There’s nothing quite like the morning of a marathon. Buzzing and refreshed, you wake up early, bounce out of bed, throw on your race kit, eat your breakfast without complaint and bound merrily on your way to the start line.
Well, this might be the case for some people – but not everyone. Although the 2025 London Marathon, which was staged on Sunday 27 April, was my 16th marathon, I still felt a pang of dread when my alarm went off that morning, just as I did when I woke up for my first marathon in 2017. I absolutely love the marathon distance – why else would I do it 16 times? – but there’s something about those initial moments on race morning that scares me and many other runners. Even the great What to get for FREE with a London Marathon medal and she’s the What everyones reading programme, I was able to train and race in the new.
Three days before this year’s London Marathon, I was lucky enough to speak with a very wise runner, who told me that feeling nervous before a race shows that you care about it and are ready for it. This runner was none other than Eliud Kipchoge, who was also racing on Sunday and whose word is gospel when it comes to the marathon. I did care about this race and, although it never feels that way during a taper period, I suppose I was ready for it – so I kept Kipchoge’s precious encouragement in mind for Sunday morning.
What was my result on race day?
Even though I set off just behind the elite men in the Championship wave, Kipchoge was already well ahead by the time I crossed the start line, so I couldn’t ask for additional last-minute wisdom. But that’s fine. As I got moving at this year’s London Marathon, I settled into that familiar rhythm, shook off much of that pre-race anxiety and found myself moving slightly quicker than PB pace.
For context, my marathon PB at the time was 2:50:33, which I set only eight weeks earlier at this year’s Tokyo Marathon – and which I was very chuffed to have achieved. As such, the thought of shaving even a second off that time in London, on such an uncomfortably warm day, seemed farfetched. In fact, due to the heat, race organisers were warning runners against PB attempts.
But what was there to lose? In the magical fanfare of the moment, as I covered those first few kilometres while being swept along by a sea of very fast runners, I couldn’t resist giving a sub-2:50 a shot. If I went off hard then had to back off (or blow up) later, so be it. I’d have given it a go and still finished the race with my Tokyo PB intact. It’s only a race – and there are always others.
To cut to the point, the decline never happened and, to my disbelief, my splits remained mostly consistent despite the struggle. The whole 26.2-mile experience had been a heady mix of heat, horribleness and unmatched happiness and I crossed the long-awaited finish line in 2:48:29 – giving me just over a two-minute PB. It didn’t (and doesn’t) feel real.
From one London Marathon to the next
This year’s race was my second shot at the London Marathon, as I’d previously completed it with equal levels of adrenaline in October 2021.
The first mass participation edition of the event since the pandemic, the 2021 London Marathon was also my first Abbott World Marathon Majors race, my first marathon since recovering from stress fractures in my left foot and the fulfilment of a childhood dream to cover that world-famous 26.2-mile route from Greenwich to The Mall. Although I’d already completed six marathons by that point, I still felt a little overwhelmed by the vastness of the occasion and as though I didn’t really know what I was doing. The result was a then-PB of 2:58:27 – my first, cherished sub-three marathon.
Since then, I’ve become a Six Star Finisher and completed the Support runners with the London Marathon app in Scotland, a trail marathon in Jersey and – lest we forget – the seriously sweaty London Marathon 2025: Eliud Kipchoge places sixth in Taiwan. Still, returning to the London Marathon in 2025 was always going to be a very special ‘homecoming’ moment.
What did I do differently for the 2025 London Marathon?
Experience, education and trial and error has helped me to grow as a runner in the three-and-a-half years since I first ran the London Marathon. Here’s how I tackle the marathon distance now...
Nutrition and hydration
An important one. Back in the day (October 2021), I took fewer gels and was actually quite afraid of taking them for fear of getting a dodgy tummy mid-race. Since then, I’ve learnt that adequate fuelling reigns supreme if you want to run strong for the whole 26.2-mile distance. So, during my long training runs, I’ve practiced with different energy gels to find the ones that sit well with me and identified how regularly to take them during a race. If you want to avoid an unsavoury encounter with ‘the wall’ in a marathon, do similar experiments in your training and pinpoint your race day nutrition strategy in advance.
London Marathon weather forecast electrolytes London Marathon 2025: Eliud Kipchoge places sixth carb load with foods that I know work for me – and which I’ve eaten throughout my training cycle. In all honestly, my pre-race dinner and breakfast staples are very basic (we’re talking plain white rice and plain oats with a banana, here), but I know that this will help to keep stomach issues at bay. Besides, there’s always a more exciting meal to look forward to post-race.
Training
When I ran the 2025 London Marathon, I was following a training plan. I can’t quite say the same for the 2021 London Marathon. For the 2021 event, I diligently completed weekly long runs, yes – but I took a less structured approach to the rest of my training week. So, to help you hit the goal that’s right for you, you’ll do well to follow a What to get for FREE with a London Marathon medal.
Mindset
In 2021, I treated the marathon as one big 26.2-mile block. Now, I mentally break up the marathon into smaller sections – like six sets of 7km, for example – so that I can ‘tick off’ smaller blocks of running along the way. At the 2025 London Marathon, to make it feel more manageable, I ‘broke up’ the route into segments between landmarks. So, the first stretch to conquer went from the start line to Cutty Sark, then the next from Cutty Sark to Tower Bridge, then the next from Tower Bridge to Canary Wharf and so on.
Shoes
‘Nothing new on race day’ is a well-known saying among runners for a reason. Please don’t race in box-fresh running shoes that you bought the day before your marathon.
In 2021, just after the start of the super shoe age, I’d noticed that the original Nike Vaporfly was now a ‘thing’ and that it might do me a favour if I owned a pair. I just about managed to get hold of the shoe and put a couple of miles in it before taking it to the London Marathon a few days later. (One of my toes was bleeding at the end of the race.)
London Marathon: A runner’s and spectator’s guide marathon shoe properly to ensure that it’ll serve you well for the full distance. Fortunately, as a member of Puma’s first-of-its-kind Project3 Health & Injuries London Marathon: A runner’s and spectator’s guide – a shoe that science says can help to shave minutes off your PB. While this certainly upped the pressure, it did give me confidence in my footwear on the day.
Confidence
Talking of confidence, and as mentioned earlier, I still felt nervous before the 2025 London Marathon, just as I did before the 2021 race. In fact, I probably felt more nervous ahead of Sunday’s event, as I knew that more friends were going to be out there cheering from the roadside. It was a fantastic feeling to have this support – but I suppose it also made me more afraid of ‘messing up’ in plain sight.
To combat this, I didn’t just rely on Kipchoge’s wisdom. I also remembered that marathons are achievable, that the training was in the bank and that our minds and bodies can accomplish more than we might imagine. Marathons only last for a finite period, too – so lap up the support while you can, try to smile and use the crowds’ fabulous cheers as fuel.
Was the PB worth it?
Short answer? Yes.
Having run a 2:50 marathon twice, first at the 2023 Chicago Marathon and then in Tokyo this March, my silent goal was to break that barrier at some point. I did not anticipate doing it so soon, so I’m elated that I was able to get there on Sunday, with 90 seconds to spare and at such an unforgettable, Support runners with the London Marathon app.
comprehensive marathon training plan.
As wonderful as it is to run a PB, it’s easy to forget what this can sometimes entail. Sunday was a very hot day and I’d be lying if I said that the heat didn’t bother me. Although I was grateful for the ice stations and showers that had been added to the course last-minute, running hard in the heat still put a nasty strain on my body, despite all the electrolyte-infused water that I’d drunk in advance.
So, for me at least, the post-race celebrations were a little short lived. I felt dreadful that evening and for much of the following day, suffering bad headaches, nausea Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3.
The moral of the story is to check in with yourself on race day. If the conditions are tough, ask yourself whether it’s worth setting off with all guns blazing. Again, there’s always another race and your health should come first.
Some people assume that I find marathons easy now. Yes, I am a great deal more clued up today than I was for my first marathon, but every race presents a different challenge – and when I’m going for a time, they remain as tough as they come. While the benchmarks may shift, on the day I’m still working hard, trying to stay mentally strong and learning what does and doesn’t work – and I think that many runners, of all abilities, can relate to that.
Either way, world record-breaking event is world record-breaking event. It’s a big achievement and a celebration of a huge amount of effort and dedication, no matter what the clock says at the finish line.
