A walk to remember

'I don't like resting' says 53-year-old retired CRPF officer who recently walked 1 lakh plus steps in a single day and is planning to do it again on November 8

Hyderabad-based K Ravi Kumar has been walking extensively since the past 26 years, and recently broke the existing National record of 1,00,128 steps in a day by walking 1,01,000 steps in a day. The 53-year-old, who voluntarily retired from CRPF, says that he couldn’t be more proud for breaking a record set by someone almost half his age. “I dedicate my achievement to my 77-year-old mother K Vilasini and to the late S P Balasubrahmanyam garu,” says Kumar, who walked from Tarnaka to Peddamma Temple in Jubilee Hills.

On September 17, he had also walked 80,000 steps in trying conditions of humidity and rain in flat 15 hours. His next long-distance walk is set to happen on November 8 and he is planning to do 1,00,000 steps and dedicate it to actor Sonu Sood. “He is helping so many people during the pandemic and I wish I could meet him personally and dedicate my walk to him,” says Kumar.

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Talking about how it all started, Kumar shares, “Initially, I started by walking 1 hour every day. For the last 15 years, I have been walking 3 hours every day. I realized my capabilities in 2010 when I first walked to the Chilkur Balaji temple from Tarnaka — it took me 12 hours. Since then I’ve walked to the Yadagirigutta and Keesaragutta temples. I am averaging 24,000 steps which is four hours of hard work every day. I wake up each day before 6 am. I have heavily trained and built up the stamina.”

Kumar says that he “doesn’t like resting” and has walked 70,56,513 steps so far and if converted in kilometres it is whopping 4,705 kms. 5 one lakh attempts this year is his goal. “The pandemic has led to less pollution and traffic which is good for walkers and runners,” says Kumar, who can be seen enjoying his walks at the Osmania University campus quite often.

Kumar, a resident of Tarnaka, did his schooling from David Memorial School, his intermediate education and graduation from Railway College and Post Graduation from OU.

So, what’s his diet like? “Believe it or not, I was a big foodie and obese before I started walking. Now, I eat very very light food and depend on a lot of juices when I have a big walk coming up. I eat dosa or idly for breakfast, a bowl of rice for lunch and rotis with a lot of vegetables for dinner usually. I eat cashews and junnu,” he answers.

Kumar, who also dabbled in table tennis in initial days of his career, says that his inclination towards spirituality has helped him achieve so much in life. “Sometimes I am amazed by my own strength at the age of 53,” he concludes.

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