The Physiology of Endurance Running Podcast · Dan Nash and Owain Zerilli

Road to Valencia 2025 - 10 weeks to go

·1 hr 32 min·9 clips

Dan reveals a supplement with 65 research papers showing 1-2% performance gains and reduced muscle soreness.

This episode features hosts Jen, Owen, and Dan discussing their marathon training progress with 10 weeks until the Valencia Marathon. Jen is deep into her first marathon block, Owen is managing high mileage, and Dan is tapering for the Cardiff Half Marathon. The hosts detail their recent training weeks, with Jen completing 104.9 miles including a 16k threshold session of 1k repeats and a 20-mile long run with 10-minute reps. Owen describes a treadmill session involving 3x6 minute and 8x3 minute intervals, during which he suffered a fall resulting in a friction burn. Dan mentions a family holiday in West Wales that coincided with his taper. They promote a SOAR giveaway offering a £250 gift card for email subscribers and their Marathon PB project providing £50 credit for personal bests. The hosts introduce a new supplement called Currants, a blackcurrant extract with anthocyanins, citing 65 independent research papers on its potential benefits for recovery and performance. Jen anecdotally reports improved recovery and training tolerance since starting the supplement a month prior. The supplement is Informed Sport certified for contamination testing and comes with a money-back guarantee focused on reducing muscle soreness. Jen's training included hot baths monitored by a new thermometer, a 10-mile run with Olympian Clara Evans, and consuming seven gels during her long run. She experimented with a caffeine gel mid-run but expressed concerns about its stomach impact and half-life. Owen's training involved navigating cold weather requiring tights and a head torch while managing a lingering sinus issue. The hosts discuss the practical application of training zones, specifically the utility of targeting the midpoint between LT1 and LT2 heart rate thresholds. The tone is conversational and supportive, blending personal training anecdotes with practical coaching insights. Endurance runners following a marathon plan would appreciate the detailed training log and supplement discussion. Listeners seeking a highly structured or purely scientific training analysis might find the anecdotal focus less appealing.

As heard by us

A blunt, useful check-in on the grind of marathon prep.

Road to Valencia episode three settles into the part of marathon training where the miles start to feel real and the novelty has worn off. It stays close to the small details that matter: a rough start to the week, a slightly high heart rate, a cold morning with tights and a…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a real-time check-in from runners deep in the Road to Valencia build.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from The Physiology of Endurance Running Podcast