You’re Not Going to Make Every Kilometre, and That’s Okay

When you set yourself a big goal, something that feels just on the edge of impossible, it’s tempting to think you’ll follow every plan to the letter. Every kilometre, every training session, every metric neatly ticked off on the spreadsheet. But the truth is, you won’t. And that’s okay.

What matters isn’t perfection. It’s consistency.

The Power of Mindsetting

I get asked about resilience a lot. People tend to think it’s something you either have or you don’t, but in reality, it’s something you can build. One of the best tools I’ve found for doing that is mindsetting.

For me, mindsetting is about setting a clear mental intention before you act. It’s the conversation you have with yourself that says, “This is what I’m going to do, and I’m going to get it done.”

It’s simple, but powerful. You can use it for anything, from getting through a long run to tackling a huge, life-changing goal. It’s about creating a mental contract with yourself, setting your mind in the right gear before you start.

Making the Commitment, to Yourself and Others

When I head out for a training session with a partner, we always start with a chat about what we’re going to do that day. Ten or twelve kilometres? Maybe more, maybe less, depending on the weather and the route. But once we’ve agreed, that’s it.

That small moment of commitment makes a difference. You’re not just accountable to yourself anymore, you’re accountable to someone else. And that changes how you show up.

Even when I’m training solo, I build that same sense of accountability through structure. My spreadsheets, my training blocks, they’re not about obsessing over numbers. They’re about creating a roadmap I can stick to.

Working Backwards from the Goal

Right now, my focus is on 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days. It’s a huge undertaking, but like any big goal, it starts with working backwards.

I know where I need to be by the time that challenge begins. So I map it out: week by week, month by month. I work in four-week blocks with every fifth week as a recovery phase, half the distance, but still moving.

By breaking it down and putting it on paper, I can see not just the destination, but every step between here and there. It turns something enormous into something manageable.

You Won’t Hit Every Mark, But You’ll Get There

Let’s be honest, no one hits every single training session. Life gets in the way. The weather changes. Your legs just don’t want to move that day. But if you’re hitting most of your headmarks and showing up consistently, you’ll still end up in the right ballpark.

Training for something long-term isn’t just about physical effort, it’s about keeping your head in it. Ten months of preparation is a long time, and there’s no shortcut or last-minute cram session that can make up for what you don’t put in. You can’t “wing” 50 marathons.

Training Smart, Not Just Hard

There’s a temptation with endurance events to think more is better. More distance. More hours. More effort. But overtraining is as dangerous as undertraining.

For the 50/50 challenge, the furthest I’ll have to run in one sitting is a marathon. So my goal isn’t to do back-to-back ultramarathons in training, it’s to build a base that lets me run smart and recover fast.

If I can comfortably hit around 100 miles in a week, four marathons, say, that’s a solid place to be. The goal is to reach the start line fit, uninjured, and still enjoying the process. Because if you’re physically or mentally burnt out before you even begin, you’ve already lost half the battle.

Doing Enough

It’s not an exact science. Training rarely is. But I’ve learned that “doing enough” is often better than doing too much. You need to get to the start line with strength left to spare , not exhausted from trying to be perfect.

So no, you won’t make every single programme. You won’t run every kilometre you planned. But if you stay consistent, keep your head in the game, and honour that mental contract with yourself, you’ll get there.

And when you do, you’ll realise that the real victory wasn’t the perfect spreadsheet, it was showing up, again and again, when it mattered.

I talk all about this in my latest YouTube video, watch it here: