2017
Overall I couldn't have wished for my running year to have gone much better. I racked up 3,595 miles in total - averaging 69 miles per week for the year as a whole. I avoided any major injuries - which is always the main base target in order to allow continued consistency in training, and maintained my focus and motivation throughout the year - in spite of a few times where it could have wobbled.
Last January my main aims for the year were a sub 15 minute 5k, a sub 31 minute 10k, a sub 70 minute half marathon and a sub 2:30 marathon.
The one targeted time that I missed out on was the half marathon, so perhaps it would be best to start reviewing from there. Early in the year I ran a pleasing half at Wilmslow. Despite missing out on a pb by 10 seconds (and missing out on my target by 40 seconds), in the weather conditions on the day and after a troubled build up with back and knee problems, it was a run that I was still proud of and I believed it was an indicator for better things to come. The other half in the year was Freckleton - my biggest failure of the season, but also a huge motivator for me through the second half of the year. I had been running well in the build up to the race and knew I was in great shape. Sadly conditions conspired against me and I ended off pulling up just after half way and suffering a DNF. It was a devastatingly frustrating moment for me at the time, but looking back I am 100% certain that I made the right call.
I used that disappointment to fire me up for the start of my marathon training ahead of Berlin, and it spurred me on to prove a point both to myself and others. I trained harder and with more commitment and determination than ever before and over the 12 weeks I averaged 84 miles per week, with some serious sessions involved too. I got my reward with a finish time of 2:28:37 and I have now put the marathon to bed for a little while again.
The first goal I successfully achieved in the year was the sub 15 minute 5k, which I achieved twice in the spring at Mid Cheshire (14:52) and Christleton (14:57). For a long time this year this was my biggest achievement, especially off little track work - it is definitely a distance that I feel I still have a lot of room for improvement if I can put a bit more focus and specific training in place.
Around the same time as I was running my quick 5k times, I also went close on three occasions to running a sub 31 minute 10k, running 31:12 at Cheshire, 31:10 at Trafford and 31:01 at Salford. With the postponement of Telford in December, I though I had just missed out on dipping that particular barrier...
I have been really pleased with my form over the last couple of months since the marathon. I have managed to hit the ground running (excuse the pun 😏) and have put in without my best performances to date off the back of it. The 10 mile result at Brampton to Carlisle (50:06 and winning the northern championships) is definitely my most complete run to date. Then to round the year off I managed to finally go sub 31 for the 10k at Ribble Valley on the last day of the year, running a big new pb of 30:25.
2018
So what next? For starters I face a bit of a new challenge in my training, as Ribble Valley was my final performance under the coaching of Rob Affleck. Rob has been fantastic for me and we have worked great together over the last 4 and a half years, but this is a decision that we have been discussing for a while now and both agreed that it was time for me to try and push on in perhaps a slightly different direction. Without doubt I will definitely still seek advice off Rob and use his knowledge to help me plot out races and some training plans and I'm sure we will still do some of our running together. I have seen the time I've been advised and guided by Rob as being like an apprenticeship, I was new to the sport when I first started training with him and didn't have much idea of how to structure a week of training or how to work to specific targets, etc. In many ways this is the end of that apprenticeship and is just the start of me looking to kick on now and make my own way, I still believe there is much more to come.
My main objectives this year performance wise will be to get my 5k and 10k times down as much as possible in order to help me eventually achieve the best marathon time possible when I return to the distance further down the line. Having now got my England standard times for 10k and 10 mile, I would also love to try and add the 5k and half marathon standard times to the collection too. I will probably look to target a half in spring and autumn and focus on the shorter stuff through the rest of the year.
Blogging wise, I have struggled to keep up with it a bit recently Although I still have the same passion for both the sport and for my writing about it, circumstances have made it a bit more difficult for me to find time and means to produce a weekly write up - so for 2018 I will be moving towards a monthly review instead, with perhaps the odd race report in between where necessary.
Thank you to everybody that has followed me on the journey so far, I promise there is still much more to come and I can't wait to get stuck into 2018!
