We catch up with Romain Adam, co-founder of RunMotion Coach. Last November in Deauville, he set a marathon personal best of 2:36. He told us he wanted to break 2:35, using a RunMotion Coach marathon training plan to kick off 2023 the right way.
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How did your Barcelona Marathon go?
A marathon is always something special. I ran a new personal best in 2:34:42, but the finish was brutal. The big challenge at the Barcelona Marathon was the heat, it caused a lot of runners to blow up after 30 km.
As for me, I went out on my faster projections, between 2:32 and 2:34, but I still let a group of around ten runners go so I wouldn’t redline too early. A bit on my own, I could lock into my rhythm, and I felt great with a 1:15:58 half-marathon split.
By 30 km the sun was really pounding, the clouds had disappeared, and thankfully there were aid stations every 2.5 km (!) to cool down. Or more accurately, to avoid overheating too much. Still on 2:32 pace at 35 km, I couldn’t hold the speed, and the last 2 km of the Barcelona Marathon, uphill, were tough. I dug in and broke 2:35 in 43rd place (out of 15,000)!
I said back in November after the Deauville Marathon, “ideally I’d like to go under 2:35”… so mission accomplished. It was my 6th marathon and I still love the distance, even if there’s definitely some suffering during the race.
How did you manage your preparation for the Barcelona Marathon?
I did a build of about 12 weeks, including a half marathon four weeks before the Barcelona Marathon to test where I was at. I really loved the long runs during this marathon prep.
Two weeks before race day, we ran the RunMotion Coach booth at the Paris Half Marathon expo. That added a bit of fatigue, so I used the final two weeks to rest as much as possible between the workouts prescribed by RunMotion Coach. It also helps you peak thanks to the reduced training load during the last two weeks, a proper taper for marathon performance.
What motivates you to run?
I love the journey that leads to race day, I get a lot of enjoyment from training. And on race day, it’s always an incredible experience with a lot of lessons about yourself.
I also love being able to discover a city while running. Running in Barcelona without cars, past Camp Nou, the Sagrada Familia, the Arc de Triomf, Plaça d’Espanya, that was amazing!
How did you discover the RunMotion Coach app?
As a co-founder of the app, I’ve known it since the very start of the adventure, even before we had its current name.
On my way to the Barcelona Marathon, I realised on public transport that the passenger next to me, who was also heading to the race, had the RunMotion Coach app on his phone too. I thought that was wild!
What do you like most about the RunMotion Coach app?
It gives me all the flexibility I need while still providing a clear structure with the key sessions to hit, like long runs and quality workouts. The more I train with the app, the more I realise how important it is in our users’ lives.
What’s your next sporting challenge?
The post-marathon programme in the app will be perfect for two easy weeks before I jump into my trail running season. With the big highlight being UTMB at the end of the summer!
