathon has been on my Bucket List for a decade. Every year I watch the race and think ‘one year that will be me’. Lo and behold in 2014 it was meant to be!
I made the decision before Christmas to enter with a charity close to my heart, Anthony Nolan. I was inspired by their work having seen them in action during the appeal for little Gaurav Bains, a two year old boy from the West Midlands who urgently required a bone marrow donor. Gaurav’s dad Sunny was also running and I felt inspired by him and the charity to enter! Anthony Nolan do life-saving work. They raise awareness for bone marrow donors and encourage people to register as potential donors. They then match these potentials with patients who are poorly, often with blood cancer, in need a bone marrow transplant.
Entering the Marathon required mental, physical and emotional preparation. I emotionally felt a huge sense of attachment with Anthony Nolan. This wasn’t just a charity that I picked for the sake of a place. When I first entered they had no places and I was added to the list in case of dropouts – friends encouraged me to apply for other charity places but I refused, it had to be Anthony Nolan or nothing! This was the right decision for me because the training, effort and sacrifices involved were made easier knowing that I was doing this for a cause I believed in. Without that passion and conviction I wouldn’t have been able to put the effort in during the cold and wettest winter for over a hundred years!
Mentally I felt focused, I knew it was a big challenge and something that would test me. I am not athletic or a runner but I have mental discipline and focus to achieve goals that I set myself.
Physical preparation was going to be the toughest. I am a working mum, with a 2 year old, have a full life with family and charity commitments and making the time to train was tough. I did my research and worked with a local Personal Trainer called Jem Scragg who has a running background and has completed the marathon himself. Twice a week we focused on stamina and resistance training and building strength to last the distance! I was so unfit that after my first session with him I was violently sick and couldn’t move for 3 days! We all have to start somewhere and once you are emotionally and mentally aligned with making a decision, your body has to get on with it! Jem also came up with a 12 week plan and I would be the first to admit we deviated a lot from it – illness, work, being a mum – you name it, often got in the way of actual running but overall I stuck to the principles!
The actual week of the marathon was very emotional as messages of support came in from all over the world. My sponsorship amount rose and rose and target was smashed… I felt very nervous! The day dawned closer and I realized what a huge challenge this was and I felt scared. On the morning of 13th April my husband did Ardaas asking for the safe completion of the marathon for me and all runners and I was off!
The race was tough. It was a hot day and the heat didn’t help us runners although it brought the crowds out and that atmosphere was electric! My longest run before the marathon was 16 miles and I was hoping that the crowds would carry me (not literally!) for the remainder 10 miles and they did that and more!
I wasn’t really bothered about a time. I just wanted to complete it safely and with all my faculties in order. I saw people having terrible falls, lying on stretchers and being sick. My goal was to finish and to be able to move the next day! Which I did! It took me over 6 hours in the end, but after 12 weeks of preparation, and having raised nearly 5,000 pounds, I was very happy to cross over that line!
Completing the marathon is a huge high for this year and an achievement I feel very proud of – it felt like such a huge almost unachievable goal but as with most things including business, breaking it down, taking action, and getting support from others is the key to success! I loved it and have already entered the ballot for next year! I hope I inspire you to do the same – chase after goals that feel HUGE! You can do it!
If you would like to sponsor me you can do so here: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/rupinderkaur. For more info on Anthony Nolan: http://www.anthonynolan.org. For more info about Jem Scragg : http://www.bodyuk.co.uk