IMO #31 - Thailand Ramble: Tokyo Marathon Takes, Brian Johnson’s 8 Steps, Workouts of the Week

I’m back with another fortnightly In My Opinion episode - sharing running observations, Q&A and personal updates.

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I recorded this ramble episode from Phuket during a 10-day Thailand and Bali trip where I’ve been catching up with friends while doing some work. Part of the trip included visiting Thanyapura Sports Resort to see if it might work as a future Globe Runners Asia training camp location.

I talk about some of the longevity content from Brian Johnson and walk through his “eight steps” framework - doing hard things, building a bedtime routine, starting the day with purpose, future-proofing your body, treating food like medicine, killing distractions, removing isolation, and avoiding motivational garbage.

From there I discuss Ben Felton racing two half marathons on consecutive weekends and use it as a jumping off point to talk about training and racing more by feel rather than being overly dependent on rigid pacing data.

I also cover the Tokyo Marathon, including frustrations with the race tracking app and a breakdown of Jake Barraclough’s Tokyo build - his high mileage approach, injury concerns, livestreams during the build up, race plan doubts, and the eventual DNF.

I mention other performances from the weekend including Nick Bester running 2:25 and highlight SECA member Merna finishing Tokyo while fasting during Ramadan.

Later in the episode I bring back Workouts of the Week with sessions for the 5K/10K, half marathon and marathon, read some hate mail, discuss emails about GLP-1 weight loss drugs and how they might affect fueling for endurance athletes, share Mark from Finland’s perspective on the doping crisis in Kenya, and finish by answering a question about Luke’s approach to the marathon.

Topics
00:00 - Welcome and Agenda
03:43 - Thailand Trip and Training Camp Idea
05:44 - Brian Johnson Longevity Lessons
07:56 - Eight Steps and Key Quotes
18:53 - Ben Felton and Racing by Feel
23:39 - Training Without Data Obsession
27:50 - Tokyo Marathon App Rant
28:40 - Jake Barraclough's Tokyo Build Up
30:54 - Taper Doubts and Volume Fear
33:17 - Race Plan and DNF Breakdown
34:14 - Rethinking Jake’s Training
37:16 - Shout out Merna - SECA Member running Tokyo fasted
38:49 - Workouts of the Week Return
40:02 - 5K / 10K Ladder Session
41:04 - Half Marathon Track Alternations
42:30 - Marathon 30K Progression
44:21 - Hate Mail and Ozempic Debate
53:29 - Kenya Doping Context Email from Marc
56:40 - Luke’s Osaka Marathon and Training Takeaways
01:00:43 - Wrap Up