Key Points :
- His application with the Guinness World Record is currently under scanner as they assess if his walk covering the equivalent of the Earth’s circumference in 1,496 days and 54,633,135 steps makes the cut.
- While he is waiting for the reply on his potential world record, Mr Bajaj is enthused to spread the message that walking is the best form of exercise for all ages.
- Having used a dozen pairs of shoes, at an average three per year, during the course of his Earth Walk, his central recommendation is to invest in a good pair of walking shoes and socks.
Vinod Bajaj began his journey in August 2016 with a humble aim of shedding some weight and getting fitter.A septuagenarian born in Punjab and based in Ireland for over 4 decades, has applied for a Guinness World Record after finishing what he terms as Earth Walk covering over 40,075 kilometres or the equivalent of the circumference of the Earth in under 1,500 days without stepping out of his home city of Limerick.
As he lost the kilograms, his enthusiasm for walking only grew exponentially and led him to cover out varying routes, including through indoor malls to overcome weather based hurdles.
The retired engineer and business consultant grew up in Chennai and moved to Scotland in 1975 for a Master’s in Management from Glasgow before his job made him travel to the Republic of Ireland 43 years ago, where he has been residing with his family at Castletroy. Mr. Bajaj said,”During the first three months of my walking seven days a week, I lost 8 kg by having a deficit of 700 calories per day. Over the next six months I lost a further 12 kg. The loss of weight was almost entirely due to walking and I did not have to change much of my eating habits.”He added,”Typically, I started walking early in the morning and completed mostly in two intervals, the first one was always for a longer duration. There were many times I did the entire walk in a single attempt. Starting early allowed me to finish up by early afternoon, which gave me plenty of time to do things such as shopping, bank work, house and garden work.”
He downloaded the Pacer activity tracker app on his smartphone to keep a complete track of his steps and its records indicated his major accomplishments along the way.It was the provincial Irish and world news that kept him association during his long walks, which fell within a 10 km radius of Castletroy.
He was received with a pleasant surprise when he stated what he feels as one of his memorable achievements. Mr. Vinod said,”By the end of the first year I walked 7,600 km and to my surprise I found that in fact I walked to India from Ireland. I continued walking and by the end of year two, I walked a cumulative total of 15,200 km and I found that in fact I walked more than the circumference of the moon (10,921 km). This motivated me further and I decided to walk the circumference of Mars (21,344 km).”In citation to his Earth Walk, which he completed on September 21.He added,”The difference between the Mars Walk and Earth Walk was approximately 19,000 km and I knew it was not going to be easy. I continued walking with an aim to complete my ultimate goal.”
His application with the Guinness World Record is currently under scanner as they assess if his walk covering the equivalent of the Earth’s circumference in 1,496 days and 54,633,135 steps makes the cut.While he awaits a reply on his potential world record, Mr Bajaj is enthused to spread the message that walking is the best form of exercise for all ages “better than running or jogging and it is cost-free”.His advice for fellow walkers:”Loneliness will be the biggest walking challenge and can partially be overcome by listening to music or podcasts. Make the umbrella your best friend so that no weather will upset your walk plan and self-motivation, discipline, consistency and time management are key.”Having used a dozen pairs of shoes, at an average three per year, during the course of his Earth Walk, his central recommendation is to invest in a good pair of walking shoes and socks.
Answering questions pointed to his family’s support he jokes,”My wife and siblings were not impressed initially as they all felt that I was walking too much and my health would be affected. Eventually they came around reluctantly and now hope that I will reduce my walk and not attempt a second Earth Walk, anti-clockwise.”
