First steps to fitness

The Rotary Bangalore IT Corridor recently announced the sixth edition of the ‘Bengaluru Midnight Marathon’, which will be held on December 15.

Actor Milind Soman and Nicole Estelle Faria — Miss Earth 2010 — the brand ambassadors, unveiled the theme for the marathon — ‘Run for Bengaluru’.

Running a marathon definitely isn’t a cake walk. But Milind Soman feels it isn’t
as difficult as popular perception suggests.

He says, “Truly speaking, being fit is not difficult. One has to just decide to be fit and make small changes in their lives. For example, I have decided to take the steps, at least till the fourth floor. In case I need to go to the sixth floor, I will walk up till the fourth and then take a lift. Another thing I do to remain fit is to run back home. My house is
seven kilometres away from work.”

Milind Soman holds the Limca record for running the marathon between Delhi and Mumbai, a whopping 1500 kilometres, in 30 days.

Talking about his experience, he says, “There is a preconceived notion that only athletes can run a marathon. That is not true at all. I started running marathons ten years ago, when I was 38. The basic formula anyone can follow is to walk for two minutes and run for one minute. The idea of a midnight marathon is very convenient; there won’t be scorching sun rays or pollution and it will be windy and pleasant.”

Ask him about the mantra behind his fitness and he quickly replies, “I do not have any fitness secret. You really don’t need a particular diet as long as you are running for two and a half hours continuously. That is exactly what I want to tell people — a regular rice-and-dal eating guy like me can still run marathons for 1500 kilometres! It is just an issue of mind over the matter.”

About the City, the actor says, “Bangalore is a wonderful place. The people here are unique; they are very supportive of any sort of an event. Though the City has lost its greenery a bit, I still consider it to be a Garden City.”

Nicole adds, “It’s great to be back in my City. When I was in school, I used to be the captain of the throwball team. That is the only connection I have with sports, I have not really run a marathon — if I make it to be there, this will be my first one. I am really looking forward to it.”