Marathon Handbook Podcast

The 2027 London Marathon has officially confirmed it will become a two-day event and Michael Doyle and Jessy Carveth are breaking it all down in an emergency episode of The Running Story by Marathon Handbook.On Saturday, April 24th and Sunday, April 25th, 2027, London will host 100,000 runners across two days on the same course, making it the largest marathon event in history and the biggest fundraising event in UK sporting history.
Chapters:0:00 — Breaking news: London Marathon goes to two days
1:09 — What's confirmed: dates, format, course & ballot details
2:26 — Why London made this move (1.33M applicants)
5:19 — The logistics challenge & why it's framed as a one-off
7:26 — Unanswered questions: charity bibs & international quotas
9:08 — Elite field pressure after the historic sub-2 hour marathon
9:57 — A landmark moment for women's marathon coverage
12:03 — Elite wish lists: who needs to race London 2027
13:46 — The money behind running two World Marathon Major days
15:00 — One-and-done or permanent? Jessy's take
16:26 — Will New York, Chicago & other majors follow?
19:13 — Audience question & wrap-up

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This week, Marathon Handbook news editor Jessy Carveth joins us to talk about everything you need to know to run your goal half marathon. Jessy is chasing a 1:27:30 at the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon this October, and we used her season as the framework for a complete soup-to-nuts guide on how to run a goal half marathon.
We cover everything: how to pick the right race, how to set A, B, and C goals based on where your fitness actually is, how long your training block should be, and what your weeks should look like. Alex reveals the threshold training hack he credits for his breakthrough half marathon in Houston. Katelyn puts her coach hat on and gives her honest assessment of Jessy's race-into-fitness approach. And... Jessy makes a surprisingly compelling case for doing things entirely her own way.
Chapters:0:00 — Intro & Channel Updates4:27 — Ranking Our Favorite Race Distances14:30 — Sponsored by Momentous15:53 — How to Pick Your Goal Race25:29 — Setting Your Half Marathon Goals31:25 — Adjusting Goals Through Training38:51 — How Long Should You Train?44:49 — Sponsored by RYTHM47:24 — Half Marathon Training Basics54:03 — Jesse's Unorthodox Training Plan1:04:58 — Long Runs & Training Evaluation1:17:37 — Gear: Shoes1:25:52 — Gear: Socks & Watch1:27:24 — Race Weekend Nutrition1:31:05 — Warmup & Start Line Strategy1:38:26 — Pacing & The Hard Part1:41:45 — Training in the Heat

Email: ⁠podcast@marathonhandbook.com⁠Join Run Club and Send Us a Voice Note: marathonhandbook.com

A 13-year-old from Utah just broke a mile world record that had stood since 1973. Plus: Olympic triathlon gold medalists are hitting the track, a runner completed every single street in Chicago, Yomif Kejelcha could break the half marathon world record in Buenos Aires and the marathon lottery crisis is getting very real.
Chapters:0:00 — Intro & show announcements
2:53 — Story 1: 13-year-old Angelina Alder breaks 53-year-old mile world record
5:13 — Story 2: Olympic triathlon champions Alex Yee & Cassandre Beaugrand go to the track
7:35 — Story 3: Joabe Barbosa runs every street in Chicago (4,000 miles in 680 days)
12:00 — Story 4: Yomif Kejelcha targets half marathon world record in Buenos Aires
15:40 — Story 5: The marathon lottery crisis — Copenhagen, London & what's next
20:38 — Outro

Jimmy Whelan raced the Giro d'Italia, wore the EF Education First jersey in the World Tour, and beat Pogačar in a U23 race. Then he broke his pelvis, lost his contract, and messaged his boss from a hospital bed in Europe to say he was done.Less than a year later, he ran a 61-minute half marathon on his professional running debut at Valencia, 13th on the Australian all-time list. He's now signed with Salomon, based in Barcelona, coached by Andy Henderson (also coach to Phil Sesemann), and openly chasing the Australian Olympic marathon team for LA 2028.In this episode, Jessy Carveth sits down with Jimmy to talk about:• Why he walked away from pro cycling after 8 years• How cycling built an engine that's tailor-made for the marathon• Training doubles, 200km+ weeks, and learning to manage load as a new runner• The Berlin half marathon blow-up and what he learned from failing publicly• His marathon debut plans and his 2028 Olympic ambitionsWhether you're a competitive runner, a cycling fan, or just love a great comeback story, this one's for you.

Why does every marathon training plan include so much easy, slow running — even when your goal pace is well over a minute faster per mile? This week, a question from listener Seth (a former pro cyclist chasing a sub-3 marathon) opens up one of our most useful conversations yet.
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Michael, Alex, and Katelyn break down the science behind easy running: zone 2, mitochondria, angiogenesis, the 80/20 rule, running economy, and why the world's best marathoners — including Eliud Kipchoge — run their easy days embarrassingly slow. They also share what easy running actually feels like in practice, how to gauge your effort without obsessing over pace, and why betraying the 80/20 rule is the fastest path to injury.
Email: podcast@marathonhandbook.comJoin Run Club and Send Us a Voice Note: marathonhandbook.com

Chapters:0:00 – Intro, Banter & What We're Covering18:07 – Listener Voice Note: Martina on German Pronunciation & NYC Events21:34 – Ad: Lagoon Sleep Pillows23:47 – Why You Must Run Slow to Race Fast (Main Topic)52:37 – Pronunciation Tangent: Capillaries, Claude & Canadian Quirks54:49 – Should You Race Again After a DNF? The Revenge Race Question1:05:55 – Outro & How to Connect With Us