Life after a heart attack

Dhananjay Yellurkar at his home. Pic/Shadab Khan

The two-year Covid-19 slowdown, when the wheels of a rapidly whirring world seemed to fall off, was a transformative time for many. Finance professional from Mumbai, Dhananjay Yellurkar, 58, used that time to write his recently published book, ‘Fuel for my journey,' a memoir about running marathons post cardiac surgery.

Yellurkar who is a Chief Risk Officer (CRO) with NIIF Infrastructure Finance Limited (NIIF IFL), is one of the very few people, "rare" as he said himself, who has run full marathons (42.2 km) across six continents post his heart attack and open-heart surgery, which he had when he was 46.

Write way

Through the 188-page book, the Pali Hill resident draws the reader into his life. The excruciating heart episode 12 years back and all the demons and doubts that dogged him, sole breadwinner of the family comprising wife Reshma, daughter Neeti and son Ishan are documented at the outset. Said Yellurkar, "During Covid, I started thinking about writing my life's journey. I took an online course on how to write. I had to keep in mind that these are two heavy subjects I was writing about, endurance running and health, so it had to be breezy."

From the first laboured steps post open-heart surgery, to going past the coveted 42.2 km mark in his first full marathon, pacing the 6-hour bus in the Mumbai marathon to overseas marathons on unimaginably tough terrain, the fuel for Yellurkar's journey has been grit, and rock-hard determination. "This book is a global one as that ‘bouncing back or resilience' is so many people's story," he said.

New beginnings

Some stand out features are that his work stops from being preachy. He writes about several setbacks, injuries, falling short of the finishing time in a certain marathon, the disappointment and post-race analysis, and a riveting account of running a marathon in Antarctica. His support system, immediate and extended family and friends become part of the reader's experiences. "When I started looking for a publisher it was tough," said the senior finance professional. "Some wanted me to turn this into a guidebook for running, what to eat, how to train… but there were too many in that space." He added, "We have become an Insta generation. My book teaches the value of slow progression and goals that are worth striving with every fibre of your being, though they may not have ‘tangible' rewards like medals or trophies."

The Director of Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine, Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, Dr Aashish Contractor, who finds mention in the book, as Yellurkar is his patient, said, "The big takeaway here is that life does not have to end after heart surgery. In fact, it can be a new beginning. One does not have to run marathons but the book shows when done correctly, it is possible."

Continent 7

COVID brought marathon events to a screeching halt, but the pace has picked up again. Yellurkar's next big run should be the full marathon in Chile (South America) this November. "I have registered for the Volcano Marathon," said Yellurkar about the looming challenge, a lung-bursting 26 miles, 385 yards in the driest desert in the world. "I want to give people hope, and empower them," explained Yellurkar who said marathons on the great stage help him espouse values he holds closest, "courage, discipline, honour, humility, kindness and faith. It is very rare for a bypass patient to run these marathons in every continent in the world, but I am extremely proud that as an Indian I have done so in six, reached Antarctica and now, hopefully Atacama, the desert in Chile, which will be seven." He does not run for records or recognition but we need to make some noise for this desi boy(z).