In this episode, Phil recaps his adventure at the Rio De Janeiro Marathon, sharing highlights of the culture, the race, and a mishap even his 'Black Jesus' powers couldn't prevent.

We catch up on everyone's training: Marcus and Phil are gearing up for the Berlin Marathon, Rob is preparing for the Chicago Marathon, and CJ is back in the game training for the NYC Marathon. CJ is back.

We give an update on our Jordan sneakers, discussing the hits and misses, with Phil calling out the guys for not showing up in their J's at the marathon expos.

Rob gives a part two to the experience in the Boston medical tent thermometer check story.

Recorded on Juneteenth, Marcus and Rob have a meaningful conversation about the diverse shades of blackness...

Marcus talks about the origins and goals of the One Percent Running Club.

We also chat about our long runs, with Phil detailing running 20-mile sessions on a 400m track… Why?

This is like the barber shop chat for running podcasts, and whilst we give as good as we get, the respect is always there as we look to bring out the best in each other.

I've achieved eight sub-three-hour marathons, yet my personal best has stood for years. This series documents my journey to set a new record at the 2024 Berlin Marathon. In this episode, I talk to Sam Sutherland, who's progressed from 3:30 to a sub-2:50 marathon. He shares insights from our previous conversation offline, now recorded for the podcast. Achieving a sub-2:50 time is my next goal, and I'm excited to share the valuable insights from Sam's experience.

Sam embarked on his marathon journey with the 2015 Bristol to Bath Marathon, clocking just over 3h30 alongside his brother. With a newfound focus on training, Sam tackled the London Marathon next, achieving an impressive sub-3-hour finish in 2h57. Through dedication and smart training, he has steadily improved his time to 2h37, crediting consistency and injury prevention for his progress. Looking forward, Sam aims to break the 2h30 barrier, but it's mainly to enjoy running all over the world and make friends whilst doing it!

In this episode, I play devil's advocate to the advice I shared previously about setting up a marathon training plan. While there's a lot of well-meaning guidance available, the truth is that what works for someone else might not work for you.

Having run eight sub-three-hour marathons with four different training approaches, I'm now trying a fifth method. I understand that advice based solely on my experience may not be the best fit for everyone.

Effective training requires context and an understanding of the individual. That's why I encourage you to learn from others but also think for yourself when adopting new training programs.

I'll share lessons from others about training and life that have influenced me. I'll also reflect on my new 5K PR and the processes and lessons I took from that achievement.

In episode 4 of this series, I'll have a special guest joining me. Be sure to look out for that on your favourite podcast platform.