New Delhi, Sep 23 : Sachin Ashok Sharma (IRTS 2008), secretary to the general manager/Western Railways, has earned plaudits for completing multiple marathons and triathlons over the years. And amid his preparations for events in the future, he looks forward to achieving more heights and making the nation proud.

Sharma recently completed one of the world's most gruelling endurance events: the Ironman Triathlon at Port Macquarie in Australia. His list of triathlons includes the Bergman Olympic triathlon (1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run), Bergman 113 triathlon (1.9 km swim, 90 km bike, 21 km run), Goa Ironman 70.3 triathlon (1.9 km swim, 90 km bike, 21 km run) and the Australia Ironman.

The list of marathons completed by Sharma is also long. He completed three marathons in 2024- the Comrades Marathon (South Africa) in June 2024, the Silk Route Ultra (Ladakh) in September 2024, and a record-breaking Jaisalmer Ultra Marathon in December 2024, and is the only civil servant to have done the 122 km-long Silk Route Ultra Marathon in the high altitude region of Ladakh.

Sharma has taken part in numerous 10K runs over the past few years, including triathlons, half-marathons, full marathons, and ultra-marathons.

His journey has been inspirational, to say the least. Speaking exclusively to IANS, Sharma shed light on how taking up running helped him overcome Meniere's disease, a chronic inner ear disorder, his coach and colleagues' role in his fitness journey, and how he strikes a balance between work and fitness.

Asked what got him to take fitness and running seriously, and when he started his journey, Sharma said, "It all began well before I joined the service. It was after the 12th standard, during my first year of engineering. I had some issues with my inner ear, specifically Meniere's disease, which causes a stinging sound, pressure differences, and vertigo.

"A homoeopath advised me to do cardio exercises such as brisk walking or running. I chose jogging. I started running and gained many benefits. I realised this was my go-to solution for these issues. Over time, I found it helped me in many ways beyond just the physical."

'It boosted my mental health by helping me de-stress and concentrate more. Even while preparing for the civil service exam after graduation, I continued jogging. I was in Delhi. Every evening, I ran six kilometres, which greatly helped me relax. During my runs, I would consolidate what I had read and studied that day.

"Without it, I might have become a sportsman in both school and college. I was staying in a hostel. There, I was introduced to a wide range of sports, including boxing, hockey, cricket, football, as well as gymnastics, athletics, and many others. Overall, I was pretty fit and active during my school days," he added.

Speaking on the challenges he faces while preparing for the marathons and triathlons, Sharma added, "I've always been into sports. I enjoyed some form of jogging but never took part in endurance activities. Endurance sports are quite different. Running 6-10 kilometres is one thing, but running 21 or more, cycling over 100 kilometres, or swimming beyond two kilometres is another. It's a whole different game. Initially, I was surprised to see people completing 21- and 42-kilometre marathons and cycling 100 kilometres.

"I was genuinely taken aback when I first met such individuals upon arriving in Mumbai. I'm referring to 2020 onwards. That was the second time I was here as a student. Back then, I was based in Bilaspur and Nagpur, in central India, primarily in Chhattisgarh. During that period, I regularly went to the gym. I was in good shape and all, but I didn't do much running.

"When I arrived in Mumbai for my assignment in 2020, I met several endurance athletes. My actual journey began in January 2022, when I took part in an endurance event and started this endurance pursuit. I joined a running group. Naresh Lalwani, retired as general manager in the central railway, a senior colleague of mine who is a runner himself, recommended it to me. He's an endurance athlete and he suggested joining the running club."

"The club's head coach is Girish Bindra. He's my running coach. They asked me to run about 10 kilometres when I joined the group, and I managed to do it quite well. That was actually the first time I ever completed a 10-kilometre run in my life. Then, the following Sunday, just seven days later, they asked me to run about 21 kilometres. I did. Then they asked me to do 30 kilometres. I did that too. And that's how I started. So I never knew I had the potential, but it was just group encouragement and the coach I had, who motivated me to do so.

"I started with endurance running and then moved on to other sports. I didn't know how to swim at first; I only knew how to float in a swimming pool, so I didn't honestly know how to swim. I learnt to swim in March 2022, and afterwards, I completed a couple of long open water free swimmathons. I also took up long-distance cycling. Finally, when I had become proficient in all three sports, I completed the Ironman."

Speaking further, Sharma shared his experiences of completing some of the most difficult marathons in the world and the challenges he faced while training for them and achieving them.

"A marathon is just running, while a triathlon involves three sports. Last year, I did three very big events- the Comrades Marathon, the Silk Route Ultra (Ladakh), and the Jaisalmer Ultra Marathon. The Comrades Marathon, which I did in June 2024, is 86 kilometres of an uphill marathon. I did Silk Route Ultra in September that year, which is one of the most challenging ultra marathons in the world. It is a high-altitude marathon of 122 kilometres in Ladakh.

"And I did 161 kilometres of an ultramarathon in December, which is a border run. It is from Jaisalmer to Longewala post, if you recollect the 1971 Indo-Pak war. So Longewala post to Jaisalmer is 161 kilometres, which I did in December. There was not much of a gap between these three, but I regularly practised running. So I did that. And after December, I resumed practising triathlon.

"The gap was smaller between the ultramarathons in June, September, and December, but from December to May, I had three sports to focus on. Regarding running, I was already practising regularly, so I didn't need much additional training because I was already in rhythm.

"I had to put in a lot of effort while cycling because the Ironman triathlon includes 180 kilometres of cycling. It's not just a long distance; it also has significant elevation. The Ironman course features many hills, and the average elevation gain was 1800 metres, which is quite substantial. Considering the event was held in a coastal area, climbing 1800 metres uphill was a real challenge. So, I had to train diligently over these months, focusing on cycling and swimming.

"The challenge was to maintain a healthy balance between building core strength, the muscular strength needed to perform these three tasks, and practising proficiency in the three sports'running, swimming, and cycling. So, strength training alongside these sports. Additionally, being a civil servant in a demanding position means that my assignment here is equally challenging.

"The time window I used was between 4:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., which is four hours. Whatever needed to be done had to be completed within that period. The challenge with an Ironman triathlon is that you don't just do one activity on a given day; you need to complete two or three.

"The challenge was to come home from the office, have a healthy meal, and then sleep immediately. I couldn't go out socialising or partying. I couldn't stay up late, nor could I wake up late. Time was limited, so that was a big challenge," he said.

"Recovery was another challenge. I'm not a very young man; I'm over 40. I need to look after my recovery as well. I'm not a 25-year-old who can do two or three sets of exercises every 12 hours. I require sleep and proper nutrition.

"For someone like me, it's essential to eat healthily and get enough sleep. I also need to take ice baths, steam baths, and probably get a massage weekly. All these activities form part of the recovery process. Otherwise, it can become challenging," Sharma added.

Some of Sharma's notable achievements include the Ladakh marathon (42 km), Mumbai marathon (42 km), Vasai Virar marathon (42km), Tata ultra marathon (50 km), Kaas valley ultra marathon (65 km), Khardungla challenge (72 km) in Ladakh, Comrades marathon (86km) in South Africa, Pune ultra marathon (100 km), Silk route ultra marathon (122 km) in Ladakh, and the Border run (Jaisalmer - Longewala -161 km).

He has also completed the Malvan Sea (3 km), Juhu Sea (3 km), and Sunk Rock to Gateway Sea Swimathons (5 km) alongside the Jio Cyclothon (100 km).

/IANS