Last weekend I faced a decision every runner eventually encounters in a race. Stick to the plan… or go with the moment. At the Tokyo Marathon — one of the most special races in the world — that decision came much earlier than expected. Getting into Tokyo is incredibly difficult, so simply standing on that start line already felt like a privilege. But once the gun goes… the mindset changes. You're no longer just happy to be there. You want to race. Early in the race I found myself in a massive pack running much quicker than planned. It felt smooth. It felt effortless. So I rolled with it. But as every marathon runner knows… Those days don’t last forever. Around 14km in, reality kicked in and I backed off the pace. From there I ran almost 28km completely solo, often not seeing another runner ahead of me. Tokyo has a unique racing culture and I got caught up in what I call the “Japanese racing style.” Start fast. Hang on for dear life. Risky for a marathon… But when in Japan 🇯🇵 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here’s the interesting part. As a coach, I normally tell athletes to do the opposite: • Stick to the plan • Control the pace • Respect the distance Yet in Tokyo I did the exact thing I usually warn runners about. I went with the pack. And honestly? Part of me loved it. It’s chaotic. It’s risky. But it’s racing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 💬 Your Turn Imagine you're standing on that start line. Your pacing plan says one thing… But the pack around you is moving faster and it feels comfortable. What would you do in that moment: Would you stick to your pacing plan —or take the risk and go with the pack?

You’ve joined the community. You’ve learned how things work. Now we move from learning → doing. TrainingPeaks is where your personalised coaching and training plan live. This is where consistency turns into real progress. 🏃‍♂️ Why We Use TrainingPeaks ✔ Your personalised training plan delivered directly to you ✔ Sessions synced to your watch automatically ✔ Clear pacing & heart rate guidance ✔ Progress tracking and performance insights ✔ Direct coach oversight This is where your running journey truly begins. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ✔️ STEP 1 — Create Your Free Account Note: If you are a tier 2 member you have unlimited access to Coach Nick's TrainingPeaks Click below and create your free TrainingPeaks account: 👉 TrainingPeaks (link) Once you sign up using this link, Nick will automatically be assigned as your coach. ✔️ STEP 2 — Complete the Runner Questionnaire Once your account is created, fill in the short questionnaire. This helps Nick understand: • your current fitness level • your running goals • your upcoming races • how many days per week you can train 👉 Runner Questionnaire (link) This allows Nick to build training that actually fits your life. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ⏳ What Happens Next Once everything is submitted: • Nick reviews your information • Your training plan is created within 48 hours • Your workouts appear inside TrainingPeaks • Your training officially begins And now the real work starts. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 🏃 Coaching Tiers Inside the Hub Every runner in this community can create a free TrainingPeaks account and explore the system.

There are two aspects to gamification that you can progress through. The one is pushing up your own level through community engagement. The other is the community leaderboard that the admin team reveals weekly and monthly. 🗓️ Levels: 📈 The importance of moving up in levels is explained in the post ‘How to use Skool’. Levelling up improves your overall profile and in doing so, as you move up in levels you can gain access to more resources. This is done through being active within the community. Making a post, liking other peoples so they like yours, commenting to start conversations, etc. How fast you progress in this is your choice. Leaderboard: ⚡ The leaderboard is something that will be announced monthly. Through the admin team checking in and tracking your individual progress on your training plan. - We will be able to see when you have a workout. - Monday to Sunday you will be training through the week. - The leaderboard results will be based on how consistently you performed throughout. - Staying at the top of the leaderboard steadily will lead to different rewards that will be worth your every effort. The leaderboard will also take into account how much progress people have made through the different introduction courses. If you haven’t gone through them and marked them as done, you may not feature on the leaderboard despite smashing out your training. Boom Shakalaka 🔥