100 km every day for 100 days: meet 'The Faith Runner' Samir Singh
Running on the stretch of the Worli Seaface, facing the concrete buildings of Mumbai is 44-year-old Samir Singh. With one leg wrapped in a bandage and a gadget tracking the distance, the man is on a mission to cover 100 km every day for the next 100 days. Having started his journey on April 29 which is slated to end on August 6, he has launched a campaign 'The Faith Runner' to crowdfund his mission.
When I realised I could run, I fell in love with it. Soon, I became a running coach. It became my bread and butter and it’s all that I know today, he shares with LiveMint.
With no organisational support, he is backed by filmmaker Vikram Bhatti and Vandana Bhatti, a brother-sister duo who is managing the Facebook campaign - The Faith Runner to support him. In a conversation with Midday, he says:
As long as God is on my side, I have no fear, this race has been written in my destiny since birth
Samar who is a vegetarian follows a strict diet. He divides the distance to be covered every day, into two parts. He starts his day at 5 am and runs until 1 pm and starts his run again at 4 in the evening, covering 60 km in the first stretch.
I eat Satvik food, made with little salt and turmeric, and no spices. It's what gives me energy. When I started running, my mother told me that if I wanted to do something well, I must improve a bit every day
At the age of 35 when he started running, he covered smaller distances every day. Within 50 days, he had covered 43 km that inspired him to cover longer stretches. Over time he has faced criticism but has learned to take them with grace. He adds:
They told me I was flying! And that I wouldn't be able to sustain myself at that speed, especially in an ultra marathon, I push myself because I know my body can handle it.
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