A Pause, Not the Finish Line
By Shalaka Jathar Hingorani
One of the hardest lessons endurance sports can teach you isn’t about climbing mountains, running faster, or pushing your limits.
It’s about accepting rest.
For someone like me, that was perhaps the toughest challenge of all. I’ve never been someone who can sit still. I love being active. My days revolved around strength training, cycling, and running—my newest passion. Every week was planned around my workouts, with strength training always being my first priority.
Everything was going beautifully.
I fulfilled a cycling dream by conquering the mighty Chorla Ghat during the VCC Tour De Goa 2025.
I also participated in the VCC Duathlon January 2026 and performed well.
Then came a series of memorable 10Ks—the Belagavi Half Marathon, Goa River Marathon, Nagar Cycling
Run, and finally the Bengaluru TCS World 10K in Bengaluru, one of the best experiences of my running journey.
But somewhere along the way, I had picked up a shin injury.
It first showed up during the Nagar Cycling Run. I was unusually slow that day, and for someone who measures progress in performance, it was disappointing. I convinced
myself it wasn’t serious and continued with my training, hoping it would simply disappear.
Then came the Bengaluru TCS World 10K race.
I travelled with an enthusiastic group of experienced runners, soaked in their advice, and was determined to run my best.
I knew my leg wasn’t ready. But dreams often make us ignore warning signs.
The night before the race, I took a painkiller injection, hoping it would help me get through the run. It did.
I crossed the finish line with a personal best. The joy was indescribable.
But once the excitement settled, the pain returned—stronger than ever. It was almost as if my shin had patiently waited for me to finish before demanding my attention.
Even while everyone was happily pub-hopping that evening, I was literally hopping in pain. Yet I didn’t want to miss the celebrations. Looking back now, I realise that sometimes our passion makes us ignore what our body is desperately
trying to tell us.
Back home, I tried returning to my routine. The pain only worsened. An MRI thankfully ruled out a stress fracture but revealed inflammation around my shin bone.
The orthopaedic surgeon immediately advised complete rest and put my leg in a bulky cast. Now this was the real test.
Not the hill climbs, Not the long rides. Not the races.
Just…rest…. I struggled with it.
No gym. No cycling. No running.
I couldn’t even walk properly. I felt frustrated, anxious and restless. I pleaded with the doctor to remove the cast,
promising I would rest without it. He didn’t agree.
After managing with it for nearly two weeks, I eventually had it removed elsewhere. Although the cast was gone, the restrictions remained. Life suddenly slowed down.
For someone constantly chasing kilometres and personal bests, slowing down felt like standing still.
To keep myself occupied, I picked up canvas painting and completed two paintings during my recovery. I also deliberately stayed away from Strava and workout
WhatsApp groups. I knew seeing everyone else’s training would only fuel unnecessary FOMO.
Gradually, after about a month, I returned to the gym and started cycling again—carefully and without pushing too hard.
Running, however, remained off-limits.
Just when I thought I was ready, I made another mistake.
I attempted a 200 km BRM.
No proper training. Still recovering. High on confidence.
My injured leg reminded me that healing cannot be rushed. For the first time in my endurance journey, I had to quit midway.That hurt more than the injury itself.
I had never abandoned a ride before—not even the toughest ones. But this time my body simply refused to go any further. I felt like I had failed.
Friends and fellow cyclists reached out with encouraging messages and phone calls. Their support meant a lot, but deep inside I was heartbroken.Looking back now, I realise that my biggest opponent was never the injury.
It was my ego. The belief that I could push through anything. The refusal to listen when my body asked for rest. Today, I have slowly returned to the gym and cycling, though with much more patience than before. Running will have to wait a little longer.
Having sincerely rested now, I will be testing my recovery on the VCC Tour de Goa 7.0 , and when I finally return to running, I know I will appreciate every step even more.
This injury interrupted my journey, but it didn’t end it.
If endurance sports have taught me how to persevere, it took an injury to teach me a lesson in healing, faith and self-belief. Both lessons are equally important. There will always be difficult phases. There will always be setbacks.
But every setback carries a lesson, and every period of rest is preparing us for a stronger comeback.
The finish line isn’t going anywhere. Neither is my determination. I’ll be back. Stronger. Wiser.
And ready to enjoy every kilometre again.
Know the difference between productive pain and harmful pain
-Shalaka Jathar Hingorani
Hat’s off to your indomitable spirit and determination. Nicely penned. I am inspired to ride to Goa. Let’s Go Goa Gone 🚵🏻♀️
Wow. Shalaka you have expressed it so well.. we all can relate whatever you have written in some way or the other. Hats off to your passion, perseverance determination n dedication.. my best wishes to you in your future endeavours.. 👏👏👏🙏🙏👌👌
WOw this is a nice read.
Just some rumble strips on the Highway…. More to Go Girl 👍