Sometimes the Session Just Isn't There

Beachy Head Half Marathon 2026 Training Block - Week 8/11

Over & Unders - 7.38km

Today was a rare failure to complete the planned session. The workout looked straightforward enough on paper:

1km at 5:30/km
1km at 5:10/km
Repeat three times.

The reality was rather different. I completed the first two sets, but by the time I got to the third, there was simply nothing left in the legs. I stopped, took a short rest and then headed out for a cool-down.

Session over.

I'm not entirely sure what caused it. The headwind along the seafront certainly didn't help. Neither did the 84% humidity. Add in a fairly heavy training load this week, possibly not enough carbs, questionable hydration and the fact that I already knew before leaving the house that this was going to be a tough session, and there are plenty of potential explanations. It was probably a combination of all of them.

The biggest problem was the accumulated effort of the faster sections. Six kilometres alternating between 5:30/km and 5:10/km would have put a lot of that work around what is currently close to my 5K race pace. Today, that was simply too much. After the second set, I had nothing left to give.

I still covered 7.38km against the planned 9km, so I wasn't particularly short on distance. And despite not completing the workout, I managed to record my 7th-fastest 5K ever during the session. So I was definitely working hard.

I need to make sure I'm properly fuelled and hydrated when training loads increase.