Straight from the sole

Running and walking are the easiest ways to keep fit, says marathoner Milind Soman

November 27, 2014 06:45 pm | Updated 06:45 pm IST

Supermodel and actor Milind Soman. Photo : Thulasi Kakkat

Supermodel and actor Milind Soman. Photo : Thulasi Kakkat

From the gamut of roles that Milind Soman juggles effortlessly - swimmer, model, actor and runner- it is the role of a marathoner that he has come to love the most. “Marathon is a special distance,” he says sitting casually in the bright patio of Le Meridien hotel in the city. Milind is here to promote the coming up Cochin International Half Marathon, 2014, on December 7.

If at all there is a role more than a marathoner that he foresees for himself, it is of organising events related to running and to inspiring a fitter way of life. The Pinkathon, a 10-km run for women to create awareness on breast cancer, and a Run for the Blind are his latest pet projects. Milind’s tryst with fitness began young when he was discovered as a swimmer in school and went on to be a part of the National team. In 1988 he shot to fame as a supermodel and is remembered with delight for his role in Alisha Chinai’s music video Made In India .

Milind dabbled in films, serials and the stage till 2003, with no signs of running taking centre stage in his lifestyle. “But in all those 15 years I remained active,” he says adding that he used to swim five hours a day. So, in a way, when he finally took to running it came quite naturally. He has now been running for 12 years and barefoot for the last three years. He recently ran 85 km barefoot in Bangalore. “Walking and running are the easiest ways to keep fit. Anyone can do it,” he says.

While the debate on running barefoot rages Milind is addicted to the feel of the ground under his foot. “The sole is able to absorb all impact if running is done correctly. Barefoot running changes the way one runs at a physical level. The body understands the surface best.”

Initiated by middle-aged fitness enthusiasts of the western world, running for recreation and health began only 40 years ago, before which there was only competitive running. “Simultaneously began the debate over cushioning and of types of running shoes,” says Milind. To him long distance running is a matter of the mind, which allows the body to adapt and survive challenges.

The 30 km run, or the three and half hour running is anybody’s call, he says and can be easily done, after which the mind takes over and the challenge begins. “Marathon running is all about running that extra mile.”

His efforts to encourage women to join in as runners and be part of Pinkathon have found success but the road has not been easy. “As a society we want to believe that women don’t want to come out and be seen, or run. Patriarchal society globally wants to perpetuate this. All over the world women are encouraged to sit at home,” he says.

A survey conducted on British women found two reasons - a fear of being judged, and guilt on being away from home - why women shy away from long distance running. America, he says is showing the way to women runners where out of the 30 million who run once a week 60 per cent are women.

His mother at 72 and three sisters, in their fifties, are all readying for the 100 km Oxfam Trailwalker and the family women have been inspired by him. He credits his mother for his gorgeous looks saying he is a carbon copy but her fitness is inspired by him.

Milind’s fitness regimen is running three to four times a week and to be active the entire day. Hydration is another aspect of fitness that he lays stress on encouraging people to drink water every twenty minutes and to “walk to that glass of water.”

He’s in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s forthcoming period film Bajirao Mastani but does not wish to divulge more. He by choice has not made films a career for his heart “is in doing many things.” Milind loves Kerala and has been coming to the State for the last 35 years. It began with coming for swimming competitions as a student first and later as an employee with Western Railways. “Kerala is green and Malayalis are very progressive people,” he says. He is urging Kochiites to be a part of the marathon next week and is looking forward to the Mumbai Pinkathon in December, and the next big challenge he has set for himself is the Ironman Challenge - a triathlon (swim-bicycle-marathon, in that order) in July in Zurich on his 50th birthday. “If you have a fit lifestyle you age well,” says Milind, going on to 50 next year.

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