Amazfit Bip watch review

Purchased a Xiaomi Amazfit Bip A-1708 watch online through Amazon. Was using the TomTom watch earlier whose dial face got scrambled and so could not continue using it. Sad because it served me well for so many years. Could integrate TomTom with Strava so all the data was available to view on Strava as well as on Tom Tom web page. The statistics were all there - kms run, pace, cadence, elevation etc.

So got this watch, the cost was only Rs.5490 on Amazon and checked all the features online as well as confabulated with a couple of friends. It supposedly had basic features of a GPS tracker such as distance, time and pace. Struggled with the strava integration until a friend told me to do via Amazfit app. So that was also done and all ready for a run today morning. 

The first time I used Amazfit today morning, it was pouring continuously for hours together with no relent. So okay I decided to go out anyways for a run. The GPS started quickly but the dial face got off to the normal watch face so could not see anything on the watch - the distance, time, pace etc. Plus it was also raining heavily so the visibility was also poor. So no complaints on that count at least on the first day. I finished the run, switched it off, showed me a distance of 10.08 kms and also the running map. I was happy that the watch is working fine. But when I tried to log into Strava, there was no data. I tried Amazfit app to check whether today's data is logged in - nothing. Checked in MI Fit App - again zilch. So not at all happy. Checked my mobile whether the blue tooth is on or off. It was on but the integration has not happened. That is first day report. Hopefully will manage to navigate the features better as days go along and able to master the integration as well. Otherwise I am not happy with the watch on the first day. First day review 1/5 

Picture above is taken from internet and used for representational purposes only.  

AFC Asian Cup Challenge

9.82 kms for the AFC Asian Cup challenge. We are doing a challenge to run x kms for every goal scored by India in the ongoing AFC Asian Cup Challenge in UAE. India is participating in this tournament after more than 4 decades and in the first match itself they scored 4 goals against Thailand. So my commitment is 6 kms for every goal scored by India. That makes it 24 kms to be done. The challenge to be completed within one week of India exiting the tournament or the last date of the tournament, whichever is later. 

Today's run is dedicated to India's win in football against Thailand 

7.01 kms in Worli

7.01 kms in Worli Sea Face promenade to the Dr. Annie Beasant Road and then onto Worli Diary. It was a tough run with high humidity levels. There is lot of metro construction work going on Dr. Annie Beasant Road due to which roads were all narrow. It is only when you reach Podar Hospital that you get some space to run. Otherwise the roads are all barricaded. 

10K race in Vile-parle

Ran a 10K race after years yesterday at the Keep on Running India 10K which was held at Vile-Parle East, suburb of Mumbai. It was a flat track with two loops of 5K, the weather was okay and drizzling to slightly light showers. There were too many twists and turns for a 10K, but the roads were okay and crowds were non existent for a sunday morning. There were sufficient volunteers at every corner so a possibility that a runner might get lost was not there. Since I was racing after a long time, and not much of strength training in the interregnum, was pleasantly surprised that I was able to maintain the pace for a long time. The whole ideas was to treat it as a long tempo run, so that was good in the end. 

10K run in Santacruz

Yesterday, i.e. 22nd April, 2018, MRR organised its first Skechers 10K run. The event was hosted by Skechers at their newly opened showroom at Linking road in Santacruz. The run started from their showroom and went down Linking Road towards Bandra, turned right at the H.P. petrol pump, onto Turner Road, all the way down to Carter Road, facing the Arabian Sea, towards the CCD where we took a right turn to go into the Pali Hill Road. This was an incline for about a mile or so at the inner roads of Pali. There was a lot of tree cover and shade in this particular part of the route. We descended from Pali hill towards the Police Commissioner's office again onto Carter Road, this time we took a right to keep going towards Khar Danda, where our nostrils were assailed by the smell of fish and dry fish. For a vegetarian like me, that smell almost turned the insides of my stomach. Thankfully it passed and we kept going towards Linking Road and then a left to the store again. 

This run will be held once a month. 

Turbaned Tornado

This book "Turbaned Tornado" is a biography of the famous Indian marathoner who ran a marathon at 100 years, Fauja Singh. The writer Kushwant Singh is not the same famous Indian journalist and writer of the same name. It is a nice narrative of the early life of Fauja Singh, how he travelled to London after the death of his loving wife and started running marathons at the age of 89 when most of us would rather be more comfortable walking with a stick!! Fauja is an indomitable spirit and his farmers' genes help him in becoming a rare sportsman and brand ambassador more famous than sportspersons three or four generations younger than him. His timing of 5.20 hours at the age of 94 is the stuff made of legends. He was denied the Guiness world record for being the oldest marathoner, due to lack of his birth documents.  Fauja Singh is truly a great sportsman of India and reading his biography is very refreshing.  Goodreads 5/5

Marathon Man

"Marathon Man" is by Bill Rodgers otherwise known as Boston Billy who won the Boston and New York Marathons 4 times each in the late 70s. Boston Billy has personally autographed this book which was given to my dear friend Bhasker Desai who had ran at this year i.e. 2013 Boston Marathon. Bhasker finished the race and was in the medical tent when the bomb blast took place.

It is a very enchanting and enthralling book with a throbbing narrative in collaboration with Mathew Shepatin. Basically it is an account of his early life and his Boston marathon experience of 1975. The narrative is very interesting in the sense that each chapter starts with his Boston 1975 progress during the race and the later part of the chapter devotes to flashback to his early life as a college student, running with Amby Burfoot who is his original inspiration, his "conscientious objector" status during the Vietnam war, his degree at special education, struggle at getting a job etc. He was a natural born runner with a great capacity for hard work and a body which could take any amount of hard work with very little injuries. The realisation that he could be a top notch marathon runner came to him only during a race with Amby Burfoot in which he raced alongside the great Amby for about 15 miles of a 20 mile race. The seeds of inspiration which Amby sowed in him made him take up competitive racing including marathons. Boston Billy alongwith Frank Shorter, Amby Burfoot and Jeff Galloway were the pioneers of long distance running first in America which then spread to other cities in the world which has since then grown exponentially. His latter attempts at Montreal Olympics of 1976 and thereafter founding a successful running business alongwith his college buddies makes for a good story. It is an excellent book, very inspirational, very nice story of an easy going hardworking American who loves running dearly. Highly recommended for anybody into long distance running. Goodreads 5/5

Ultramarathon Man - Confessions of an All-Night Runner

Ultramarathon Man - Confessions of an All-Night Runner by Dean Karnazes is an absorbing and overwhelming story of his early athletic prowess in schools, loss of his sister to an accident, his subsequent forays away from running for 15 years, his rediscovery of running to running marathons, ultra marathons, crazy distances, unheard of before and impossible feats like running the South Pole marathon, running 199 miles non stop, etc. His heroic attempt at running the Western States 100 miler and Badwater Ultramarathon and failing the first time has been poignantly told. A nice inspirational story with dollops of quotable quotes for keeping in one's mirror or desktop. The paperback edition has given details of his diet, training, nutrition, strategy etc. so that becomes useful for people running ultra marathons. Dean has that rare gene which allows him to run continuously non stop unlike us mortals. He has also discovered the art of sleeping while on the run, albeit for  a few seconds. Dean has also run the 50 marathons in 50 states of the United States in 50 consecutive days, finishing the 50th day by running the NYC marathon. Goodreads 5/5 

11.24 kms Aarey

11.24 kms in Aarey Forest, Mumbai. Took the regular unit no. 16 and the Aarey Guest House and also added the Diary road today. Weather in Aarey was absolutely humid with not a hint of breeze whatsoever. Aarey Forest is such a beautiful place, an oasis in the bustling city of Mumbai, a paradise of sorts. Don't understand government apathy in destroying such a beautiful natural eco system which is virtually the lungs of Mumbai. Especially when there are alternative sites for construction of the metro car shed government insistence on destroying aarey forest is nothing short of arrogance and cruelty. Cruelty it is to the thousands of birds, insects etc. residing in this beautiful forest. Every time you go to Aarey Forest you feel so refreshed, it is the pure oxygen which is the hallmark of this place. I suspect there is corruption and greed in commercially exploiting this pristine piece of nature.  

7.59 kms

7.59 kms in absolutely dry weather in mumbai. Was not feeling like running today morning after the meltdown at the hiranandani hospital at powai yesterday where i had taken mom for her regular check-up and then the travel back to home in busy late evening traffic. Did not even put the alarm like i usually do. but i somehow got up at 5.10 a.m. and decided to go for a run for whatever its worth it, running clears your stress levels like nothing else in the world. The hospital guys regularly take you for a ride in the billing section. They overbill like nobody notices it. There's no fucking ethics from the hospital especially to cheat the relatives of sick patients is most disgusting thing ever in this world. 

6.58 kms

6.58 kms in 44.12 minutes. Horribly humid weather in Mumbai absolutely dry, no breeze at all. Wanted to do at least 11 but could manage only this much. 

Ultra Marathon Man

Just finished reading “Ultra Marathon Man – Confessions of an All Night Runner” by Dean Karnazes, an absorbing and overwhelming story of his early athletic prowess, the loss of his sister to an accident, his subsequent forays away from running for 15 years, his rediscovery of running, to running marathons, ultra marathons to crazy distances unheard of before and impossible feats like running the south pole marathon, running 199 miles non stop etc. His heroic attempt at running the Western States 100 miler and Badwater Marathon failing the first time, have been poignantly told. A nice inspirational story with dollops of quotable quotes for keeping in one’s mirror or desktop. The paperback edition has given details of his training, nutrition, strategy etc. so that helps for people attempting to run ultra-marathons and crazy distances. A must read for running addicts. 

Dare to Run

“Dare to Run” is a first-person account of how an ordinary, once-sedentary professional rebuilds his life around distance running and, eventually, ultramarathons. It’s part memoir, part motivational handbook, tracing the arc from lacing up for tentative jogs to standing on start lines that once felt unthinkable. Rather than offering a dry training manual, Sheth uses stories — false starts, small wins, humbling setbacks — to show how endurance is as much a mental and social journey as it is a physical one.

Sheth writes in a warm, conversational tone that feels like a running buddy chatting on an easy Sunday long run. Chapters tend to be short, punchy, and focused on a single idea — discipline, fear, injury, patience, self-talk — so the book is easy to dip into and surprisingly quick to finish. He favors clarity over lyricism, and sprinkles in crisp, memorable aphorisms (the kind you can hear yourself repeating at kilometre 37). The simplicity is deliberate: he’s not trying to impress; he’s trying to persuade you to start.

The narrative is linear — beginning with the decision to change and moving through training blocks, race days, and the aftermath of big goals. Interludes of reflection break up the action and keep pages turning. Race chapters are the highlights: Sheth captures pre-race nerves, the fragile deal-making that happens mid-race (“just one more mile”), and the quiet, almost private emotion of finishing far better than any slow-motion highlight reel.

A central claim is that identity isn’t something you discover; it’s something you build, one consistent effort at a time. Sheth returns to the idea that ordinary people can do extraordinary things if they’re willing to be boringly consistent.

Running looks solitary from the outside, but the book shows how clubs, training partners, coaches, volunteers, and family make tough goals feasible. The portraits of fellow runners are affectionate without being fawning, and you get a sense of the early, buzzing Indian running scene finding its feet.

There are no “hacks” here — just mindset tools: plan the work, train through the weather, respect recovery, and learn to talk yourself through dark patches. Sheth is honest about fear and doubt, and he treats them as companions to be managed rather than monsters to be slayed.

Ideas about patience, humility, and long-term thinking migrate from the road into work and relationships. The book’s most persuasive passages are where Sheth shows, not tells, how training discipline reshapes everyday choices.

The early pages make the first steps feel achievable, not trivial. He’s candid about how crashes often follow spikes; sustainable routines win. When things go wrong (fatigue, niggles, bonks), the tone is reflective, not macho. Pacing, fueling, and managing negative thoughts are treated as learned skills. If you’re seeking a spreadsheet of workouts, VO₂max zones, and periodization diagrams, you won’t find that here. What you will find is the motivational substrate that makes those plans usable.

The language is friendly and non-technical, perfect for new or returning runners. Sheth neither downplays the work nor makes himself the hero; he lets the process shine. The admission of fear, failure, and self-doubt gives the wins real weight. Readers in India will especially appreciate the snapshots of runs, routes, and races closer to home, showing how world-class goals can be pursued without living in a stereotypical “runner’s city.”

Without spoiling scenes, the book’s high points are the “decision” moments: committing to a plan, showing up in bad weather, resetting after a rough race, and the quiet, almost stunned joy of hitting a finish line that once felt out of reach. These passages land because the groundwork — months of ordinary effort — has been carefully laid.

“Dare to Run” succeeds as an invitation and a blueprint for sustainable change. It won’t teach you everything about training theory, but that’s not its mission. Its power lies in making big goals feel local, human, and achievable — then handing you the mental tools to keep showing up when the glow of inspiration fades. If you’ve ever wondered whether the person you are today could become the kind of person who runs far — this book’s answer is a steady, encouraging yes. Goodreads 4/5

Picture taken from the internet not with an intention to violation of copyright. 

Why we Run

Bernd Heinrich’s Why We Run: A Natural History is a unique blend of memoir, scientific exploration, evolutionary biology, and meditative philosophy. First published in 2001, the book delves into the primal human instinct to run — not just as a form of exercise or sport, but as an expression of our evolutionary heritage.

Heinrich, an accomplished biologist and elite ultramarathon runner, structures the book around his preparation for and eventual participation in a 100-kilometer ultramarathon race in 1981, where he set an American record. Interspersed with this personal narrative are rich digressions into animal physiology, evolutionary biology, and comparative anatomy, all used to investigate a central question: Why do humans run, and what makes us so good at it?

One of Heinrich’s central arguments is that humans are endurance predators — our evolutionary success is partly due to our ability to run long distances in hot conditions. Unlike most animals, we can regulate our body temperature through sweating, allowing us to outlast prey over long chases (a practice known as “persistence hunting”).

He compares human physiology with that of birds, antelopes, insects, and other creatures, showing how nature has evolved countless adaptations for efficient movement. This interdisciplinary approach strengthens his argument that our running ability is deeply embedded in our biology.

The narrative spine of the book is Heinrich’s personal account of training for the 100-kilometer race. A professor by day and a runner by passion, he gives us a glimpse into his dual life, drawing connections between his scientific curiosity and his physical dedication. His emotional journey — from self-doubt to clarity — adds depth and vulnerability, making the book more than just a scientific treatise.

His race-day experience, described in vivid detail toward the end of the book, is a culmination of both scientific understanding and psychological resolve. It is here that the reader witnesses theory being put into practice.

The book is suffused with Heinrich’s love for the natural world. He draws metaphors and lessons from insects, birds, and mammals — especially the raven, which has fascinated him for years. His analysis of the dung beetle’s relentless movement, or the hummingbird’s energy efficiency, feels more poetic than academic at times.

Heinrich also examines the mental aspects of endurance. Running long distances is as much about the mind as it is about the body. He reflects on pain, perseverance, motivation, and the idea of a runner’s “will to win,” offering philosophical musings grounded in lived experience.

Heinrich’s prose is lucid, engaging, and often lyrical. While grounded in scientific fact, he avoids jargon and instead leans on metaphor and storytelling. His transitions from the lab to the trail are seamless, and his voice carries both authority and warmth. There is a real sense of intellectual curiosity, humility, and passion for both science and running.

Why We Run is a thoughtful, multi-dimensional exploration of what it means to run as a human being. Bernd Heinrich bridges the worlds of science and sport in a way that feels deeply personal and universally resonant. The book doesn’t just answer why we run; it celebrates the act of running as a testament to our biological legacy, our animal kinship, and our capacity for endurance — both physical and emotional.

For runners, naturalists, or anyone curious about the intersection of body, mind, and evolution, this book is a rewarding and enlightening read. Goodreads 5/5

Picture taken from the internet not with an intention to violation of copyright. 

The Longest Race

The Longest Race by Tom Alter is an inspiring and emotionally resonant novella that captures the grit, determination, and inner struggles of a long-distance runner. Set against the backdrop of Indian athletics, the story delves into the psyche of a young man chasing excellence and meaning through the grueling sport of marathon running.

Alter, known more widely as an actor and theatre personality, writes with sensitivity and insight, drawing from his own passion for sports. The narrative is lean yet poetic, weaving themes of perseverance, identity, and self-discovery. What makes the book stand out is its quiet intensity — it’s not just about running, but about life’s relentless challenges and the courage to keep going.

A quick but impactful read, The Longest Race is both a tribute to the spirit of sport and a meditation on personal growth. Goodreads 3/5

Picture taken from the internet not with an intention to violation of copyright.