Sick in India

Posted on August 30, 2011June 29, 2014 by David O'Meara

Before arriving in Agra, India I was experiencing a slight fever in Chennai. Then things intensified in Agra as the fever continued and diarrhea followed. We finally called the doctor to the hotel last evening as my situation was not improving. He checked out my symptoms and confirmed that it was not malaria or dengue fever (two of our concerns), but was indeed a bacterial infection with something I ate or something on my hands when I rubbed my eyes. The doctor has put me on a five day cycle of antibiotics, electrolytes, etc.

We have again moved our Taj Mahal race for a few days until September 2nd giving me an opportunity to get my strength back. Then we will travel to the Middle East and race on September 10th (this date is set and cannot be moved as I am racing a mile of the Petra Marathon).

We will be patient and let my body mend over the next few days…

O2 Health Studio Clinic In Chennai, India

Posted on August 25, 2011June 29, 2014 by David O'Meara

We have been spending the week in my old “hometown” of Chennai, India where I lived for 5 years from 1986-91. We have been the guests of O2 Health Studios as we led a “Body Protection” fitness clinic to all their trainers and physiotherapists. Tomorrow we finish with a “Creating Amazement” seminar with the managers of O2. From Hyderabad to Chennai, it has been great to spend this time in southern India sharing our fitness concepts.

I went over some of the basic movements of my “Body Protection” program and then showed some of the resistance moves. The O2 trainers participated in learning the moves in order to protect their bodies from injury and prepare their bodies for speed and power. We went over some of the fitness myths that need to broken in order to take our athletic performances to the next level. We will address these fitness myths in our upcoming “Body Protection” video.

We fly north to New Delhi on Sunday morning. Take a train to Agra and get ready to race at the Taj Mahal on August 30th. At the moment in India, there is a non-violent revolution going on. Anna Hazare is undergoing a supervised fast in opposition to the government. Anna is the symbol of the anti-corruption movement taking place throughout India since we arrived a couple of weeks ago. It is, indeed, an amazing time of transition in India.

Hyderabad Clinic

Posted on August 16, 2011June 29, 2014 by David O'Meara

Here’s a view from the Charminar, built in 1591 and still a major landmark in old Hyderabad. We had the opportunity to visit Charminar and the Golkonda Fort, an incredible fortress on the outskirts of the city, the day before we started our clinic.

Sekyen and I made it to Hyderabad, India this past weekend on our first stop in this remarkable country. I am leading a tennis and fitness clinic at the NVK Sports Complex with 20 wonderful students ranging in ages from 11-21. It is indeed a pleasure to be working with these young, upcoming star athletes. It feels like I am coming home in many ways after all my years being based in Chennai.

I am sharing with these athletes many of the new movements of my “Body Protection” program that we will be shooting the video for in October on our return to the US. I wish I had learned this program when I was a young aspiring athlete in order to keep strong, fast, and injury-free with proper technique and explosive exercises.

We will finish in Hyderabad this weekend and travel to another week-long fitness clinic in Chennai. After Chennai, we will be traveling to Agra (via Delhi) for race #4 at the Taj Mahal on August 30th. Then, we make our way into Jordan for the big finish of the www.OneMileRunner.com 2011 tour “5 Wonders Under 25 Minutes” in the majestic city of Petra.

From Sea to Shining Sea

Posted on August 2, 2011June 29, 2014 by David O'Meara

After race #3 in San Francisco, we traveled to Salt Lake for a day then onto Jackson Hole, WY to visit a friend of ours, Jo Ann DeMartini, who is spending the summer at the base of the magnificent Teton Mountains. We enjoyed a few days seeing the area and meeting up with friends from Sarsota. Here is a photo after our dinner at the Blue Lion (L to R – Sekyen, Vicky, Jo Ann, and Kevin). Vicky and Kevin are getting married in Jackson Hole this weekend.

Sekyen and I had a great time training in the high altitude and clean, crisp air of Jackson Hole. Our morning runs were followed by some wonderful hikes at Yellowstone National Park and Jenny Lake. Here is a view from Jo Ann’s backyard:

We then traveled to the east coast to Cape Elizabeth, ME to visit my elder brother’s family and train on the roads of Maine up and down the course of the upcoming 10K race (that was part of my tour in 2009), The Beach to Beacon. It is a beautiful time of year to visit the shores of Maine. I stopped into my youngest brother’s place for a couple of days in Massachusetts on my return to Sarasota. Now I am packing for the long trip to India and then onto the conclusion of “The 5 Wonders Under 25 Minutes” in Petra, Jordan.

The purity of the Jackson Hole and Cape Elizabeth air quality will be in stark contrast to our upcoming race #4 in one of the world’s worst cities for air quality – New Delhi, India. We leave on Sunday to race at the Taj Mahal located a few hours south of New Delhi in Agra, India. The Taj Mahal is on the New Wonders of the World list and should make for a challenging “adventure mile.” I hope my lungs are ready for the shock.