Here are some tips for any aspiring marathon runners learnt from experiences at London and Manchester:
UNDERSTAND THE COMMITMENT - Anyone can run a marathon, running a marathon closer to your ultimate potential is going to take thousands of miles and hundreds of hours of training, potentially 6 days a week, don't kid yourself it isn't, so carve out time in your day to make it happen.
BUILD A STRONG TEAM - Running with others with similar ambitions is going to make this journey easier and force you to step up your game.
LEARN FROM OTHERS - Look to your peers for advice, they were once where you are after all, identify what they're doing that you're not and make changes to your training. You won't step up if you believe what others are doing is beyond you, stop thinking that 'he/she is a better runner' and start questioning 'what are they doing that I'm not'.
TRAIN RATHER THAN RUN - Realise that just running more isn't going to cut it, either follow a plan or make up your own but run with weekly goals and purpose, marathon training is a journey, know where you're expecting it to take you. You will have to be selfish with your time, hopefully others will understand!
TRUST THE TAPER - By the end of your training block you'll feel exhausted, that feeling needs to go even if easing off feels wrong.
IT WILL HURT - Nobody is going to run their best without having to REALLY dig deep, in fact the faster someone is the more likely it is that they're adept at handling that feeling and running through it. The more you want a time rather than just to finish, the deeper you'll have to dig, if you want it, you will have to work for it.
DON'T BE A CHEAPSKATE - Runners seem to pride themselves on the amount of money they DON'T spend on their sport, if you really want to gain every last second you can then don't cheap out on shoes and clothes for both racing and training. If nothing else, then race in light shoes, you'll expend less energy.
FIND A PHYSIO YOU TRUST - You will need gluing back together at some point and it's worth the money.
EXPERIMENT WITH NUTRITION - All gels aren't equal, some work for some, some don't, don't ruin a race because you're unwilling to spend for better quality. I'd highly recommend Anthony Clark at Xmiles on this front. Equally listen to your body's needs for quality food whilst training.
DON'T LIMIT YOURSELF - If you believe you'll only ever run a marathon in X time or can only run at X pace then you've already failed. Stop looking at your watch, run on feel and if you believe you can hold an effort level for the duration of a race then go for it and hold on.
Pictured: Adam (left) and Ben (right), Manchester 2021