Fund Raising Update – Dec 11,2008

A very big thanks to all the donors who have donated so far. With 3 days to go for the marathon, I am $350 away from my target fund raiser of $1500.

 

Those of you, who have been contemplating of donating, I need your support NOW to reach my goal. It would be great to go to the marathon start line on Sunday at 8:00 am knowing that I have reached my fund raising goal since that is the main goal of this marathon.

Please note that any amount of donation will go a long way. Click on the link below to donate:

http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html

For those of you to whom who have not received my personal e-mail, here is the information:

 

Dear Friend,

I am writing to you today to let you know about a noble cause, "Asha-Strides of Hope"-Full Marathon program (http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html) that I am proud to be a part of and that I hope you too will be equally proud to support. I am running the Dallas White Rock full marathon , 26.2 miles,  on December-14-2008. I am taking the "Strides" so that I can make the "Hope" of education of underprivileged children in India a reality. Running is just a means to achieve the end goal of making a difference in the lives of these children. 

I have been training hard for the past five months for this marathon.  I have been blogging about my training program here http://stridesofhope.blogspot.com/ . While it is very important to keep physically fit, train hard regularly to be ready to do the marathon on Dec-14, it is the thought of helping underprivileged children that keeps me motivated to wake up early in the morning on a Saturday, get up early on weekdays run/cycle in the dark and go through all this physical stress.

My biggest inspiration to run a marathon is to provide under-privileged children an opportunity to learn and receive a proper education, a shot at a good life and a chance for a better future. For this cause I committed to raising at least a $100 for every mile I plan to run in Dallas White Rock Marathon. This is possible only with your help !

The power of your donation:

* $10 - Takes care of the education of a child for a complete month. Less than what it would cost you to watch a movie.
* $25 - Takes care of the education and living expenses of a child for a complete month. Costs less than a dinner outside.
* $50 - Takes care of a child's education for almost half a year. Costs less than an evening out with friends.
* $100 - Helps educate 100 rural pregnant women on infant health. Costs less than a visit to an amusement park.
* $250 - Takes care of a year's education and living costs of an under privileged child. Costs less than a new Wii or X-BOX.
* $500 - Funds the education of a 10 year old girl until she finishes high school. Costs less than that new IKEA couch.

While the above gives you an idea of the power of your donation - absolutely anything will help and I encourage you to start with a minimum of $10. Click on the link (http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html ) to make your donation for a great cause. Paying by credit card is the most preferred method. Please also take a few minutes to check with your company if they can match your donation to charitable organizations like Asha.

Learn more about Asha here: http://www.ashanet.org

Learn more about Asha-Dallas Chapter here: http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/

Learn more about the wonderful ongoing / successfully accomplished projects of Asha-Dallas Chapter here: http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/projects/index.html

Learn more about the Asha "Strides of Hope" fund raiser program here: http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/index.html

Me and the entire Asha team greatly appreciate your time and your support to the Children through your generous donation.

Thanks,

Cnu

 

Strength Training – Chest, Triceps – Dec 11,2008

After two days of interval and tempo running, I took a break from running today and did a bit of strength training for the upper body. Here is a list of sets that I did:

 

Workout Date	Workout Name	Body Part	Exercise	Set	Reps	Wt	Tempo	Notes
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Cardio	Elliptical	1	0	0		75 calories
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Bench Upper Abs	1	20	0.0		Sit on a bench, while holding the bench behind the back on both sides, pull the chest back and bend the knees towards the chest and push it back to a 45 degree angle above the ground. Look up all the time
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Bench Leg Raise lying, Lower Abs	1	20	0		Sit on a bench, while holding the bench behind the back on both sides, lift the entire lower body up and down again to the ground. Look up all the time
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Machine Leg Pullup - Lower Abs	1	20			With both hands on the side of the machine, bring both legs slowly up so that you are hanging in the air and bring it back down
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Ball Dumbbell Press	1	15	20		Lie on the back on a ball and hold dumbbells in both hands, push it down to the chest with pelvis down and push the pelvis and dumbbells straight back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hop Bench Jump	1	20			Hop on to a small bench and come back down to the standing position
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Quadriceps	Squat	1	20			With hands on the hip, one Leg Squat with no weight.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Ball Dumbbell Press	2	15	20		Lie on the back on a ball and hold dumbbells in both hands, push it down to the chest with pelvis down and push the pelvis and dumbbells straight back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hop Bench Jump	2	20			Hop on to a small bench and come back down to the standing position
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Quadriceps	Squat	2	20			With hands on the hip, one Leg Squat with no weight.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Ball Dumbbell Press	3	15	20		Lie on the back on a ball and hold dumbbells in both hands, push it down to the chest with pelvis down and push the pelvis and dumbbells straight back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hop Bench Jump	3	20			Hop on to a small bench and come back down to the standing position
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Quadriceps	Squat	3	20			With hands on the hip, one Leg Squat with no weight.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Ball Dumbbell Press	4	15	20		Lie on the back on a ball and hold dumbbells in both hands, push it down to the chest with pelvis down and push the pelvis and dumbbells straight back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Rope Chest Flies	1	15	20		On rope machine ( wide rope and weights) , facing away from the machine, hold rope wide and pull the rope straight forward with arms as straight as possible (setting: 7 on the height of the machine)
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Rope Chest Flies	2	15	20		On rope machine ( wide rope and weights) , facing away from the machine, hold rope wide and pull the rope straight forward with arms as straight as possible (setting: 7 on the height of the machine)
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Rope Chest Flies	3	15	20		On rope machine ( wide rope and weights) , facing away from the machine, hold rope wide and pull the rope straight forward with arms as straight as possible (setting: 7 on the height of the machine)
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Rope Chest Flies	4	15	20		On rope machine ( wide rope and weights) , facing away from the machine, hold rope wide and pull the rope straight forward with arms as straight as possible (setting: 7 on the height of the machine)
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Triceps	Machine Hammer Pushdown	1	15	80		On Triceps machine, place elbows on the support and push down both hands like a hammer, hold and bring it back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hops	1	20			Standing at one place, put hands down and hop and come back to same position.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Triceps	Machine Hammer Pushdown	2	15	80		On Triceps machine, place elbows on the support and push down both hands like a hammer, hold and bring it back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hops	2	20			Standing at one place, put hands down and hop and come back to same position.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Triceps	Machine Hammer Pushdown	3	15	80		On Triceps machine, place elbows on the support and push down both hands like a hammer, hold and bring it back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Reactive	Hops	3	20			Standing at one place, put hands down and hop and come back to same position.
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Triceps	Machine Hammer Pushdown	4	15	80		On Triceps machine, place elbows on the support and push down both hands like a hammer, hold and bring it back up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Dumbbell Incline Press	1	15	20		On a incline bench, with biceps in both hands, bring th dumbbell straight up and take it back down to chest
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Machine Pull Ups - Lower Abs	1	20	0		On the Abs Pull machine, lie down on the back and pull your weight up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Dumbbell Incline Press	2	15	20		On a incline bench, with biceps in both hands, bring th dumbbell straight up and take it back down to chest
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Machine Pull Ups - Lower Abs	2	20	0		On the Abs Pull machine, lie down on the back and pull your weight up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Dumbbell Incline Press	3	15	20		On a incline bench, with biceps in both hands, bring th dumbbell straight up and take it back down to chest
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Abs	Machine Pull Ups - Lower Abs	3	20	0		On the Abs Pull machine, lie down on the back and pull your weight up
11-Dec-08	Chest,Triceps	Chest	Dumbbell Incline Press	4	15	20		On a incline bench, with biceps in both hands, bring th dumbbell straight up and take it back down to chest

Interval Run – Dec 10,2008

I had a slight body pain in the morning and it was freezing (25F) and so I decided to do the run in the evening. It was still cold in the evening (30F, including the wind factor) when I decided to do a Interval run. It's been a while since I did the Interval run and so I wanted to get the last interval run before the marathon. I did a easy pace one mile (8:25 min/mile) to get to the track near my house. I took a break for a couple of minutes and finished the first mile in ( 8 min/mile ). After taking the second 2 minute break for water, I finished the third mile in (7:45 min/mile). It was getting dark and there was a couple running on the track with an unleashed, although friendly, dog which threw me off a bit for the third mile. I speeded up for the fourth mile and managed to finish it in (7:30 min/mile). After taking the final break for 2 minutes, I ran back home for the last mile (7:45min/mile).

Mile 1 – 8:25 min/mile

2 minute break

Mile 2 – 8:00 min/mile

2 minute break

Mile 3 – 7:45 min/mile

2 minute break

Mile 4 – 7:30 min/mile

2 minute break

Mile 5 – 7:45 min/mile

Here are the average stats from the GPS

Activity

Type

Activity

Type

Miles

Time (HH:MM:SS)

Avg. Pace (min/Mile)

Avg. Speed

Calories Burnt

Avg. Heart Rate

Morning

Morning

Evening

Evening

None

None

Running

Interval Run

5.01

0:39:32

7:53

7.6

635

159

 

Fund Raising Update – Dec 10, 2008

For a change, this week, I will post more about my fund raising in additional to the marathon training since fund raising is as much important to this marathon as it is to finish the marathon and I want to make sure that I hit my fund raising target of $1500 before I start the marathon on Sunday (Dec-14) at 8:00 am. So, please contribute to the Asha-Strides of Hope (http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html) and be part of this marathon journey of helping the children through your support.

I spent this past weekend sending personalized e-mails to about 300 of my friends to ask for funds for the marathon. I called some of them and chatted on IM/chat to request them to contribute. This was the first time that that I discovered that I knew 300 people from my school / college / graduate school / work. Although I have done some kind of social activity with most people in this group in the past, it has been a while since I have e-mailed or talked to some of the people in the group. So, I was a little apprehensive on sending an e-mail asking just for the donation to Asha. But then this was about a good cause and I figured most people would at least get to know more about Asha and the good work being done by the team and some of them would be motivated to donate for such a good cause. I hope I have accomplished the information part and some of them have even donated for the good cause. Some of them came back saying that they already donate to many good causes or are already involved in some kind of charity. This was a good thing to know. The intention of my e-mail was more to inform about the good work done by Asha as much it was to ask for donation. I will write more about the process that I followed for the fund raiser in future posts.

As I always end my blogs with numbers from my GPS, here are some numbers from my fund raiser effort:

• Target Goal : $1500
  
• Funds raised so far: $1000
  
• Number of people that personal E-mail was sent to : 300
  
• Number of people who have donated so far: 19
  
• Percentage of people who have donated: 6.33%
  
• Average amount of donation: 1000/19 = $52.6
  
• Remaining Funds to raise to reach the goal : $500
  

Once again I request you to contribute to the Asha – Strides of Hope and be part of my marathon effort by helping to reach my fundraising goal. Please click on the link below to contribute online:

http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html

Tempo Run – Dec 9, 2008

It was another cold, windy evening to run. The temperate was about 35F (with the effect of wind) when I reached the trail at 4:45 pm. I wanted to do a quick and easy 5 miles. During the first 2.5 miles, I had wind behind my back and it helped in getting a good pace going and I finished the 2.5 miles in 21 minutes. It got really tough on the way back since the wind was blowing on the face and it was hindering the speed as well. I had to put in extra effort to maintain the pace of 8:30 min/mile. I speeded up a bit after 3.5 miles for about a mile and really picked up the pace for the last half mile. I was satisfied with the final pace of 8:26 min/mile for the entire 5 miles especially since I managed to finish it without any break. If anything, I would have liked the heart rate to be a bit lower. That would be the trick to sustaining the pace for longer distances.

I need to reach another goal, the main one, for which I started doing this marathon program. My fund raiser for the Marathon is $1500 and I am about half way there. If you have not already contributed, here is the donation link to support the children:

http://www.ashanet.org/dallas/soh/Srinivasan_profile_2008.html

Here are the stats from the GPS for today's run:

Activity	Type	Activity	Type	Miles	Time (HH:MM:SS)	Avg. Pace (min/Mile)	Avg. Speed	Calories Burnt	Avg. Heart Rate
Morning	Morning	Evening	Evening
Strength	Back,Biceps	Running	Tempo Run	5.01	0:42:16	8:26	7.1	648	170