Race report from TMM, Joshua Cheptegei to compete at 2025 Tokyo Marathon & much more!
#WhatsUpThisWeek?
TMM race report from Anubhuti (3:19:01) and Vishwas (2:58:04). They share their impeccable training and racing strategy. Needless to say, they have been BQing for a while now! #GeeksOnFeet
Thread the Needle exercise is a great mobility drill for runners, offering several benefits #WoW
Joshua Cheptegei to compete at 2025 Tokyo Marathon, this and more at the #RunSHORTS
Happy Reading!
#GeeksPoll
Carbon-plated shoes for races have skyrocketed. A quick check on Tata Mumbai Marathon's top 50 finishers; more than 95% are on carbon-plated shoes.
Do you use carbon-plated shoes for races? #geekspoll
Last week’s poll’s results on runners’ recovery from a marathon are here.
#WoW - Thread The Needle
Thread the Needle exercise is a great mobility drill for runners, offering several benefits like improving spine, shoulder, and hip mobility, & stretching the upper back and lats.
How to Perform Thread the Needle:
Start in a tabletop position.
Reach your right arm underneath your body, rotating your torso to the left.
Bring your right shoulder and ear to the ground, keeping your hips stable.
Hold the stretch for a few seconds, then return to the starting position.
Repeat on the other side.
Do 5 to 7 repeats on each side.
@Geeksonfeet
Race Report: Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025 by Anubhuti
Anubhuti Chaturvedi conquered the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025 finishing in 3h:19m:01s and securing 3rd place overall in her gender category and 1st place in the 35-39 age group. From a dedicated 14-week training plan to handling the race day tactics, Anubhuti shares her journey in this race report.
Discover her detailed training strategies, race day experiences, and valuable insights that propelled her to the podium.
👉 Read the full race report here
Race Report: Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025 by Vishwas
Vishwas shattered his personal best at the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2025, finishing with an impressive 2h:58m:04s, marking his 7th sub-3-hour marathon and 12th Boston Qualifier. Securing the 54th overall rank and 8th in the 40-44 age category, Vishwas got the best out of his race day.
Explore Vishwas’s comprehensive training strategy, race day tactics, and the mental tricks that fueled his successful finish. Here is Vishwas’s race report to learn a lot from.
👉 Read the full race report here
RUN STRONG. OWN 2025.
Are you struggling to create your running plan?! RunStrong Training Plans got you covered, we have prepared a video explaining how to create a training plan. So start the year strong with runstrong.geeksonfeet.com/training-plans!
#RunSHORTS
Joshua Cheptegei to compete at 2025 Tokyo Marathon
Joshua Cheptegei, the current 5000m and 10,000m world record-holder, headlines Tokyo Marathon 2025, the race scheduled on 2 March 2025. The 28-year-old, who is a multiple Olympic track champion and secured 10,000m gold in Paris last summer, will compete in just his second-ever marathon race. He will face stiff competition however, with the favorite for the men’s field being reigning champion Benson Kipruto, who secured victory at last year’s Tokyo Marathon in a personal best of 2:02:16. Ethiopia’s Deresa Gelata, who placed fifth at the Paris Olympics, and then recorded a best of 2:02:38 also emerges as a race favorite. The men's race overall boosts a strong field with the other likes of Birhanu Legese (2:02:48), Vincent Kipkemoi (2:03:13), Tadese Takele (2:03:24), Dawit Wolde (2:03:48) and Leul Gebresilase (2:04:02). In the women's competition, the reigning champion Sutume Kebede, who won the race’s previous edition with a time of 2:15:55 and the former champion Brigid Kosgei, with a best of 2:14:04 headline the pack. They'll compete with Tigist Ketema (2:16:07) and Rosemary Wanjiru (2:16:04), who are eighth and ninth on the all-time list over 26.2 miles respectively. Read more here
Garmin’s Blue Triangle of Death
Yesterday many Garmin GPS watch users reported a major issue when starting GPS activities: their devices show a blue triangle and get stuck in a reboot loop. Affected models include Forerunner 255, 265, 955, 965, Fenix 8, and Epix Pro.
What to Do:
Hard Reset: Follow your watch’s reset instructions. This may temporarily fix the problem.
Disable GPS: Avoid starting GPS-based activities like running or cycling.
Use Non-GPS Workouts: Switch to treadmill runs or strength training until Garmin releases a fix.
Garmin acknowledges the issue and is working on a software update. Meanwhile, they advise users to perform hard resets and avoid GPS activities. Here is the reddit thread discussing the issue.
Average Marathon Time Got Faster, but Average 10K Time Got Slower
A recent study by Running USA analyzed 8.4 million race finishes from 2013 to 2023. The findings show that marathon runners are getting faster, while runners at shorter distances like 5K and 10K are slowing down slightly. Average male marathon time improved by 1 minute (from 4:18 to 4:17). Female marathon times stayed steady at around 4:43. Young runners (18–24) and older female runners made the biggest gains.
At the same time, average times for shorter distances are slowing. Half marathon times increased by 2 minutes for men and 4 minutes for women. Average 10K times slowed by 2 minutes for men and 3 minutes for women. 5K runners saw their times increase by 2 minutes for men and 3 minutes for women.
What could be the reasons? More inclusive race policies, allowing walkers, slower runners, and more people taking up running, may contribute to slower times in shorter races. Read the full article here.
Nike Launches Global Women's Night Race Series: The After Dark Tour
Nike is launching its 2025 After Dark Tour, a six-city race series featuring 10k and half-marathon events. Kicking off in Sydney on April 12th and culminating in Mexico City on June 21st, the tour will also include races in Shanghai, Seoul, Mumbai (10th May), and Los Angeles.
The After Dark Tour aims to foster a vibrant community of female runners. Nike is providing a comprehensive training program accessible through the Nike Run Club app, complete with digital plans, expert coaching from Nike Run Coach Diljeet Taylor, and local run club meetups. The app will also facilitate connections among participants, allowing them to share real-time locations with friends and family during runs.
Each race weekend will incorporate local culture, nightlife, and style, extending beyond the race itself with product experiences, coaching, and post-race celebrations.
Registration is now.
Race Calendar
We have revamped our race calendar with everything you need to know about the race, route, experience, and much more. We have added information about major races and we need the help of the community to make it further robust. Thus we invite runners to share their experiences related to race routes and other information that will benefit runners.
Next 6 Months:
Search and find races using our Race Finder at geeksonfeet.com/races.
#TipOfTheWeek - Shifting Mindset of Training to Practice
Stop treating your training runs like a test of fitness or a means to simply create fatigue. Think of each run as practice. This perspective shift can significantly alter how you approach your training sessions and lead to better overall results.
Focus on the feel of your run: Is your breathing smooth? Is your form efficient? Are you relaxed? Refine your skills, not just your mileage. Every run should have a purpose: recovery, speed work, or endurance building.
Aim to finish each run feeling you could run again tomorrow. Perfect practice makes perfect; Consistent, smart practice leads to better race results and a runner's high that lasts.
The Mumbai Marathon Once Had a 7:15 AM Start!
This year's Tata Mumbai Marathon brought an extra layer of challenge for many runners, with several runners taking to social media about their experiences of battling cramps and tough weather conditions, particularly in the latter half of the marathon.
Interestingly, the earlier editions of the Mumbai Marathon (erstwhile the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon for sponsorship reasons) had both the marathon and half marathon starting as late as 7:15 am.
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Contributors to this edition: Aditi Pandya, Karthik Nadar, and Aravind Yarra