Err sorry, but this is INCREDIBLE. You're probably the most understated and no-nonsense 2:24 marathon runner who's ever lived. At times watching this vid, I felt you were describing how to do the weekly grocery shop. What you did is IMMENSE, and I hope you know that! As in - one in a million immense. Very inspiring for a newish runner like me, and your story has made me want to chase a more ambitious goal. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much, I appreciate that. I'm so glad that you've felt inspired, that's the reason for doing these videos. I'm just a normal guy who put in the training and ran quite fast!
Consistency is key 🔑 I am running my first marathon this summer 45 years old ! Your story and content is a big inspiration for many of us ! 💙 from London J.
I’m 42 also with 2 young kids and ran my first marathon 12 years ago in 4:49, over those 12 years I’ve done probably 15-20 marathons and got my PB down to 2:47 this last year. You obviously have an amazing natural talent. Most people don’t peak in the marathon until about 10 years of training. Keep going, I’ll look forward to seeing your progress.
Thank you. That's a great leap from 4:49 - 2:47, it must have been great to see the progress over the years. You're only 42 so plenty of time to keep improving, even if you've got less time now with young kids! I'll definitely keep going and thanks for following along.
I was definitely in good shape at that point from playing lots of tennis and was quite light, I had been out for the occasional run the past, but not much. I think a good general level of fitness can get you to a sub 40 10k.
Hi Jesper, I might well do, I'm in recovery mode from London and Bognor at the moment, Bognor was probably a bit too soon after London! so might be a couple of weeks yet.
Congrats. What an amazing achievement. I bet you wish you’d found running a bit earlier. With your obvious ability, who knows what you might have been capable of in your “prime” years.
Thanks very much. Yes I wish I'd started running in my twenties, a missed opportunity! I think the thing that keeps me motivated to keep going though is wondering how long I have left to keep running these times, and making the most of it.
@Patrick Martin yup, I wish I started running sooner too, but it is what it is. Just be grateful you found it, and pursue it to the greatest level of enjoyment you can. Whether that's doing the Boston marathon, or enjoying a scenic, leisurely 5k. It's a beautiful sport, I'm so lucky I found it even if it did take me some time to do so.
Thank you for this. I just recently, at 40 years, started to train running more seriously because of a health scare and made a lifegoal of a sub 3 hour marathon. Been running a super simple program of 6 days a week, 4 days 30 min. zone 2, one longer or faster and one interval session a week. Didn't actually seem all that reachable before.
That sounds like a really good plan. I love super simple and not too complicated. I find that these plans are the easiest to stick to and help keep you consistent, which is so important.
Good lord thats impressive. Can you go into a bit more detail of what lead you to a 38/10k? Did you do sports or fitness already and what did this "trained for a bit before" include?
Thanks! I always kept fit throughout my twenties and thirties. In the 3 years or so before the 10k I played tennis 2 or 3 times a week and did a bit of weight training 3 times a week. I also went out for the occasional run, but I thought 5k was a long way! Before the first 10k I trained for 2 weeks (maybe 3 I can't remember) every other day, probably no more than 5-8k each run. But I did live in a hilly area so I think that helped my fitness in that period.
@@patrickmartinrunning Thanks for sharing. I can only assume you were playing Nadal 2 or 3 times a week to have that base of fitness. All the best in your future races! Look forward to hearing about how the intervals help.
sub 40 10k off the couch is just straight up insane. i'm in my mid 20s been running for 2-3 years and have only ran sub 20 5k a couple of times. can't imagine sub 40 10k let alone with no training. incredible.
Hi Martin ,very impressed with your journey of late blooming straight into elite at 42vyrs.Appreciate your input for me in terms of breathing technique to improve my endurance I run in 50 plus category and usually clock sub 3. 30 for 42k .You should aim for a world record in 40 plus master category for any of the run 42 k ,10 k and 5 K 👍
@@patrickmartinrunning thanks a lot for your response. Fyi, I've just started runnin since april, I'm preparing paris marathon next april. I have a mid target which is a half marathon by the end of november. I'll take your advice by adding a lot of steady pace, hills with consitancy. I'll do my best. Thank you
Thanks so much! When I started running I just ran. I didn't have time for anything else as well, but now I'm beginning to incorporate strength training in. Hopefully it will help me improve.
Well all seems easier when you get the right genetics…dude you’re lucky :-) you have won at the genetics lottery and did consistent training. Well done! Unfortunately that is not the case for 99% of the people and your advice won’t apply to the vast majority since your genetics are just an exception.
Thanks for your comment. I think that if this maybe inspires people to get out and see what they can do within their own situation then it's only a good thing. I'm not saying that they will get the same results, this is just what works for me and what I enjoy. I wouldn't have known I could do this if I didn't try and that goes for any part of life, not just running. I've been guilty of setting limits for myself in lots of areas when in reality I don't know what my limits are until I try.
@@justiny5873 I meant that only a few people on earth can reach 38min in their first 10k at that age. That is completely insane :-). So hopefully when “normal” ppl read this, they won’t believe they can get the same results by using the same training. But I’m assuming that the OP has some sort of athletics background when younger. What is your background Patrick?
@@NicolasVERMANDE I have no athletics background at all. I played football when I was younger and tennis in my 30's which I think helped with my aerobic fitness.
At that time I didn't know anything about training so I just went out and ran. I think I would average 4.15 - 4.20 mins per km then and I would call that steady pace if I think about how fast it felt for me at the time.. Easy pace would be anything slower than that.
How long did you train for that first 10k and how many miles were your running per week? I am 21 and ran my first half marathon in an 1:36 on 9 weeks of training with an average of 25 miles per week. I was trying to compare my natural running ability to yours which is very good.
I think only 3 or 4 weeks for that first 10k although I would say that I was already fit from other sports before so I just needed to get 'running fit'. I was probably training 25 miles a week too in the 3 weeks before that 10k. I think at your age you'll see improvements quickly as you gradually up your training volume. The key word there is gradually, otherwise injury and fatigue is a risk.
Hello, I am writing this comment about a week after my previous one after I sprained my ankle last night playing basketball. I was really just getting into running and was up to 40 miles a week. I was wondering if you have dealt with anything similar and have any advice on how to recover quickly. I am also worried about losing most of the fitness I have gained from the past few months of hard running.
Hi Patrick, We are a sports supplements company and are keen to get in touch with you regarding our supplements and how we can assist your training and upcoming races. Please can you advise on what the best platform is to reach out? Thanks, Jordan
Should always include your fitness background to make a bit more sense of it. Most people will think you just got off your chair and started running like it was nothing, but you already had years of decent fitness pilled up. Congrats though, great results at your age, nonetheless.
@@patrickmartinrunning I just mean that if you were already generally fit, you were already on a level that wouldn't be considered a real beginner. You've said in another comment that you've played a lot of tenis, so I would consider that your fitness background, even if it wasn't on a good level, you still kept it consistent for years. That really adds up overtime, especially coming into an endurance sport like running, which is all about consistency. Adding that to possibly being gifted and having good genes for running, those are all great ingredients to achieve the great success you have so far.
Thanks! It is hard with young kids but I find if you can do it you get a bit of time to yourself that's needed when they are at that age. Good luck with cracking 2:40.
@Patrick Martin yeah that's right.i get up before work at 4am to get my weights in and run when they in bed.mine are both under 3, so it's very hard at times haha. Thank you And all the best with yours
Very Impressive. I want to know what your actual training regiment was. Honestly, I'm very skeptical of hitting a 38:27 10k from "just a bit of training" at 40 years old unless you're talking about doing a whole year of running before your first race.
Amazing job! Your story reminds me of Evy Palm. She also started training in her late thirties and made the Swedish Olympics team in 1988 at the age of 46. She won the Stockholm Marathon three times. Her best time ever was set at the London Marathon, 2:31:05 at age 47. If your story is similar to hers then you definitely still haven't peaked yet! 😊👍
That's really interesting, she sounds incredible and it shows what can be done. I hope it becomes more normal for people to keep running or start later in life. I hope I haven't peaked yet either!
Saw you run so well at the Bognor 10k and had a stalk on strava etc. Such an inspiration for us regular folk with a job and kids! Did 2.36 in my first marathon and would love to run a similar time to you at london next year. Think your lack of intervals actually saves you from injury. Keep up the great work
Thanks so much. 2.36 in your first marathon is incredible. Sounds like you're only going to get faster and London is a great place to do it. Yes it's hard with kids and a job etc but as we have both shown, it's possible to do something special if you want it enough!
Thanks so much. What I love about running is that you get out what you put in. You get the results when you put in the work, and if you can enjoy the 'work' even better!
I started running half a year ago (I've never run before, I was full-time sedentary). I'm 43, and I have improved my 10K to 56 minutes. You are such an inspiration.
That's brilliant, I'm so glad you feel inspired. Just getting out and running no matter what the time is really enough for me. Its changed my life for the better.
You see, the great thing here is if you keep going with your training, doing long runs, incorporating some speed and especially if you add some intensity (i.e. incline strides or hill repeats ... just remember, running up hill is like sprinting in disguise), your times will just keep improving and improving. That 56 minutes could become 45 minutes in just a couple of months. Oh, and another thing that will improve your times is squats. I never did squats but then I incorporated these into my daily routine and the strength gained in my legs was incredible, even physically I could see the difference and my times just kept coming down.
Kudos from Belize. I recently started improving my times by doing slight ajustments in my training after thinking a sub 20 5 k was unachievable for me and now im trying to aim for 17 minutes. The major change has been the millage. Thanks for sharing your story.
Brilliant! For me if I expect to run certain times I generally achieve them if I put in the miles consistently. I talk about that a bit more in this video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZyGEZfAGwnk.html A lot is in the mileage but also the mind. Adding the mileage sounds like it's working for you, which is awesome - keep going!
Your progress is absolutely outrageous! Stunningly impressive. You are in the top 0.00001 percentile, in on opinion. Clearly a natural runner with great lungs. Amazing work ethic to get to that level in 3 years. Do you know your v02 max? Must be naturally very high. Seriously well done. You're an inspiration and i'll be following! Subscribed.
Thank you very much! No I don't know my v02 max, someone else suggested I get tested for these things too so I might do. I'm so glad you've been inspired, that's my aim here!
For anyone else looking at these times and thinking far out these are way off my times. This dude clearly has pro genetics and a lot of mental toughness. If he started running much earlier he could have been a professional marathon runner. Running a 2:24 off three years training is friggin insane.
Those are really huge achievements and very inspiring to listen to your story. Looking forward to your following posts and hear some more from your journey trying to improve your running! 🙏🏻
Not sure many people your age are going to be able to get anywhere near that time for a marathon! Regardless of the type of training they do, you are an exception to the rule with a natural talent for fast running.
Your story reminds me of Steve Way. You clearly have a lot of natural talent to be a good runner combined with a drive to be great at it. I think you've hit on a great formula, building the aerobic base with high mileage. You might find adding the interval work into your week hard, as it takes longer to recover from. Maybe some progression runs might add intensity and speed without over taxing your system? Have you thought about Berlin? Looking forward to following your story, great tips and advice in this video 👍
Thanks very much. I think progression runs are a good idea and I have used them a bit in the past. Often actually when I've been feeling good on a run I'll gradually increase the pace. I generally go with how my body feels, if I feel like I can increase the pace towards the end of a longer run I will. I'll have a look into Berlin, I know it's fast and flat and good for a PB, I think the world record was set there by Kipchoge.
I think with your rate of progression you can definitely go sub 2.20. Do you maintain 100 mile weeks throughout a marathon block, or is it for a few peak weeks? What does a weekly schedule look like?
Yes for a marathon block I'll maintain 100 mile weeks, so about 3 months. I'm still learning what works best for me week in week out. At the moment I'm in recovery mode so running very little mileage.
"Maybe some progression runs might add intensity and speed without over taxing your system" - I agree with that. I actually do a lot of my training on a commercial treadmill which is great because you can know exactly what pace you're running at. I introduced progressive runs to my training. I do a 16km progressive run and dial up the speed every 4km. By the time I'm about to hit the last phase before dialing up for the last time (and already feeling a quite fatigued), I think to myself "I don't know how I'm going to complete this", but I do it each time. Even though I'm fatigued, my body just adapts to the higher pace and it's great for mental strength. This session is a love/hate relationship, but I just keep telling myself that this is one of the most beneficial and it definitely builds resilience that translates to the trail.
Congrats! That's an amazing time, you have a rare talent and natural ability and you're putting in the hard work and reaping the rewards. Good luck on your sub 2:20 goal! Do you remember ever running an 800m or 1500m at school in PE?
Thank you very much. At school we hardly did any athletics, the only time I really remember it was sports day when for some reason I always ran 100 or 200 metres. If I would have run some longer races maybe I would have realised I had potential.
Amazing, keep going, being 41 shouldn't limit you. With consistency and mileage, you can achieve a lot. It sounds cheesy but you have to believe you can do it first. That's my experience anyway.
Insane man. I’m 42 and just started running 5 months ago. I ran my first 5K in 20:04. I’m hoping to go under 20 very soon. Your first 10K in 38” is insane! Seeing your results is giving me hope that I’m not too old to be fast.
@@CallousCarter I was a competitive swimmer through high school. Then, basically no regular excercise regiment from my mid 20s until this January. I was 200lbs and out of shape. Couldn’t run 1 mile without stopping. Started running 3 days per week in January of this year. Ramped it up as my body allowed. Now I’m running 50+ miles per week and knocking on 19:20 5K if my training pays off. I also lost 40lbs just watching my calorie intake plus exercise. It makes me wonder what my ceiling could have been if I had started running younger. Still time to get better so that’s all that matters.
@@JohnRuggero I started running in my mid 20s and give myself the excuse that I should have started in my teens so you're putting me to shame. Well done.
After reading lots of books and trying lots of things, my best running (way slower than you!) was doing just what you said. I ran doubles (just 20 very slow minutes in the evening 3 or 4 times a week) and ran my morning run a bit faster (like marathon pace + 30 sec/mi) when I felt good (which was every 3rd or 4th day). FYI, the M45 record is 2:14 -- held by some guy named Bernard Lagat who I heard could run a decent mile in his day.
Your training does sound similar to mine, it's interesting that you tried lots of things and that gave you your best running. 2:14 is an incredible time for an M45, Bernard Lagat wasn't a bad runner!
2:09:12 by Mark Kiptoo is actually the record for a +45 year old male. It's in the process of being ratified. He ran it in April of 2023. He also ran 2:11:15 in 2022, so Lagat's record has been pretty well obliterated.
Hey Patrick, you mentioned running the half in 1.08. In London where you did 2.24, how did you approach the run in terms of pace? Did you intentionally hold back and paced yourself? And if so, did you run to your target pace or did that by feel? Thanks
Great work, Patrick! 1:08 high off of base fitness only....very impressive. I'll be very curious to see what happens next. Didn't start running until I was 30; I am now 43. I Ran 2:27 for my first marathon at 36 years old (by walking a mile) and eventually 1:07:28 for the 1/2 & 2:23:18 for the full (37 y.o.) NEVER would I have done so without x2-a-week training sessions and once-a-week long runs (all while training at 5,000' + elevation) Again....very impressive.
Thanks Michael! They are some very impressive times, especially considering you were well into your 30's when you ran them. It's interesting you say that x2 a week training sessions were so important to you. That is the usual formula but something I've never really done for various reasons. Base fitness has obviously got me to where I am and probably the missing piece are the weekly training sessions. I'm going to start adding more of them in my next marathon training block so we will see how that changes things.
@@patrickmartinrunning Thank you for your response! If you don't mind me asking, would you mind sharing the various reasons you have never followed this rather "standard" model of training? Thanks again!
@@michaelkettler3889 honestly I like just getting out the door and running and not thinking too much about it. I enjoy it much more that way. If I say to myself today I need to run 20x 400m and 10 x 200m etc and drive to a track I lose the joy of running. I like the freedom of just going out and running at a pace I feel is testing me but not too much that I get fatigued. Because I've got some good results from this has kept me motivated to keep doing it. It's about enjoying it for me and being consistent is really important so I might not be able to be as consistent if I didn't enjoy it. I hope that makes sense!
Makes perfect sense, Patrick, and as I have gotten older…it makes even more sense. Keep it up! I can’t wait to see what happens next for you. I took 6 years off after winning a marathon in 2016 and another year off after trying again last year. At the ripe old age of 43…we’ll see what’s next. Maybe one more :) Thanks for inspiring!
Awesome story and I am subscribed now. I think training for a 5k or 10K will make marathon pace feel much easier and help out in the long-term. Looking forward to following your journey
That's always how we train in Kenya. Train for Marathon like you train for 10k in your speed and interval workouts, Then increase millage on your long runs.
Yes I'm sure I have natural ability but I think there's a lot to be said for consistent mileage, so many people have proven that over the years. An early morning run is really good if you can face it because it gets it done. And yes splitting the runs up was really good for me, as long as I get 1 long run in per week at near marathon distance.
Amazing! I started running 4.5 years ago at age 50. I have run 5 marathons since September, 2021 to May, 2023. I am a little frustrated that I've put in much effort and have yet to best my marathon PB (which I earned in my 2nd marathon doing Boston). Your message of consistency and going by feel on any given day speaks volumes to me. That's how I started and saw rapid progress. Thanks!
I like your thoughts, but why do you keep a difference of less than a minute + between your easy runs and Tempo/Steady runs? Doesn't that make you injury prone
I agree that I should slow down my easy runs more often. I often do, especially when I'm recovering after a race, but I don't enjoy very slow runs as much, and for me enjoying it is really important or I probably wouldn't run. But yes I need to work on reducing my speed for sure.
Great achievement. The more workload the better performance is about the only general transferable principle to others. You obviously have responsive genetics and did the work to express them. Take 10 40 year olds give them 100mile/k per week, hard to say how many would run 2.24
Thank you very much. Yes I do wonder what I could have achieved in my twenties but life didn't go that way! I'm trying to make the most of it now, having found it late.
You should consider Valencia next (or Berlin I guess, also flat), that's a very flat one, and a lot of people get a PB there. It's in December, but temperature is ok.
You're an animal dude, I've been running for about 3.5 years as well and I can only dream of any of those times. I'll start with a sub 4 hour marathon and go from there...
Thanks! A sub 4 hour marathon is a great goal. Just doing that would put you in an exclusive club. Actually just completing a marathon in the first place is an exclusive club that only a small percentage of the population have done.
Super Patrick, thank you for sharing your inspiring and helpful story with all us senior runners! So interesting! I follow Jo Schoonbrodt on Strava, he is the current Marathon world record holder in the M70 class (his time is 2:54:19). Asked about his secret and why I don't understand how he doesn't seem to ever get injured he told me: "You are running to fast and too little!" His recipe is 2 runs a day, paced somewhere between 6:00 and 7:30 😳, barely any intervall training (as you said) and just some speed runs when race day gets closer. Works for him! Your recipe is rather speedier, with equally amazing success! My takeaway from you and Jo is: The older you get, the more you should focus on daily mileage, maybe (not true for you) at slower pace. And less interval training than the youngsters.
That's really interesting thank you. That's an incredible time for the M70 category! A lot of people talk about lots of slow mileage and obviously that does work. For me I find slow running all the time quite tedious and I'm not sure I would enjoy running as much if I did lots of it. I prefer a steadier pace when my body allows. But I do go quite slow when I need to recover or when I just feel tired. Yes for me the hard intervals haven't been necessary and are more of a risk injury wise.
@@patrickmartinrunningMay I ask a personal question to put the individual stress on your body in perspective: how tall you are and what is your body weight? Mentioned 72y. Jo Schoonbrodt is (and always was) a true featherweight at 181cm and 69kg - that is a totally different ball game in terms of physical stress on the body compared to a rather average runner like me (185cm, 84kg). Curious to hear what your physique is - from you videos I would guess similar to Jo, or?
I have a very similar body composition to Jo and that is definitely a huge benefit to me and I think a reason why I could run fast in my first races without much training and why I can run the times I do now.
Yorkshire has a steep hill at the end which is horrible! It's hard enough when you're at the end of a Marathon but that really wasn't fun. It also has some gentler inclines at around half way which I found very hard because there was a strong headwind. London is much flatter in comparison and I found it more enjoyable. There are some small bumps but nothing major.
this is my 4th year of training,I never did sports before ,I started at 27 with running and now Im almost 31. I've got 2:54 marathon some months ago... I hope one day to get under 2:30 😅
More questions sir.... And again well done for what you have achieved... You mention running steady, which is a pace I enjoy most. Do you run to HR or more to feel. I don't know where I saw it but it was mentioned somewhere that slow running and fast running are great but less gains with steady.... Sounds like nonsense to me but I appreciate your thoughts as I tend to agree with you on almost everything. Thanks for your time and keep up the good work
Hi Steven, I run steady pace a lot too, both because I enjoy it and because I think it utilises the muscles in a way that you would do when you are racing or running fast, but in a less stressful way on the body. I also like to get something quality out of most runs. The 80/20 approach where most of the running is slow is very popular, but personally I feel like I get slower when I run slow and enjoy it far less.
nice one! you obviously have some decent genes based on running 38min out of the gate. having said that Arthur Lydiard used to train a lot of guys in NZ in the 60s and 70s and they'd all be running 2:20 marathons and his approach of getting them to do a lot of miles is basically what you're doing, so it's not too surprising! epic effort keep up the good work!
@@patrickmartinrunning you've inspired me, I'm 42 and have a marathon PR of 2:39 (mainly an ultra runner). Might have a crack at a sub 2:30 later this year.
Keep running consistent mileage, I found it to be so important, I forgot everything else and focused on that. I can't say that enough! I made a video about it here ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZyGEZfAGwnk.html I always kept kind of fit before I ran that 10k, I think I had good aerobic fitness from playing tennis and football when I was younger, plus I wasn't overweight which must help.
You’re a massive natural talent but also putting in the work. I just started running at 38 and I’ll be happy if I can crack 4hrs in the Jerusalem Marathon. Two questions; Do you ever think about what could be if you started training in your teens? What sort of athletic activity or training did you do before you took up running?
Thanks, yes I do think about what I could have achieved had I started in my teens. It's a shame I'll never know but it does make me train harder now knowing that I at least can take this opportunity. I might have never found running at all. I didn't do much sport before running. I played tennis a bit in my late 30's and a bit of football as a kid. But other than that just always generally kept fit and healthy in my 20's and 30's.
Amazing to be running these times! Congrats. Would appreciate if you can give me an idea of paces to use for steady runs, easy runs and recovery runs. My Half Marathon pace is 4'10/km and my Marathon pace is 4'30/km. My 10k pace is 4'05/km. Thanks.
Its difficult to tell you what pace to run at because I always go by feel. I run my easy runs at a pace I could have a conversation at. My steady pace runs are harder but not getting to the point of reaching my aerobic threshold so I'm not gasping for breath. Steady is a controlled pace but it feels harder than easy.
This is incredible, what an inspiration. I am 36 and have been running on and off for about 5 years. I have fought with injuries since day one and can never seem to run for more than 3 months of consistent training without having to take 8 weeks off for injury. I am running my first marathon in November and would absolutely love to run sub 3hr. I think this is definitely possible for me if I could just avoid injury. I think I am going to start breaking up my runs to two sessions each day. Perhaps spreading out the miles will give my body a change to recover a little. Anyway thanks for sharing your story, you are clearly very gifted.
Thank you very much! For me, splitting the miles up each day really helped and it was easier than I thought to get the miles in. Sorry to hear about the injuries, it can be so frustrating. Hopefully you can get a clear run at the marathon in November and give sub 3hrs a good shot. Wishing you the best of luck.
Thanks Patrick. This is really really demotivating for many of us. You are the ultimate example showing that it all comes down to be born with talent for the sport and that all the hard training only results in some marginal fine-tuning. 🥲😂
