Antioxidants & their role to repair our body, reverse lunges, news from Kolkata 25K & more!
#WhatsUpThisWeek?
Antioxidants are a key to repairing our body post a stressful run, know everything about it at #GeeksonFeet
Reverse lunges strengthen key muscle groups including the glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps, everything you should know at #WoW
Sutume Kebede shines, Stephen Kissa upsets Ebenyo in 2024 Tata Steel Kolkata 25K, this and more at #RunSHORTS
Happy Reading!
#GeeksPoll
The Procam Slam is India’s top running challenge, with 4 big races in one season: Bengaluru, Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai. Is completing all 4 races a dream, challenge, or overhyped? Share your take!? #geekspoll
Last week’s poll results on Mumbai’s racing preferences are here.
#WoW - Reverse Lunges
Reverse lunges strengthen key muscle groups including the glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps, while also improving balance and stability. They also enhance core engagement.
How to do it?
Stand upright with your feet hip-width apart and your hands on your hips or at your sides.
Take a step backward with one foot, keeping your torso upright & core engaged
Bend both knees to lower your body until your thigh is parallel to the ground and your knee is close to the floor, ensuring your front knee doesn’t extend beyond your toes.
Push through your other heel to return to the starting position, bringing your foot forward.
Perform the desired number of repetitions on one leg before switching to the other leg.
@Geeksonfeet- Combating Oxidative Stress
When you push through tough runs, your body produces free radicals—unstable molecules that can damage cells and slow recovery. While some oxidative stress is normal and helps you get stronger, too much can lead to fatigue and injury. Antioxidants like vitamins C and E act as your body’s defense system, stabilizing free radicals and reducing cell damage.
For more details, snack ideas, and science-backed tips, check out the full article.
#RunStrong Training Plans
We are happy to announce the first public release of our training plans. Runners have a lot of questions on what are the different paces and how can we get to know individual paces.
Identify your paces by clicking on your race, and add your current race time and a realistic future goal time.
#RunSHORTS
Kissa Upsets Ebenyo, Kebede Retains Crown at Tata Steel 25K
Ethiopia's Sutume Kebede successfully defended her women's title at the Tata Steel Kolkata 25K, clocking 1:19:17 despite a recent illness. In a surprising upset, Uganda's Stephen Kissa edged out defending champion Daniel Ebenyo of Kenya in the men's race, winning in 1:12:33. Kissa's victory marked a significant return to form after a string of setbacks, including non-finishes at the Olympics.
Indian runners also impressed, with Gulveer Singh setting a new event record (1:14:10) and Sanjeevani Jadhav winning the women's Indian category, improving her personal best by over five minutes. Read more here.
Even Olympians Struggle: Gabby Thomas's Mile Attempt Goes Viral
Even Olympic sprinters have their limits! Gabby Thomas, the reigning Olympic 200m champ, recently attempted a mile time trial with her training partners, and the results were… well, let’s just say it wasn't a world record.
Thomas, aiming for a sub-five-minute mile, zoomed out of the gate, only to see her pace dramatically decrease in the second lap, finishing in 5:43. She later admitted on social media that her sub-five-minute prediction might have been a tad ambitious!
Turns out, 400m hurdlers, who need a mix of speed and endurance, outpaced the pure sprinters. Ouch! The post-mile scene was quite entertaining, with many athletes sprawled on the track needing a long break. The workout was part of off-season training, designed to test fitness levels before the indoor season starts.
Race Calendar
We have revamped our race calendar with everything you need to know about the race, route, experience, and much more. We have added information about major races and we need the help of the community to make it further robust. Thus we invite runners to share their experiences related to race routes and other information that will benefit runners.
Next 6 Months:
Search and find races using our Race Finder at geeksonfeet.com/races.
#TipOfTheWeek - 3/1 Training
3/1 Training is a simple yet effective way to build endurance and speed during long runs. Run at a comfortable pace for the first three-fourths of your workout. Gradually pick up the pace for the final one-fourth to run 20–60 seconds faster per kilometer.
Example of 32k- run: Run 24k easy, then speed up for the last 8 km.
Why It Works:
After 60–90 minutes of running, your slow-twitch muscles deplete their glycogen. Picking up the pace after such depletion trains your fast-twitch muscles, helping you run stronger and longer.
Use effort levels to decide the paces. Start at 65–75% of your max heart rate (MHR) and finish at 75–80% MHR. 3/1 training adds variety to long runs and is very effective without burning you out. Try it on your next long run!
#TriviaOfTheWeek - Stamata Revithi – The First Woman Marathoner?!
For a long time, women were forbidden to participate in the Olympics. In 1896, during the first modern Olympic Games in Athens, one woman, Stamata Revithi, a Greek of humble origins, had other plans.
The day before the official marathon, Stamata stood at the starting point in the village of Marathon. The officials refused to let her join the race, but this did not deter her. To ensure her effort wouldn’t be dismissed, she found three witnesses who agreed to verify her start time and her journey.
Stamata ran and covered the challenging distance in 5 hours and 20 minutes, remarkable at that time. Upon reaching Athens, however, officials barred her from entering the Panathenaic Stadium, where the men’s marathon was finishing. Her time was unofficial, her presence unacknowledged, and her name forgotten.
It would take nearly 90 more years before women were officially allowed to run the Olympic marathon. In 1984, at the Los Angeles Games, Joan Benoit Samuelson claimed victory in the first-ever women’s Olympic marathon.
Stamata’s story reminds us that progress often begins with those who refuse to accept “no” for an answer. Her legacy stands as a symbol of defiance, courage, and the enduring spirit of runners everywhere.
Long live the women who dared to run!
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Contributors to this edition: Aditi Pandya, Karthik Nadar, and Aravind Yarra