Coaching Call - London Marathon Training

We're now in the taper for London Marathon, so it's time to check in with my coaches, Sage Canaday and Sandi Nypaver of Higher Running. We go over how the training changed over the last 4 weeks, whether it matters that I didn't hit the splits in most of my key sessions, and a pacing plan for London.
0:00 intro
0:46 how the trainig changed in the last 4 weeks
2:36 why do Higher Running long runs have more faster paces?
5:38 evaluating the long runs
10:05 were the paces too aggressive?
13:39 running scared
17:55 getting through fear
20:10 sage on Kofuzi's strengths as a runner
23:12 pacing plan from Tokyo
28:15 pacing plan for London
34:29 taper for London
38:07 tips for staying hydrated when everyone else is celebrating
Thanks for watching! Leave a comment to let me know you stopped by!
the last coaching call: • Coaching Call - Sandi ...
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[@Vo2maxProductions]

Hey thanks for letting us write hard workouts for you! You've been putting in a lot of hard work and really pushing yourself and so it's already been a process and journey to be proud of! Keep it up and it's taper time now!

[@musclelessfitness2045]

Good job! Hope everything works out well for Kofuzi

[@musclelessfitness2045]

It's unfortunate the plan didn't work out well. I think Kofuzi's influencer work added stress to him. I also think the fact that he couldn't hit those hard paces was a sign that he might have been over-stressed or over-trained. Nice try Sage and Kofuzi :)

[@justned123]

My thoughts is that his job requires him to walk so much before races, that's too much time on feet. See his Boston/London video and definitely look like too much walking, but that's sort of his job, may even be more important than marathon PR. I wouldn't say the plan didn't work out.

[@mattheweley]

This series has been so great. Many thanks to you and Sage & Sandi for the transparency and insight

[@kofuzi]

Glad you’re enjoying it!

[@hunterdaveler997]

@@kofuzi I second this, I have really enjoyed these videos!

[@Mainline-the-endorphin-vein]

These training block plan discussions are awesome!! Sage and Sandi are great! The discussion of mental approach/prep and to focus on confidence building take-aways is so important!

[@kofuzi]

I’m pretty much a head case

[@Mainline-the-endorphin-vein]

@@kofuzi hahaha. Not my intended message, but aren’t we all as runners 😝

[@jameschaves5723]

@@kofuzirunners by default are!! Lol

[@laurainthehaute918]

@@kofuziYou’re a kind, big tent guy. If you’re hard on yourself, you seem quite the opposite in how you treat others. Love the striving! Love the humanity. ❤❤

[@cathysohlberg4075]

For what it's worth, you sound soooooo ready. You've got this. These talks with Sage and Sandi have been the best thing I've seen - so informative (and I've run 31 marathons - London will be 32). Enjoy the day in London and have faith in all the hard work you've put in.

[@macau.friend]

This is a super helpful discussion. Thank you! I’ve always done my long runs super easy, but now that I am trying to go from sub 330 to sub 315, will need to incorporate some tough workouts into them. Btw, Tokyo 2023 was just special in many ways. The course, the weather… everything was perfect on that day.

[@fabianwolf6297]

Hey Kofuzi, welcome to London, UK. I'm sure you will enjoy running London Marathon. I'm wishing you good weather. Last year it was raining. It will be crowded, so try to run yourself free. The faster you are the lesser people will be around you as you know. Wishing you a great run! Cheers Fab

[@kofuzi]

Looking forward to running this race!

[@JohnBirtchetSharpe]

A great series , thanks all for the transparancy from all sides , good coaching is worth it's weight in gold, but so are good students.

[@marcuslockhart4610]

Great talk. I am a similar age and pace so definitely rooting for you in London. When Sage was talking about the Pro 4 I was waiting for him to suggest the Rocket x 2...lol. I would love to see you continue being coached by Higher Running and train for shorter stuff this summer.

[@TheRunsPod]

Regarding the start and being busy - Green pen is for good for age runners so you'll be in a group of good runners (mostly sub 3 in wave 1) It will be busy but its not too bad if get positioned well on start line, just before mile 1 merge with blue pen runners coming from the right it can again get busy here, then at bottom of the downhill at mile 3 red pen joins from the left this is probably the busiest point and stretch on the road for a bit again you'll likely be in good paced groups from here and can get to work 💪

[@Theengineer39]

Great series! Thanks for sharing.

[@rescuedfriendsanimalsanctu8481]

Love these training talks!

[@jimoconnor8597]

Interesting to hear that "hitting paces" was such a topic of the conversation. My coach gives me perceived effort in workouts and very, very rarely a specific pace to hit. Like half marathon effort, 1HR effort, etc. Physically, I know what we are trying to achieve from his notes so I know a time is pretty arbitrary as long as I put in the work. Mentally though, I come away with the confidence of completing a tough WO vs being insecure about not hitting a time goal and forgetting I achieved what was needed in the WO. Building mental confidence is as important as the physical side for these faster goals for me. I do recognize if you have a time goal that some workouts centered around those times is absolutely necessary. I came back to listen to this again after knowing the results and I can feel the hesitation in Kofuzi's voice and his insecurity about not hitting some of those prescribes paces. Great series and phenomenal video for the race. Lots of work throughout this build to be very, very proud of. Sometimes, that one day, race day, just isn't your day. And that's OK.

[@kofuzi]

I've thought about this a lot when I first got the workouts. my understanding is that, I've done workouts to efforts rather than paces like you've described in order to train certain metabolic/aerobic systems. but the workouts given in this build were of slightly more or less intensity and generally of longer duration. I believe that the idea was that I was pretty fit already (coming of a HM PB), but to become muscularly and mentally stronger, I needed to play around the edges of the metabolic tipping points. or perhaps I'm thinking of the systems in a too discrete way. also, the paces adjusted as the build wore on, just as effort level sessions would result in different paces as a build progresses. so I think we are perhaps making too big a deal of paces versus effort when they are each data measurement proxies for strain. they could give me the workouts in effort or HR or Power or pace. none of these is inherently better or worse than the other, given a consistent underlying methodology. imo

[@jimoconnor8597]

@@kofuzi Makes sense. I know for me, I need to build that mental confidence going into the race as well as physical. Not hitting the workouts has impacted me in that area before and I went into a race thinking I couldn't hit the pace from the gun. Now in a race, I go fully off effort as I realized that the watch was actually slowing me down. It has taken a full 3 years to be confident in my effort based approach but it has worked exceptionally well for me. I really enjoyed the series and learned a ton (and still much of it goes over my head) from you, Sandy and Sage. Thanks for experimenting and giving us a glimpse into the process!!!!

[@MrJermson]

I've been following this series. Keep this going.

[@JasperPuttu]

This has been an incredible series! Perfect match and I hope you keep doing these. Good luck in London!

[@stevez3332]

always a very interesting and informative interview, i like that last like theres alot of growth in just showing up

[@leonaleewong]

You’ve put in all the hard work! Now it’s time to enjoy Boston and London. Full send!!

[@georgios.a]

Great video, excited to see you running my home marathon. First mile always very congested, opens up after that with a nice downhill to mile 3 where the different starts converge. Best of luck, and enjoy it!

[@EricLundgren]

Fantastic conversation!

[@Miketheswerunner]

Wow, learning so much from this. I think that we can do more than what we think we can.

[@videos-gl2qq]

awesome vid and insight. thanks. Ko is classic over thinker like most of us. Coaches like the naturals who are just, 'coach says, i do.' We're all guilty of it... paralysis by analysis. I think the naturals never even worry about it a bit. Prob like Ko is in his media magic and public speaking - no worries just do.

[@edrios3668]

I’m running in Green Wave 1 - hope to see you at some point during the Marathon. Your an inspiration - go smash London!

[@coreyjoyner1372]

I been out of the loop. Didn’t know you was running London! Hope to catch you out there 🔥

[@bloodstoneDX]

Super interesting exploration of coaches having confidence in what the athletes is capable of and the athlete doubting their own ability, super helpful in exploring the athlete’s/runner’s mindset

[@phillipbailey5391]

This was fantastic! Good luck in London!

[@kofuzi]

Thanks!

[@maxtoovey6954]

This series has been awesome to listen to

[@kofuzi]

Glad you’re enjoying it!

[@mad8298]

See you in London! I am a bit nervous about the crowded course, so all bets are off on my goal time. But, like you, I will give it a go. I'm sure all of your hard work will pay off.

[@teresavanlokven9767]

Very interesting watch. Were all so individual and Marathons are on the day !

[@LuisBecerra79]

I was going to start work early, but, I have 40min 🙈🤷🏻‍♂️😆😆😆. Great conversation Ko. 👍🏼

[@50stuff]

Great review. Looking forward to see the result. (I used Higher Running for Brighton Marathon and got a PR.)

[@musclelessfitness2045]

I love this video. Wishing you the best. The only thing I would change for the London plan is to run with the 3H group for 10-15k so that you profit from drafting, and then start increasing your pace gradually.

[@michaeldominic2070]

Best of luck! 2 great weekends coming up!

[@kofuzi]

It’s gonna be a whirlwind

[@michaeldominic2070]

@@kofuzi for sure! Hope I survive!

[@brittanywells8201]

Your training is setting you up for a solid sub-02:45 marathon for sure. Awesome job!!

[@kofuzi]

Maybe in a few more training blocks

[@brittanywells8201]

@@kofuzi yup!!

[@mikehobbs624]

Have a great race Kofuzi. How far back are you starting? It will be busy. Its always a fantastic atmosphere there, i might even see you out on the course 👍

[@hemberuk128]

Great video Ko! You mention you're starting far back so not sure what pace you will be able to run in the first mile, which start area/wave are you? I'm Green wave 1!

[@troykrone8216]

Have a great run! London is awesome! I will be sporting our Non Elite at Boston this weekend for my Unicorn Celebration!

[@kofuzi]

Hope to see you out there!

[@aarronvanburen8612]

Would really love some tips on how to get better at marathons for beginners. My first marathon turned into an ultra as someone messed with the course. I ran 30 in 6:11 Then my first PROPER marathon I hit on 5:54. I'm a former college football player (offensive lineman) so I'd like to not have such an embarrassing time. I also have an INSANE sweat rate. Love your videos and good luck Kofuzi!

[@hahaheslop]

I'll be working at the London Marathon expo, hopefully see you there! :)

[@kofuzi]

🙌

[@jameschaves5723]

Mike sounds like you just committed to TrackSmith night of 5,000m

[@shanemalaski1423]

I disagree with Sage on Kofuzi’s 5k times. He even said this when comparing high schoolers. High schoolers run 16-17 in a 5k bc they train for that event specifically. Not training marathon. If Ko specifically trained for 2mile and 5k I bet his 5k time would be 1730-15 after 3 months of training specifically for it. No marathon training straight 5k. No long runs over 12 and increases speed with his aerobic background he would see huge anaerobic gains. Then come back to half or marathon training with those speed gains and see some more success. I agree new training stimulus is always something to go after.

[@shanemalaski1423]

Your follow up answer I guess says you’re interested great to hear.

[@Vo2maxProductions]

I think Mike could probably improve his 5km time a lot of he trained specifically for it. Like go sub 18-min. But not a 16-min 5km (sorry Mike!). That's 5:10/mile pace. My point was that genetics play a role in what distance might be "better" for us. And the point was that Mike is probably "more of a marathoner than a miler". Sure, hs kids train specifically for speed and they are at the age when their sprint speed and Vo2max can actually hit a lifetime peak (things go downhill after age 18!). Vo2max will drop in one's 40s if they have been training at a high level. There is no way around the age factor or genetic factor despite what some training can do/influence. My other key point was the idea of "life time aerobic base". A lot of hs kids who may be talented and pretty fast running 16-min for 5km do it off of 30 miles a week (I did as a freshman in highschool). But they lack years of consistent high mileage (Lots of Zone 2) to create that "speed endurance" needed to maximize one's potential and well rounded stamina/endurance in a much longer distance race like a marathon. That generally takes more years and higher mileage (i.e. well over 50-60-miles a week for most people) as well as specific 20-mile long runs etc. But time, age, and experience are also bigger factors (as well as muscle structure, specific Running Economy etc). I do agree it's good to cycle 5km-10km and half marathon racing (for PRs) with marathon training blocks at different times during the year. We're always trying to work on speed and efficiency and Vo2max and speeding up lactate threshold and aerobic threshold pace ranges.

[@GeorgeRon]

The part where you go into the workout dreading it is probably a mental and energy disconnect. Try connecting energy and mental emotion with the workout , thats a pre-workout preparation for you. Interesting episode. Good luck for London.

[@kofuzi]

I’m not sure what that means but I’ll try

[@GeorgeRon]

@@kofuzi Basically similar as what the female coach (Sandy?) is saying there. Just hype yourself up, believe you can. Going into a high effort workout low on mental fuel is the issue I'm highlighting.

[@nevillecollaga7081]

whoop!

[@kofuzi]

Yo!

[@jamesbenjamins]

Would have been fab if coaches could have been in London with you hehehhe

[@user-bi5js5oe1v]

London is very tough at the start, very narrow and lots of objects to avoid in the middle of the road. There are 3 starting points so not sure if all are the same, but at least the one I had was very winding and difficult to pass people, so plan to do 5km at a pace that is slower than your intended pace...

[@kofuzi]

That’s what I was anticipating

[@user-bi5js5oe1v]

@@kofuzi having said that I wish you success in your London run. Have fun looking at people in crazy customs.

[@timkavanaugh6474]

Any follow up on this with London results ? Would be interested to see what they say

[@kofuzi]

Stay tuned

[@timkavanaugh6474]

@@kofuzilove it

[@jacobmatthew5298]

Did you wear him out?

[@stoicrunner2757]

📝

[@darvinmartinez972]

Have a great run London marathon What is your goal ?

[@ddyatlov]

I think Sage blocked me... because I made fun of his studio... but I had a serious question. for a training talk. what exactly is the benefit of a COOL DOWN after running? Just injury prevention? Or will adding a mile or two easy after workouts really take some minutes off my time on race day? I try to run a little after, but really not very much.

[@dimitar297]

Sage has to be very careful after admonishing people who were yet to be forced to comply with the mandates, then suffering a serious injury himself due to the coercion working on himself personally.

[@ddyatlov]

@@dimitar297 yea..... about that. I dont know if he's still denying that MAYBE there was some connection between his Frequent PSAs about getting Poked... and then the Lung situation.... seems to me like there might be a relationship...... although I don't like good people getting hurt. I got a lot of knowledge from his channel.

[@runnin3216]

It is more an issue of recovery. It brings the heart rate down gradually and keeps the blood flowing to help flush the metabolic waste.

[@chrisdick726]

The dream team! Looking forward to starting my Higher Running training plan for Chicago down the road a bit. All tue best for London too!