TO RUN CONSISTENTLY

YOUR TEST

Keep a training diary for a month – and include runs you skipped or cut short.

YOUR RESULTS

Identify your problematic patterns: when you skipped runs, was it because you hit the snooze button too many times or because you often had to work later than you had planned? Did you skip your hard workouts more than your easy jogs, or vice versa?

YOUR MISSION

Solve frequency issues first. For example, if you intended to get in four runs per week but usually only managed three, analyse the cause and build a fix for 2018. If your schedule is the culprit, reassign your runs to more reliable time slots (for most people, that means mornings). It helps to be honest about how many runs you can manage: ‘Ask yourself what you’re likely to fit in during an average busy week, not the best- case week, where everything goes perfectly,’ says Mcmillan. Aim to run at least every other day, which maintains consistency and run-specific fitness. ‘ If your week is going great, you can add in a bonus run, which feels so much more positive, mentally, than constantly falling short,’ he says.

Next, if you notice you avoid running hard or long, you can analyse why – but unless you’re already kneedeep in training for a spring race, don’t fret about it. Those types of workouts aren’t critical when you don’t have a race looming in the diary, but consistent running is. To maintain speed, throw in postrun pickups (shorter bursts at faster paces) when you have the time, and save your drive to nail every planned workout for when you’re preparing for an event.