Hello, marathon training. It’s been a while.

I’ve done a fair few marathons recently without you. I’ve neglected you for that newer kid on the block Ultra Training. You’re not that dissimilar really but you do have your differences. I used Ultra Training to help me collect marathon medals this year in Manchester, London and Copenhagen. It did the job, but not as well as you would have.

I think it’s more than a year since I last checked in with you. And even then I tried to juggle you with Triathlon Training. That was the worst threesome ever. No wonder I ended up getting hurt. I blamed you for my shin splints and turned my back on you for a while. But really I have nobody to blame but myself.

I’ve told people all about you. I’ve hooked you up with a lot of runners that I coach and they seem to be getting on OK with you. Thanks for taking care of them.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, shall we give it another shot? I’ve learnt a lot since last time round. I understand you more and I’ll try to make more time for you. I won’t neglect you and I’ll listen to what you tell me.

So how about it? Are you up for a summer of early mornings and late evenings? Of long weekends and some fast and furious mid-week action? I think we can do great things together, and I know this is rather presumptuous of me, but I’ve already set a date. I think autumn in Bournemouth would be perfect for us. I’m game if you are?

I’ve started training for Marathon Number 15 and I’m gunning for a PB. I haven’t trained specifically for a marathon in a while and I’m actually really excited to get back to a focussed plan this summer. I’ll keep you posted on how I get on.

If you’ve missed my musings on this marathon training cycle, you can catch them all here:
UPDATES: TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE.