goal pace) except for two miles run in the middle of a mid-week four-miler at marathon goal pace. “Even this small amount of goal-pace running is important because it physically and mentally reinforces the pace you want to run on race day,” says Baldaro

Speed up, but only to goal pace, because trying to ‘make up for lost time’ is a fool’s game. You can still achieve your goal time by speeding up slightly during the second half of the race.You slip off goal pace mid-raceThis is the time to give yourself

or fellow runners before the race to lighten your mood.About 25 minutes before the start do some walking, slow jogging, then a few 50-metre strides at race pace. Visit the portable toilets one last time. Check your post-race kit onto the baggage bus