by ABFRLadmin | October 23, 2024
How to set an example: Learning the Ways of The Track from Anil Malik, the new Wellness Ambassador for AB Multiply.
We at ABFRL, present excerpts from our internal newsletter “InTouch”, where we celebrate stories of our people, their success stories and their contributions.
A daily wake-up time between 4-5 AM. 100 km covered every week on average. No parties for 5 years and counting. This isn’t a military routine, for some, like Anil Malik, it’s simply what it takes.
Anil Malik isn’t your typical corporate leader. Sure, he’s the President and Company Secretary of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL), but outside the boardroom, he’s also a force to be reckoned with on the running track. As one of the top 5 runners in India in his age group, and top 50 in the world – his achievements have inspired us here at ABFRL consistently over the years. Recently selected as a wellness ambassador for AB Multiply, a health and wellness initiative within the Aditya Birla Group, his mission to motivate employees to prioritize their well-being is being given a boost and will now touch the lives of over 100,000 people employed across the group.
As always, I was delighted to have the opportunity to sit with the man and decode what goes behind his dedication. His openness to discuss hardship and failure and the sheer mentality he exemplifies always leaves this writer with a boost of inspiration. Here’s how much he’s looking forward to the responsibility of motivating a healthier Aditya Birla Group…
Being chosen as a health and wellness ambassador for the AB Multiply App is no small feat. Out of over 100,000 employees, Anil Malik stands among a select group as one of the AB Multiply faces. But this recognition isn’t just about talent; it’s a testament to years of his unwavering dedication to the track. As one of the top 5 runners in India and potentially a top 50 contender globally, he embodies the power of commitment to a healthy lifestyle.
This commitment does not come forth easily. His routine is unforgiving, and some may even consider it a recipe for isolation…
Mornings begin at the crack of dawn, with a wake-up time between 4-5 AM daily. After some warming up and preparation, he starts getting in his kilometers, with a target to cover 100-120 km per week on average. It’s no easy feat, with just these workouts burning anything from 7000-8000 calories every week. By the time he’s done with his morning run, it’s 8 AM, time to get ready and show up to work.
This routine has been a fixed feature of his life for the last 15 years – rarely wavering from his goal to achieve a better ti2me in his next marathon than he has achieved in his current one.
This brings us to the most pressing question – How does one do this?
In his own words “It begins with setting your health as a priority. I decided to set out on this path as a long-distance runner when I was faced with health complications of my own, mostly brought on by a sedentary lifestyle. That was over 15 years ago.
Once I decided to give priority to my health, everything else fell into the background. Starting out is painful, of course it would be, but one must realise that the aches will get better, the pains will go away, the tiredness you feel, you will recover from – the important part is to stick to it every day.”
Noted. Just do it every day. Seems simple enough, now let’s get to the ‘how’ of it all…
Building Body Awareness
Anil is a firm believer in personalized wellness. He highlights the importance of understanding your body’s unique signals. From food to hydration, sleep patterns to stress management, every individual has distinct needs. The journey of figuring out what works best for them will be an essential part of the fitness journey. However, this will require one to pay attention to the needs of their body as they push themselves to do better. This philosophy resonates deeply with the Group’s focus on empowering employees to take charge of their well-being.
Set Long Term Goals, Celebrate Short Term Milestones
Even on this hard journey, rest and recovery is an essential mantra. In Mr. Malik’s own words “People need to realise that just because you start training today, you won’t start seeing results tomorrow. Sustainability is extremely important, and I would like to teach people, through my own example, to achieve their goals on a consistent basis. If you’re not sustainable in the way you train, you need to build that sustainability before you harm yourself.”
So how does one implement sustainability in their regimens?
Mr. Malik says “Don’t set an arbitrary target for how much progress you’re supposed to make in a week or month. The initial few months of your fitness journey should be first and foremost about finding your limits. If you don’t know what your limits are, you won’t be able to train to push past them. Overworking your body in the service of arbitrary goals is a recipe for disaster, you are sure to face an injury or burnout.”
However, this doesn’t just mean that one should waver in the face of any sign of pain. Pain is an essential part of the process.
Even Mr. Malik admits that it is inevitable “Running isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. First make up your mind that on this journey, pain will be a big part of the whole thing. Not just for the first month, it could be for the first 6 months or even a year. Personally, I felt it for at least 3 years in my initial training routine. Stick through it and you will develop resilience that will serve you well in all walks of your life.”
No Such Thing as Sacrifice
If there’s anything I’ve learnt from my own fitness journey, sacrifice is an essential part of getting to your goals. Sacrificing social events to stick to your routine. Sacrificing sugary and streetside snacks for a slimmer waistline. Sacrificing late night binge-watching sessions for a healthy sleep cycle. In my experience, all of these have been essential in getting to my goals.
In speaking to Mr. Malik however, I discover a completely different perspective on sacrifice that I never considered. He doesn’t really believe he’s sacrificing anything in the service of his routine.
“When you develop a passion, you work towards the goals it creates and never look at it as a sacrifice. I take inspiration from people like Saina Nehwal and other Indian athletes, who have lived the game since their single-digit years. If you see their struggles and read their stories, I couldn’t possibly use the word sacrifice to describe what I’m going through.
I have not attended a single party or get-together in maybe 5-7 years. On Fridays and the weekends, I wake up at 3:45 AM and run till about 8 AM. I don’t even enjoy going to parties anymore. On my Vacations, I wake up at 5 AM to get in a morning run and then get ready to go out with my family by 8:30 AM.
However, to me going out for these parties and social gatherings would be a sacrifice. I enjoy running and beating my time targets on the track, so every moment I spend training and bettering myself is also enjoyable. The early mornings, the grueling runs, watching my diet and the process of recovery – all of it brings me joy. I have never considered any part of my running routine as a sacrifice.”
He is, however, extremely thankful for his family’s support, and ensures his wife gets to be a part of all his achievements.
“For every race I participate in, whether it be in India or abroad, my wife is always with me and since the beginning of my long-distance running journey, I’ve made sure that this is something we do together. Her support spurs me on and always gives me someone to look forward to at the finish line. Of course, once my marathons are completed, she is also the person I celebrate with. Without my family’s support it would’ve been impossible for me to live this lifestyle and complete these achievements.”
There you have it, Mr. Anil Malik, the consummate inspiration for us all to dust off our gym shoes and put our bodies to the test.
What are the thoughts of the people at AB Multiply who’ve selected him to represent the Group’s Health and Wellness efforts?
We caught up with Rupal Seta, Head – Partnerships, Aditya Birla Capital who spearheads the AB Multiply initiative and is also a qualified, clinical nutritionist, who shared her thoughts saying “Anil Malik is the embodiment of our efforts in inspiring healthier lifestyles for employees across the group. His story and his achievements gave me that sense of how it’s never too late to own up to one’s health and make drastic changes to feel better. We hope that our campaign featuring him will inspire all our employees to focus on their health and wellness and experience the sense of achievement that comes from that success. We can’t wait to get started with his involvement in the AB Multiply cause.”
Inspiring a Healthier Workforce: Mr. Malik’s Journey From Now…
As a health and wellness ambassador for AB Multiply, Anil Malik’s role will involve showcasing his fitness story and successes to the Group at large. He’s truly passionate about getting his fellow employees moving. He wants to inspire them to challenge themselves and embrace a healthier lifestyle. One of his core messages he plans to focus on is the value of failure. Just like in running, setbacks are inevitable, but they are also essential steppingstones to progress. In his view, failure is the number one reason people stop focusing on their fitness journeys, but that should never be the case. Without failure, one would never truly know if they’re challenging themselves. If one is failing, it means one is finding their limits, which is an essential part of the process. He wants people to learn to rest, learn to recover, but completely forget how to quit.
Beyond Running: Lessons Learned on the Track that Translate to the Office
Anil’s dedication to running isn’t compartmentalized. He believes the lessons learned on the track translate quite well to the corporate world. He emphasizes the importance of leveraging your strengths while utilizing the expertise of your team to overcome weaknesses.
This collaborative spirit is a cornerstone of his career success, both on the running track and in his role leading his team. Just as a runner relies on their support crew and coaches to achieve peak performance, so too do leaders rely on the strengths of their team to achieve organizational goals. He believes in effective delegation and assigning responsibility (and with it, trust) to all members of his team.
What’s the Next Lap? Pushing Boundaries and Inspiring Others!
Through his dedication and passion, Anil Malik serves as an inspiration to all. He’s a living example that with hard work, self-awareness, and a commitment to well-being, anything is possible. As the AB Multiply app provides resources for healthier choices, Anil hopes to provide the motivation to get employees moving towards a happier future over time. As Anil himself says with no pretense “Come rain, shine, stress or setbacks, I always train 7 days a week. Anyone else can do that.”
Download the app here!
