Nomadical Coaching

Couple of top events happening this weekend.

Chamonixrunfest. And of course ComradesMarathon.

If you’re part of either of those, enjoy as much as you can, and learn everything you need to learn. But that depends on you.

We can all always improve our skills - mental, physical, technical, raceday, recovery.

Fulham Palace parkrun #500

I was there for #1 and pottered around at walking pace at the 500th edition today. Excellent work everyone over so many years. 3 laps aren’t great fun and it is a bit tight now, but I think it’s where my parkrun PB comes from. Today I was more interested in the Egyptian geese and their goslings, the Canada geese, the patient heron, the maternal moorhen. Always a nice place to spend time.

London. Always a pleasure to support runners preparing for an incredible but fairly intense day at the London Marathon. Congratulations to all of them but also to those who make the atmosphere what it is. The charities out there on their feet from early morning. The friends, families, and total strangers who do the same. I think last time I tried to highlight all the first aiders, marshals, police, aid station folks. But the crowds are also vital.

A bit more work to do on fundraising, recovery, learning, and planning for future challenges. I’ll write something for people about that but I imagine everyone is enjoying a quiet day or two so I’ll leave them alone for now.

2026 Ballot is open...

Interesting one. Mostly drugs-focused but there are other forms of cheating. I know I’ve been in races where I’ve supposedy finished 2nd, when I never saw the person who won, or they suddenly appeared looking very fresh, and magically didn’t record times at some checkpoints. I think I’ve only ever taken a long-cut (got lost) rather than a short-cut.

I’ve never made a fuss about it. I won’t name the races. Maybe it was accidental. But it’s on race organisers to construct routes and systems that make it impossible. (In Afghanistan there were people who hopped on their friend's motorbike and amazingly won races). Put checkpoints in places that aren’t accessible by road, ensure timings are robust at every checkpoint. No CP time = no finish time = no prize.

Why Athletes Cheat Thoughts on why people cheat, in both professional and amateur sports.

After a longer-than-intended delay, #3 of my London Marathon notes is beaming its way to incredible people running for some amazing organisations. This one is about doing the work. I don’t mean running, I mean doing the work around strength, stability, mobility, flexibility. So when running time comes - and of course it will - people don’t break down. Invest and keep investing in all that other stuff and earn the right to put some kms through the body in March.

Experience from someone I was with at Everest.

Be very wary of roads + sticks. Keep to the trails where you can.

Proper running

King of the Fells: Joss Naylor, the shepherd with an unbeatable running record Fell running is a demanding endurance sport and Joss Naylor ran with all his heart. Fuelled by apple cake and Guinness, the English sheep farmer broke multiple long-distance running records. He died this year at the age of 88. His indomitable spirit and unwavering resilience live on in his inspiring...

HNY everyone. I'll get #2 of my London notes out very soon and it will touch on kit and the idea that The Plan is the thing.

But this is just embarrassing from The Guardian. Obviously just trying to flog things where they have a deal.

Just one of so many aspects of the running industry which involves extracting money. I guess there will be something on gels or sports drinks at some point.

You don't need any of these shoes. I'm only sharing it to show how the industry works.

The best running shoes to take you from trail to road to marathon, tried and tested by runners Whether you’re a beginner runner, a 5k faithful or a track star, our expert-picked running trainers, from Adidas and Asics to Hoka, will help you beat your PBs

The shortest day. A couple of years ago, for no obvious reason, I decided to cover the District Line as closely as I could. Wimbledon to Upminster before it got dark. I got a bit lost somewhere near Plaistow so I didn't quite make it. Not my part of the world. But it was very close. 50K+ I think. And I had to run to Wimbledon first to begin the thing.

Today, a gentle potter around Fulham Palace parkrun and then helping to sort out the token board of doom on a windy day.

We all have challenges and set challenges. Some are sensible. Some are not. All are fine. Do what you want to do.

It is apparently . I’m not sure of the exact purpose, it should be a year-round thing but I guess it’s counterpoint to Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Anyhow, as well as my personal donations, I will be doing what I’ve been doing for a few years - providing training and prep ideas for people running the TCS London Marathon for some amazing organisations that mean a lot to me. Starting tomorrow.

In the meantime, give something to something. Time or money, whatever you care about.

The longer races are closed for entries but it’s still possible to sign up for other options in the Marathon du Mont-Blanc series. Thoroughly recommend being part of it - all organised by the local sport club and far less of a circus than UTMB. Neither the KV nor 10k are easy, but you can do them both on consecutive days. That’s what I did.

Click on through to https://www.marathonmontblanc.fr/en

Next step is the 300 run mark. Slow progress as I live in France most of the time. But getting closer.

Anyhow. parkrun is a good thing. Volunteering is a good thing. Do both.