Cheers for posting this up. It's easy to look at youtubers like yourself constantly improving and getting annoyed at not being able to do the same. Seeing the way you deal with a disappointing result is just as useful and inspiring as watching you nail it like you have been recently
Just how candid you are mate separates you from so many! A full-time chef and park-runner turned marathoner who also runs 5k national times - an incredible story - and the best bit is we know the best from you is yet to come!
As someone very new to running, I find those candid "what went wrong" analyses incredibly helpful. Thank you for being so genuine! Onwards and upwards :)
Tough one Ben. Found your deep dive into what went wrong interesting and actually makes a lot of sense. We all have bad races (and bad workouts). Always good to look back and see what went wrong and make changes accordingly. Love your channel and content.
Good to see the ups and downs. I see Alfie had already ran the 1500 so imagine was looking to do as less as possible for as long as possible especially on a very windy day. As it was he was almost a minute off PB as well. Obviously fun to help out the team but can't imagine the LJ helped. I also have found it sometimes "hard" to arrive at a track venue so much earlier than your race. Being outside even sitting down just feels tiring. Also noticed last year your fastest track 5000 was your 3rd one and you haven't raced for a while. That all said this would have been a big PB just 2 years ago so shows how far you have come.
Appreciate how open you are about tough races. I had my first DNF in a 10k a couple of weeks ago and it is very reassuring to see that it can happen to everyone. Your attitude towards it, we can all learn from. Different type of inspo!
The mental tactics side of racing is something I've never considered. Mostly because I've never had to! Really appreciate the honest reflection, thank you 😊
Some really good reflection Ben. So many times we beat ourselves up saying why did I not want it more and with more considered reflection we can see it is not as simple as that. This has been a really inspired video, great work.
I am definitely glad that you did not experience an injury. When I first saw you had dropped all the way back I let out a “gasp”, because I thought you had injured yourself. I completely understand your disappointment. A couple of weeks ago I ran a 5K with a time goal that I did not reach, despite training for it. I too have had to take a step back and look at where I can improve on my own plan. My next 5K is next week, so hopefully I’ll meet it. Thanks for the upload!
Well done on doing the long jump. I'm sorry it didn't work out for the 5km; I think there is a massive learning there about the pace change and how to cope with it. You weren't quite able to deal with it but you did do the best you could at the time. Please don't beat yourself up, you've learnt loads!
So many of the things you say feels so honest and very relatable for me. It's really inspirational to know that other people you look up to go through things like this as well. Thanks for this one Ben
Tough one, that. But it sounds like you've taken some valuable lessons from it. I'll certainly try to take the philosophical approach that you've taken here next time a race doesn't go to my plan. Back yourself in the next one bro, we all do and you're too good a runner not to! 👊
I appreciate the rawness and realness of you working through the challenges - that is as important as all the lighter and successful stuff, but much rarer to see. Thank you!
Love your debriefs - you never shirk away from a bad race and always learn from it. I’m learning how to deal with shite days running through these videos. Thanks for sharing
So happy with all the content you are putting on. Enjoying it all a whole lot! Bad races happen, we learn from them and especially when you are doing something new or different it's good to give yourself the time to adapt. Great reflections. Happy you are willing to share them! Wish I can runt at pace some day in the future. But at 44 years old not sure I ever will. 😎
Really love the analysis that you gave of the race and the advice to write everything down so you don't dwell too much. Sounds like you learnt a lot from the experience to take forwards.
U learnt a lot from this Ben and what u have said makes perfect sense - like u say, run YOUR own race - and be confident in YOUR own ability - this doesn’t reflect on ur fitness it reflects on your discomfort at running a shorter distance on an unfamiliar terraine - the most important thing about this is that u processed what happened and you can move on in a positive way ❤
Kudos on going all the way up to Nottingham to earn points for the club. Great reflections on the art of track racing. So much to it beyond running as fast as you can, which on reflection might be the best approach for a long distance runner as you stated.
I can relate to this- I had the same experience in college more than a few times when we ran two or three mile track races. Yea I ran so long ago here in the states we were still running miles and meters, we didn't run meters till after around 1977-78. I was like you, really a marathoner, when the pace picked up I just couldn't go with it, at race end I really didn't feel all that tired and disappointed I hadn't done my best. What helped me was in my third season I spent some time with the milers doing real mile workouts, fast 220's and 440's , downward descending ladders like mile, 1320, 880, 440, 220. Gradually increasing the pace. For the 220's sometimes on the final ones the coach would pair us off and we would race all out. After doing a few weeks of training with the milers and moved back up and ran a couple of three mile races, that was when I ran my best times for two and three miles. From all the faster than race pace training that first mile didn't feel so fast and when the pace picked up I could respond alot better, then I just tried to maintain form and have something left for the end. I also thought that racing the two or three mile/5k on the track, along with the mile were the toughest races. There is no where to hide on the track.
Starting to see more of this content, and I'm loving it. Seeing that you, an awesome and fast runner has off days and races helps me get over a bad one too. I'm nowhere near your level, but seeing that you are human as well makes my failures more acceptable. Work goes in, results come out, most of the time 😂
Great video Ben. Really powerful to share the bad times as well as the good, and your dissection of it made a lot of sense, and was really interesting to hear. Hopefully it helps you build in the coming races.
Ben, don’t get down on yourself. You are definitely an inspiration. You obviously have talent. You have risen through the ranks and gotten so much faster. Stick to the process.
Great mindset mate. Was starting to think you were superhuman so nice to see a different side to you. Definitely still in PB shape from what I’ve seen. 1/3 of races go well, 1/3 mediocre and 1/3 sh*te. Well done for compartmentalising it mate!
I wonder how different the race would have been without the wind. Surely that's playing on your mind in wanting to sit in behind and not push from the front. Sounds like you learned a lot from it though and really like the 'progress isn't linear' mantra 👌🏼
No doubt Ben when you get more experienced to the tactical side of running you will be up there as you clearly have the pace to compete with the top club runners 💪
Ben, I could only dream of running a 5k right now due to my Achilles tendinitis. Better to run badly than not run at all. I know that doesn’t help elite athletes but it puts it into perspective.
I’ve found Mona Fartlek sessions have really helped prepare me for the changes in pace in a race. Not just in track but it has also helped with surges in road races, technical courses with undulations, slow bends and then fast accelerations and also stopping and starting for multiple turn arounds. Keep the floats hard so the overall effort feels like a race. Just a thought that may help you. Keep up the great work Ben, you are always an encouragement and an inspiration.
This was something I experienced as a club league runner, crazy event combinations and not racing at all like normal. I once ran the 800m straight after a 400mh, the captain's logic was I was already warmed up, spiked and had a singlet on so why not stay on track!? Great memories though. No offence to Nottingham but on a day where the wind was blowing a hooley and your 6 hour wait was punctuated by the LJ, it was never going to be a vintage run. That's club leagues for you. I'd suggest getting into a British Milers event for a more full on crack at the 5000m.
We all have our bad days mate, still an incredible time. When a sub 16 is a bad day at the office, speaks to how well you’ve come along. On to the next one Ben, big ups!
Funny game running. Both the mind and body need to feel strong. At my age, 62, even a wind is enough to throw my determination. Need to throw those thoughts in the bin!😂
3.05 - 3.10 per km, very, very slow for a 5k makes me laugh!! I would give my left arm to average 5.10 for km at the mo haha. But then I'm barely an 'average' runner. Great effort anyway Ben, onwards and upwards 🙂
It's because there is literally a gap between (sub)elite runners like Ben and people like us. Even putting the physiological factors (cardiovascular fitness, mitochondrial function, lactate shuttling efficiency...) aside for a moment, average runners tend to leave a lot of running economy (more a product of structural/biomechanical factors) on the table just because they can't even afford to sustain those paces for a non-trivial amount of time to begin with. When your aerobic fitness passes a certain threshold, you'll quickly realize that you can sustain paces that tire you much less for the same distance traveled because you dissipate less energy per stride and can take better advantage of your muscles and tendons' elastic properties (not to mention that you'll spend less time covering said distance while staying within the same physiological "zone") and the limiting factor will become your neuromuscular fitness instead. So even if you were to improve your fitness relatively smoothly, your running economy would go through noticeable jumps throughout the course of your training. That's why base building is so important and that's also why older athletes tend to move to longer, more endurance-focused races (aging has a more pronounced impact on neuromuscular than aerobic fitness). That's also why you shouldn't give up when you feel like your performance has hit a plateau. Be consistent in your training and you'll eventually pass a new threshold. Hope that rant helped you feel better 😉
@@maloxi1472 Nice rant. Here comes mine. Personally at the moment I am at a phase where my cardiovascular fitness is much higher than my neuromuscular aka I can easily run volumes and paces that will lead me to injury. The realization of this came two weeks ago when I completed with no issues a week with two "monster" quality workouts (from Daniels' marathon plan) and the week after I ended up with knee pain and leg muscles feeling incredibly tight. The physio pointed on quite a few trigger points in my glutes and quads which we started dry needling.. Thankfully it seems to work and knee pain has gone. I really need to invest into strengthening and stretching in order to take the next step in my running.
Races are all about learning, track Races are more tactical than even paced. I prefer road too. It's a very different mindset.. wind had a big influence as you are so exposed.. onward and upward Ben , still a fabulous time BTW.. 🎉
I'm far from being as fit as you, but I've noticed that "pushing yourself" is a limited resource that takes time to recover, and it is reduced if sick or inflamed, but also just from life events
I listened to your analysis. I feel like you have two plans for a next race: go with the pack and compete and go with the others if they pick up the pace. Or: run your own race and pace and see how it ends between the other guys. Those two approaches aren't the same, so I'd guess you'd have to choose, make a more specific plan?
The hardest part is coming away know you wasn’t able to give it your all out there, remember how it felt when you finished and use it to fuel you next race
Will be interesting to see how you get on at next 5k race against top athletes with your lessons learnt. Can you compete at 5k when you are racing marathons?
This is big difference between cyclists and runners. In cycling a quick change in pace over a slight rise, if you can't accelerate for those few seconds you lose contact.
random question but what’s your height and weight? you look pretty much how an ideal runner should look and i’m curious as to whether the numbers are what i think they are
Quite obviously you didn't win because none of the others had done the long jump earlier! Seriously though this seems like an experience thing to me and you definitely sound like you've learned from it. I guarantee that at some point in the future you'll look back on this race and apply what you've learned to help you succeed.
I'm here for the random athletics content - please have a crack at pole vault next time, I think it would be golden stuff.
His body is gonna send an alert right before the critical moment:
"🚨WARNING !!! NOT ENOUGH FAST TWITCH MUSCLE FIBERS !!! 🚨"
Ben should put the shot!
Just do the whole decathlon
@@1519Spring hammer
Like 400m hurdlers, 300m runners, their are only two of three in the country...
Cheers for posting this up. It's easy to look at youtubers like yourself constantly improving and getting annoyed at not being able to do the same. Seeing the way you deal with a disappointing result is just as useful and inspiring as watching you nail it like you have been recently
Yeah it is really upsetting if you perform worse for a while
Totally Agree
Just how candid you are mate separates you from so many! A full-time chef and park-runner turned marathoner who also runs 5k national times - an incredible story - and the best bit is we know the best from you is yet to come!
As someone very new to running, I find those candid "what went wrong" analyses incredibly helpful. Thank you for being so genuine! Onwards and upwards :)
Tough one Ben. Found your deep dive into what went wrong interesting and actually makes a lot of sense. We all have bad races (and bad workouts). Always good to look back and see what went wrong and make changes accordingly. Love your channel and content.
Good to see the ups and downs. I see Alfie had already ran the 1500 so imagine was looking to do as less as possible for as long as possible especially on a very windy day. As it was he was almost a minute off PB as well. Obviously fun to help out the team but can't imagine the LJ helped. I also have found it sometimes "hard" to arrive at a track venue so much earlier than your race. Being outside even sitting down just feels tiring. Also noticed last year your fastest track 5000 was your 3rd one and you haven't raced for a while. That all said this would have been a big PB just 2 years ago so shows how far you have come.
Appreciate how open you are about tough races. I had my first DNF in a 10k a couple of weeks ago and it is very reassuring to see that it can happen to everyone. Your attitude towards it, we can all learn from. Different type of inspo!
We go again!
The mental tactics side of racing is something I've never considered. Mostly because I've never had to! Really appreciate the honest reflection, thank you 😊
Some really good reflection Ben. So many times we beat ourselves up saying why did I not want it more and with more considered reflection we can see it is not as simple as that. This has been a really inspired video, great work.
I am definitely glad that you did not experience an injury. When I first saw you had dropped all the way back I let out a “gasp”, because I thought you had injured yourself. I completely understand your disappointment. A couple of weeks ago I ran a 5K with a time goal that I did not reach, despite training for it. I too have had to take a step back and look at where I can improve on my own plan. My next 5K is next week, so hopefully I’ll meet it. Thanks for the upload!
Well done on doing the long jump. I'm sorry it didn't work out for the 5km; I think there is a massive learning there about the pace change and how to cope with it. You weren't quite able to deal with it but you did do the best you could at the time. Please don't beat yourself up, you've learnt loads!
So many of the things you say feels so honest and very relatable for me. It's really inspirational to know that other people you look up to go through things like this as well. Thanks for this one Ben
Mate mega vid, very real and inspirational. I have watch almost all your videos this would be up there with the best
Tough one, that. But it sounds like you've taken some valuable lessons from it. I'll certainly try to take the philosophical approach that you've taken here next time a race doesn't go to my plan.
Back yourself in the next one bro, we all do and you're too good a runner not to! 👊
I appreciate the rawness and realness of you working through the challenges - that is as important as all the lighter and successful stuff, but much rarer to see. Thank you!
Love your debriefs - you never shirk away from a bad race and always learn from it. I’m learning how to deal with shite days running through these videos. Thanks for sharing
So happy with all the content you are putting on. Enjoying it all a whole lot! Bad races happen, we learn from them and especially when you are doing something new or different it's good to give yourself the time to adapt. Great reflections. Happy you are willing to share them! Wish I can runt at pace some day in the future. But at 44 years old not sure I ever will. 😎
Love the post-race reflections and analysis. Thanks for sharing these times along with the high fun times.
Really love the analysis that you gave of the race and the advice to write everything down so you don't dwell too much. Sounds like you learnt a lot from the experience to take forwards.
Great honesty Ben. I really love how you weren’t making excuses for yourself. Looking forward to your next race!
U learnt a lot from this Ben and what u have said makes perfect sense - like u say, run YOUR own race - and be confident in YOUR own ability - this doesn’t reflect on ur fitness it reflects on your discomfort at running a shorter distance on an unfamiliar terraine - the most important thing about this is that u processed what happened and you can move on in a positive way ❤
Thank you clair, very kind words. Much appreciated
@@BenIsRunning 🤗
Kudos on going all the way up to Nottingham to earn points for the club. Great reflections on the art of track racing. So much to it beyond running as fast as you can, which on reflection might be the best approach for a long distance runner as you stated.
I can relate to this- I had the same experience in college more than a few times when we ran two or three mile track races. Yea I ran so long ago here in the states we were still running miles and meters, we didn't run meters till after around 1977-78. I was like you, really a marathoner, when the pace picked up I just couldn't go with it, at race end I really didn't feel all that tired and disappointed I hadn't done my best. What helped me was in my third season I spent some time with the milers doing real mile workouts, fast 220's and 440's , downward descending ladders like mile, 1320, 880, 440, 220. Gradually increasing the pace. For the 220's sometimes on the final ones the coach would pair us off and we would race all out. After doing a few weeks of training with the milers and moved back up and ran a couple of three mile races, that was when I ran my best times for two and three miles. From all the faster than race pace training that first mile didn't feel so fast and when the pace picked up I could respond alot better, then I just tried to maintain form and have something left for the end. I also thought that racing the two or three mile/5k on the track, along with the mile were the toughest races. There is no where to hide on the track.
Starting to see more of this content, and I'm loving it.
Seeing that you, an awesome and fast runner has off days and races helps me get over a bad one too. I'm nowhere near your level, but seeing that you are human as well makes my failures more acceptable.
Work goes in, results come out, most of the time 😂
Great video Ben. Really powerful to share the bad times as well as the good, and your dissection of it made a lot of sense, and was really interesting to hear. Hopefully it helps you build in the coming races.
Probably the most important Ben Is Running video.
Love all the content, you remain a fine athlete and an inspiration to so many of us
some good reflections Ben! definitely run your own race next time and see where you finish then 🎉
Ben, don’t get down on yourself. You are definitely an inspiration. You obviously have talent. You have risen through the ranks and gotten so much faster. Stick to the process.
Love your club athletics content! Team effort all the way !
Great mindset mate. Was starting to think you were superhuman so nice to see a different side to you. Definitely still in PB shape from what I’ve seen. 1/3 of races go well, 1/3 mediocre and 1/3 sh*te. Well done for compartmentalising it mate!
Nothing to worry about mate! These things can happen. Don't let up, keep at it! It'll come eventually! Cheers!
Great for giving it a good crack anyway, the journey continues. Great video 🙏🏻
Ben - “Progress isn’t linear” I really like that! Good for running and life! 😊👍
I wonder how different the race would have been without the wind. Surely that's playing on your mind in wanting to sit in behind and not push from the front. Sounds like you learned a lot from it though and really like the 'progress isn't linear' mantra 👌🏼
No doubt Ben when you get more experienced to the tactical side of running you will be up there as you clearly have the pace to compete with the top club runners 💪
cheer up ben. onto the next one
Thanks Ben, some really intelligent and thoughtful reflections we can all learn from. Great video mate.
That was tough one Ben and I can see the fire in your eyes to put it right, and I am sure you will!!
Good on you for helping the team with the LJ. Take the hit in the 5k and move on.
Relax mate. everything evens up in the end. Keep running! (ben is jumping😆)
Was that a “quack” during the video at 11:58? 😂 Tough day at the office Ben, but good effort anyway. I’m sure you’ll bounce back in no time.
As a (below) average runner, your honesty is refreshing, thank you
Ben, I could only dream of running a 5k right now due to my Achilles tendinitis. Better to run badly than not run at all. I know that doesn’t help elite athletes but it puts it into perspective.
Bad day at the office Ben, well done on helping the team.
Let's go for the next one... well done.
Funny how we advance and push ourselves for better performances... 15 min for a 5 km and he's bummed out.... I mean wtf?!! :) Well done.
haha indeed sub 16 is an incredible time to reach
Don't be too down on your performance, Ben; the mighty Crawley AC have been striking fear into their competitors for many a year!
Good retrospective, go from the front in tactical races is your answer
Interesting about the track aspect. I don't know much aboout it!
I’ve found Mona Fartlek sessions have really helped prepare me for the changes in pace in a race. Not just in track but it has also helped with surges in road races, technical courses with undulations, slow bends and then fast accelerations and also stopping and starting for multiple turn arounds. Keep the floats hard so the overall effort feels like a race. Just a thought that may help you. Keep up the great work Ben, you are always an encouragement and an inspiration.
This was something I experienced as a club league runner, crazy event combinations and not racing at all like normal. I once ran the 800m straight after a 400mh, the captain's logic was I was already warmed up, spiked and had a singlet on so why not stay on track!? Great memories though. No offence to Nottingham but on a day where the wind was blowing a hooley and your 6 hour wait was punctuated by the LJ, it was never going to be a vintage run. That's club leagues for you. I'd suggest getting into a British Milers event for a more full on crack at the 5000m.
We all have our bad days mate, still an incredible time. When a sub 16 is a bad day at the office, speaks to how well you’ve come along. On to the next one Ben, big ups!
Funny game running. Both the mind and body need to feel strong. At my age, 62, even a wind is enough to throw my determination. Need to throw those thoughts in the bin!😂
3.05 - 3.10 per km, very, very slow for a 5k makes me laugh!! I would give my left arm to average 5.10 for km at the mo haha. But then I'm barely an 'average' runner. Great effort anyway Ben, onwards and upwards 🙂
It's because there is literally a gap between (sub)elite runners like Ben and people like us.
Even putting the physiological factors (cardiovascular fitness, mitochondrial function, lactate shuttling efficiency...) aside for a moment, average runners tend to leave a lot of running economy (more a product of structural/biomechanical factors) on the table just because they can't even afford to sustain those paces for a non-trivial amount of time to begin with.
When your aerobic fitness passes a certain threshold, you'll quickly realize that you can sustain paces that tire you much less for the same distance traveled because you dissipate less energy per stride and can take better advantage of your muscles and tendons' elastic properties (not to mention that you'll spend less time covering said distance while staying within the same physiological "zone") and the limiting factor will become your neuromuscular fitness instead. So even if you were to improve your fitness relatively smoothly, your running economy would go through noticeable jumps throughout the course of your training. That's why base building is so important and that's also why older athletes tend to move to longer, more endurance-focused races (aging has a more pronounced impact on neuromuscular than aerobic fitness). That's also why you shouldn't give up when you feel like your performance has hit a plateau. Be consistent in your training and you'll eventually pass a new threshold.
Hope that rant helped you feel better 😉
@@maloxi1472 Nice rant. Here comes mine. Personally at the moment I am at a phase where my cardiovascular fitness is much higher than my neuromuscular aka I can easily run volumes and paces that will lead me to injury. The realization of this came two weeks ago when I completed with no issues a week with two "monster" quality workouts (from Daniels' marathon plan) and the week after I ended up with knee pain and leg muscles feeling incredibly tight. The physio pointed on quite a few trigger points in my glutes and quads which we started dry needling.. Thankfully it seems to work and knee pain has gone.
I really need to invest into strengthening and stretching in order to take the next step in my running.
@@grgr6720 Nice ! Keep up the good work, you're gonna make it to the other side a much faster runner than you could ever imagine yourself as 👍
Races are all about learning, track Races are more tactical than even paced. I prefer road too. It's a very different mindset.. wind had a big influence as you are so exposed.. onward and upward Ben , still a fabulous time BTW.. 🎉
Still very good time. Its good that you can learn from these situations. Next time it'll be better.
I'm far from being as fit as you, but I've noticed that "pushing yourself" is a limited resource that takes time to recover, and it is reduced if sick or inflamed, but also just from life events
Pleasure racing you 🥰
"Progess Isn't Linear". Love that 👍
I listened to your analysis. I feel like you have two plans for a next race: go with the pack and compete and go with the others if they pick up the pace. Or: run your own race and pace and see how it ends between the other guys. Those two approaches aren't the same, so I'd guess you'd have to choose, make a more specific plan?
You will bounce back like you did after Valencia, I'm sure.
The hardest part is coming away know you wasn’t able to give it your all out there, remember how it felt when you finished and use it to fuel you next race
Will be interesting to see how you get on at next 5k race against top athletes with your lessons learnt. Can you compete at 5k when you are racing marathons?
Shit happens. I love 5k races, keep them coming!
Love the fact you still didn’t come last in the long jump!
Believe 🙌💪🏻
This is big difference between cyclists and runners. In cycling a quick change in pace over a slight rise, if you can't accelerate for those few seconds you lose contact.
random question but what’s your height and weight? you look pretty much how an ideal runner should look and i’m curious as to whether the numbers are what i think they are
The best British jumping effort since Eddie the Eagle. (Calgary '88 Olympics British ski jumper)
Can't wait for the 3000 at Glasgow. Where you face me 😝.
Do more 5K races it helps.
Over half the long jump WR! not bad for a first go. Get those excuses in early!
can we get some ben is throwing content
As long as your hairline stays that solid, you’re always winning, Ben
Never go out to the front of the pack if it’s a windy race
I watched the race I think you realised that you were not in first places and that moment you gave up.
When your worst is faster than my best xd
Ben, that looks to me like mental fatigue. Have you had some mental downtime?
In my opinion you need more rest and recover days before the race
Well on the positive side you still PB'd in the long jump. 😏
only just noticed that you've dropped that cool intro you used to have. shame really, twas a goodun.
Quite obviously you didn't win because none of the others had done the long jump earlier!
Seriously though this seems like an experience thing to me and you definitely sound like you've learned from it. I guarantee that at some point in the future you'll look back on this race and apply what you've learned to help you succeed.
👍👌
15.40 a bad 5k😮
About a minute of a pb so it’s all relative. More about how I executed a poor race :)
@@BenIsRunning mate I'm trying to get sub19 lol
Good runs ain’t good without the bad ones mate (that’s my little saying anyway).
First
Mustache needs to go. You will see you get faster and more handsome
try the Shot put maybe you ll be better there!