The five things I got wrong at Newark Half Marathon

Newark Half Marathon was one of my “Target A” races, one to see how I am progressing – with an eye on a personal best and as a stepping stone to Manchester Half Marathon in October.
I finished the race in 1:45:53, 7 minutes out of my personal best and around 8-9 minutes off my target time. Reflecting on my long drive back home, here is a short list of five things I did wrong, in the hope that I (and perhaps you) will learn from the mistakes ready for Manchester.
The five things I did wrong
- Forgot my gels! I know that a lot of people do not use gels, but I am used to taking 2 along the way (around 7km an 14m). The Project E2 Hydro Gels help to give me a bit of an energy boost of which I was definitely lacking around the 12km mark….
- Headwind – The weather plays a big part in the conditions and Newark Half Marathon had far from ideal conditions for PB – it was hot and humid but there was also a massive headwind for about 3 miles in which there was no shelter. I should have taken account for this, instead….
- I powered on through – Still on pace early on through to about 10km, but this included the 3 miles (ish) of headwind and the long climb to the top. I should have slowed down a little bit and use the tail wind and descent to my advantage. But by then I was too “gassed” to keep pace.
- Not enough hydration – I ususally start “topping up” on Project e2 Hydro from Thursday and have a bottle with me to drink through Saturday, but for reason 5, I didn’t do this and always felt thirsty, even with the five water stations Newark Half Marathon had.
- Too busy – Going home for the weekend is great, but I had 4 stops to do on the Saturday including to (large) meals. Not ideal prep for Sunday morning race and it wouldn’t be how I normally prepare the day before.
And the four things I got right
- Reframed – Once I felt “gassed” and my heart rate wouldn’t come down, I decided to re-frame the race by taking the PB target off the table.
- This allowed me to enjoy the race a little more and once I got to the last few kilos, I stepped up the gas again for a fast(er) finish
- Didn’t stop – I was tempted to stop and walk several times, but I beat the “demons” and kept moving (slowly) forward
- Forget it and move on – After writing this blog, and having a chat with my coach at Runstrong, I will put this in a box and move forward. Every race cannot be a PB and not all conditions are going to be perfect to achieve that perfect time
All I can do, is put these learnings into practice and prepare for the next race. A PB will come, it just didn’t happen today.
Get more stuff like this
Subscribe to my mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox.
Thank you for subscribing.
Something went wrong.