So how do we keep getting fitter and faster? We work a little harder. Not by much, but just enough to continue to make those gains.

So in this plan we go to 120 points per week on average. And I’ve tweaked my approach slightly in order to get the team peaking for March and April when all the big races roll around.

So the first 9 weeks of the plan are similar in terms of training points to the level you have been working. Tuesday track sessions will get progressively more difficult as the plan goes on. So you might find your current fitness plateaus a little during that period, but we can’t be running our best all the time. If we push hard 52 weeks a year then cumulative fatigue and burnout will kick in.

It’s when we reach the new year that we ramp up the training. Pushing to new limits with tougher sessions, on both Tuesdays and on Sundays.

This 8 week block (which also includes a week off in the middle) should have you primed to run a half marathon PB at Paddock Wood and a new marathon PB at London. I think those should be the two main goals for this training plan.

The schedule has a very similar feel to it. Why change things when it’s working so well?

Your Monday and Wednesday evenings runs are there pretty much every week this time, apart from a few occasions after big Sunday sessions or races.

Tuesday morning will be track session or there might be weeks you want to swap that for a fast parkrun or joining the team in the evening. We just need to be wary if doing a quick parkrun it’s not the day before a big run on a Sunday.

Speaking of Sunday’s they will vary from your normal easy run which builds from 2-3 hours and then your half marathon and marathon sessions. The main focus will be on the marathon pace but I wanted to get a few half marathon sessions in here too.

I don’t feel like we need to set any lofty targets, other than setting a new PB. Running is a lot more fun when we are improving and I still think you’ve probably got 5 years of that still if you keep training smart and knocking small amounts off your PB.

Then when the time comes and you want to be more ambitious with the distances you run, you can make that switch into ultras and even the back yard events you mentioned. But right now, let’s keep doing what your doing, inspiring others and banking more PBs.

Any problems with the plan just shout. As always it’s super flexible. You’ve probably got a week off banked having run in the build up to this plan, so if you do fall ill or have a holiday that we don’t currently have in the schedule then we can use that week off then.

Keep up the fantastic work and let’s smash another training plan.