Training for the Barcelona Marathon: An Osteopath and Parent’s Perspective

I’ve really started to get into running over the last 3–4 years — funnily enough, this more or less coincides with me becoming a parent. Somewhere between nursery drop-offs, clinic life and trying to keep some kind of routine, running became a way to clear my head and challenge myself.

That progression eventually led me to the London Marathon last year, which, despite record temperatures in the high 20s and a dramatic collapse at the finish line, didn’t put me off. If anything, it probably made me more determined to do another one.

So by late summer, I’d signed up to the Barcelona Marathon in March, this time running with my friend Jim who had moved to Barcelona for work.

The Plan

For Barcelona, I decided to follow a similar structure to what I’d used before:

• 4–5 runs per week 
• a mix of easy runs, tempo work, intervals and long runs 
• and, in theory, being a bit more disciplined with strength training and nutrition 
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The training plan was geared towards a finish time of just under 3 hours 30, although if I’m being honest, there was a small and deeply unrealistic part of me secretly hoping for something closer to 3:15.

That optimism only really exists before marathon training actually starts — when you’ve conveniently forgotten what marathon training actually feels like.

Training for the Barcelona Marathon started at the end of October last year.

An idyllic start in Cornwall

We were away on a family holiday in North Cornwall in late October when training began, and it was the perfect place to start. There were hills everywhere, which felt useful and virtuous at the time.

I combined the first week of training with a couple of surfs in wild Cornish conditions, long beach walks, and exploring rock pools with our 3-year-old. It was an idyllic start to marathon prep.

Of course, that lasted about a week.

Then London came calling, we returned home, and the reality of trying to fit marathon training around work, family life and winter properly began.

Fitting training around real life

One of my main aims this time was to make training work around life, rather than letting it dominate it.

I didn’t want to spend every weekend disappearing for hours on end, so I tried to build the training around:

• early Sunday starts 
• running home from work 
• and quick runs after nursery drop-off 

A lot of my weekday miles were done around Wanstead Flats, which became a bit of a regular training ground over the winter.

The challenge, as anyone training through a British winter will know, is that motivation and logistics are one thing — but weather, illness and life admin are another.

The ankle incident… two weeks in

About two weeks into training, I managed to nearly derail the whole thing.

One Friday morning before work, I was out running on the Flats while some tree surgeons were cutting branches nearby. I looked up for a split second, heard a crunch, and had managed to hit my ankle on a loose branch and roll it.

I did what most runners do and tried to run it off for about 5 seconds, before realising that was very much not happening.

Annoyingly, I couldn’t have been much further from home, so I had to limp about a mile back.

Two weeks in, and I was already having to take my own osteopathic advice:

• strap it 
• calm it down 
• stop trying to be a hero 
• reintroduce mobility 
• then build back balance and loading gradually 
• 
  

I held off running for around 10 days, and although I was back training by mid-November, it took another couple of weeks before it felt functional again.

Luckily, having a clinic full of osteopaths does have its perks, they really helped me recover quicker than was expected.

December: illness, busyness and trying to keep things moving

Training through December was a bit of a grind.

Life is busy enough at that time of year anyway, and trying to fit in regular mileage around clinic work, teaching, Christmas plans and general fatigue wasn’t easy. A bout of illness in mid-December cost me another week, which wasn’t ideal.

But by Christmas, things were starting to come together.

The miles were gradually building, I was averaging just over 25 miles per week, and then in the week between Christmas and New Year, I hit my first 40-mile week.

We also had some lovely news at home during that period — we found out Alice was pregnant, with our new little wrigglet due in July — so that Christmas had a bit of extra magic to it.

January and February: the real work

By the first week of January, I was already at week 11 of the plan — halfway through the full 20 weeks.

And honestly, this is where marathon training stopped being “nice idea” territory and became more of a slog.

January and February were the real working months:

• longer weekly mileage 
• repeated midweek runs 
• trying to hit long runs consistently 
• getting out in the dark and rain when motivation wasn’t exactly overflowing 

We seemed to have one of the wettest winters on record, which happened to line up nicely with some of my biggest training blocks.

A lot of those weeks sat around 35–45 miles (56–72km), and while I got most of the running done, I definitely know where I cut corners:

• I skipped too many interval sessions 
• I ducked out of a few tempo efforts 
• and I didn’t do as much hill work as I should have 

Which, as it turns out, does matter when you’re trying to run a marathon efficiently.

I also picked up another cold or two, because winter marathon training apparently comes with a compulsory side serving of illness.

One thing that did help massively during those heavier months was support from Sandy Rowe at our clinic, who helped keep me moving with treatment, exercise advice, nutrition guidance and a bit of accountability.

Sometimes when you’re deep in a training block, just having someone to help you keep perspective is a big part of staying consistent.

f you’re interested in what the training actually looked like week to week, you can view all of my runs on Strava here:
https://www.strava.com/athlete/training

Taper week in Barcelona

Before I knew it, race week had arrived.

The three of us travelled out to Barcelona from Wednesday to Monday to stay with our friends Jim & Ruth and enjoy a few days in the city before race day on Sunday.

I’d sorted my race nutrition beforehand and stocked up on energy gels from Lou at London City Runners, and about a month before the race Lou had me on her running machine to help me pick up a fresh pair of Saucony shoes — the same model I’d been using already, with enough time to wear them in properly before race day.

In theory, race week should be about rest, hydration and sensible preparation.

In reality, doing a marathon abroad means:

• a lot of walking 
• tapas everywhere
• and probably a bit too much Spanish Rioja 

All lessons for next time.

The Saturday before the race was nicely on-brand with the rest of training: it rained.

Jim and I headed to the marathon expo to collect our bibs and goodie bags, very nearly coming home with new sunglasses and a Garmin watch we absolutely didn’t need, then sensibly resisted and went back to prepare properly.

That evening involved spaghetti bolognese, the final day of the Six Nations, and watching England nearly pull off a famous win in France before losing at the death — which, in hindsight, probably wasn’t the most calming pre-race viewing choice.

Sleep the night before a race is always a bit patchy anyway, and this one also involved sharing a bed with a small child, which reminded me just how much space one tiny human can somehow take up.

Race day: Barcelona Marathon

Then the big day arrived.

A beautiful Spanish morning, perfect running weather, and the sort of atmosphere that makes you remember why people sign up for these things in the first place.

Jim and I got out early… although perhaps not quite early enough… and after a slightly frantic build-up, made it onto the start line.

The race itself was, for the first half, pretty close to ideal.

The first half felt like a dream:

• great crowds 
• city streets in the shade 
• good energy 
• and I managed to spot Alice and Ottilie on the route a couple of times 

I felt strong, relaxed and able to actually enjoy the surroundings, which doesn’t always happen in a marathon.

What I hadn’t fully appreciated was that quite a lot of that first half had been slightly downhill as we made our way out towards the beach.

Which meant, of course, that we eventually had to go back up.

The real marathon starts later

At around mile 15–16, I could feel the legs and body starting to complain, and a few unexpected loo stops had to be fitted in…

By the time we headed back into the city, I realised I was now paying for all the nice downhill running I’d enjoyed earlier.

Then came that classic marathon thought:

“Crikey. Mile 20. Only 6.2 to go.”

Which is a completely ridiculous sentence when you think about it.

That final stretch is where the marathon becomes far more mental than physical. Your body is tired, everything hurts a bit, and you’re mostly negotiating with yourself one mile at a time.

At that point I found myself thinking about:

• Ottilie 
• Alice 
• Our new arrival in July
• how lucky I was to be there 
• and the bigger picture of even being able to do this after the head injury I went through a few years ago 

That gave the final miles a bit more perspective.

The final mile (which felt about 10 miles long)

With about half a mile to go, I could see the Sagrada Família and thought I was nearly there.

Unfortunately, the people who designed the route clearly had a cruel streak, because there was still a 35-metre incline tucked into the final mile.

At one point I thought I was almost done, only to be sent left for one final loop. It was probably only a few hundred metres, but it felt like about 10 miles.

Eventually, the actual finish line came into view.

One last push. One last sprint. One final attempt to pretend the legs still worked.

By the finish line I had an extra 500m more than the race distance.....

And then — done.

Barcelona Marathon finished in 3 hours 27 minutes.

All gels used.
Enough water consumed to fill a small lake.
Enough leg ache to fill 10 massage tables.

Accumulated a extra 500m more than race distance

The strange post-marathon feeling

Immediately after finishing, the thought is usually something along the lines of:

“Never again.”

Then about 5–10 minutes later, you start to feel vaguely human again.

And by the time I was sitting in the Spanish sunshine with an Estrella in hand, I was already wondering what the next one might be.

That said, with a newborn arriving in July, the next marathon might need to wait a little while.

What I learnt from this marathon

Every training block teaches you something, and this one definitely did.

1) Hills, hills, hills

If I’m honest, I didn’t do enough hill work this time.

I got some good early training in while we were in Cornwall, but once I was back in London for winter, I didn’t consistently build that into the plan — and I think it showed later in the race.

2) I skipped too many quality sessions

The long runs got done, which is important, but I definitely let a few too many:

• interval sessions 
• tempo efforts 
• and harder midweek workouts 

slip by when life got busy.

That’s understandable — but also probably the main reason I ran well, rather than as well as I might have done.

3) Strength training matters

Like a lot of runners, I always know I should do more strength work.

And like a lot of runners, I didn’t quite do enough of it.

It’s one of the biggest things I’d improve next time.

4) Nutrition matters more than you think

Not just on race day — but throughout the whole block.

Eating enough, fuelling properly, and recovering well makes a bigger difference than most runners want to admit.

5) Don't forget about your head - psychology and what headspace you are in is so important in the lead up to the marathon. Some breathing exercises and meditation through the whole training plan, especially in the few weeks prior to race day is so beneficial

6) A spring marathon means winter training

And winter marathon training is, frankly, a bit grim.

There’s something to be said for targeting an autumn marathon instead — or at least something later than mid-March — so the biggest weeks don’t land right in the wettest, darkest part of the year.

Final thoughts

Marathon training is a strange thing.

At times it’s inconvenient, uncomfortable, time-consuming and mildly ridiculous. But it’s also one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done.

Barcelona was a brilliant race, a brilliant city to run in, and another reminder that even when training isn’t perfect, consistency over time still counts for a lot.

If you’re currently training for something yourself — whether that’s a marathon, your first 5k, or just trying to get moving again — keep going.

And if your first sunny weekend of spring involves 4 hours attacking the garden with a trowel, please warm up first.

Happy running everyone,
Alex