“Life is not a sprint, but a marathon” 

This saying particularly resonates with Muraleedharan Nair – Operations Manager based in Dubai, who has just completed his 28th marathon at the recently concluded Dubai Marathon, successfully crossing the finish line, and covering a distance of 42km in 5.28 hours.

“Running is my passion and I allocate enough time to properly train. Each marathon is like facing a new challenge, to raise money for charity, to push myself and test my physical limits; this is what helps me stay motivated”.

Besides the health benefits, it has given him the opportunity to travel to places off the beaten path, make connections with diverse people who share a common interest in running. And it’s a great way to add to his growing collection of running t-shirts, a memento from each run! There’s another level of satisfaction to running a marathon and that is the ability to help others through fundraising for charitable organizations and causes. Marathon running also promotes teamwork, brings colleagues together in a shared interest, or simply providing encouragement, and build morale within the company.

Muraleedharan’s advice to aspiring long distance runners – “Running is amazing because it is the fairest and cheapest sport I know. You don’t need to be particularly talented or gifted to run. You don’t need expensive equipment or a special environment. It doesn’t matter if you are tall, short, or what age you are. You don’t even need to compete, as you only need to be better than you were yesterday. What you DO need is to trust the process and stay committed. If you have trained properly, you can be confident you will get the win. YOUR win. It may not be the podium, but the goal you set for yourself. Even if it is as simple as to finish the race – which is a massive achievement in itself”.

“So, plan ahead, follow an achievable training plan (4-6 times a week and be running for up to about 4 hours some days), stick to the plan, set a realistic target time, keep the weekly training the main focus regardless of the weather, eat healthy and sleep well. What will see you through is a positive state of mind even if you face setbacks during the course of training, don’t give up! Believe in yourself and that finish line is within your reach”!

Imparting valuable life lessons

Long distance running benefits a person both mentally and physically and also helps with de-stressing and even meditation. It helps individuals focus better, increase their perseverance, maintain good health and become more resilient and self-confident. 

In this age of high stress and constant connectivity, running or any endurance sport like biking, swimming a marathon can do wonders in keeping heart troubles at bay. In fact, running has been identified as the single most effective exercise that increases life expectancy. People who regularly run report an increase in their ability to take on challenges and a surge in confidence when they complete one.