|
It comes as a shocker for Gunjan Khurana’s childhood buddies to see her running these days. The initial goal was simply to shed the postpartum weight. Her progress was gradual on a 3km track near her home in Surat, but as the distances increased with time, she soon realised that she had a deep connection with running.
|
|
Things were simple at first while she tackled the shorter distances. But once she joined the ultra marathon bandwagon, she had to first see to the comfort of her young family back home, before setting out for training. While gearing up for the Comrades Marathon, she would hit the road for a night run after putting her two girls to sleep, returning just in time to see them wake up. There were other days when the body begged for rest, but that had to wait until the household chores were taken care of.
|
The sacrifices during those early days have paid off today. Since her first marathon in 2014, she has gone on
to finish six others, besides another 17 half marathons, which she has to pick and choose from given her full-time job
back home. Yet, by 2019, she had transformed into a strong runner to find a place on the Indian team. The tables have turned over the years and these days, it’s the girls who push her on, well aware that running completes their mother.
|