Marathon stress: all my data is off

Posted on April 6, 2025•By John Kraijenbrink•Column

Marathon stress: all my data is off

moke up, had a look at my watch. It’s the first thing I do every morning. Checking my sleep stats. Checking my HRV (Heart Rate Variability). Bad news this morning. All my data is off. Well, it has been bad news ever since the Chianti Ultra Trail.

I know it was a big gamble to run the Chianti only three weeks before the Rotterdam Marathon, but it was meant to be a weekend with friends. Plus a mental boost. I mean, if I can run 75 kilometres in the hills of Tuscany, I can run 42 flat kilometres in Rotterdam. Right?

Trail running is walking

Okay, I know there is a big difference. Trail running is – for a big part – walking. The marathon is going to be a long, very long tempo run. If I look at the data of my Chianti Ultra, I walked half of the time. I finished with an average of 8 minutes and 47 seconds per kilometre. In Rotterdam I have to stay under 5 minutes and 19 seconds to finish in 3 hours and 44 minutes. That’s a different ball game.

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Worried

And that’s why I’m a bit worried. My legs are still not recovered. Just sliding over them with my hands, I can feel the knots in my muscles. Yesterday I ran twelve kilometres at marathon pace. It felt easy, but my heart rate was a bit too high. This morning my legs feel stiff.
My Garmin is all over the place. My Training Status is unproductive. And my Training Readiness score is Poor (1). My overnight HRV score is below average. My Sleep Score is only Fair. Not enough REM sleep.

I gave my legs all the rest I could in the last two weeks. I took one week off running. This week I either ran easy or ran short sessions at marathon pace. I did some yoga for recovery, foam rolled, and had a sports massage. I also spent time using a massage gun on my legs. What more do my legs want?

Stress

I admit, I haven’t had any rest since Chianti. We drove home. That’s two days in a car. As soon as I was home, there was a pile of work waiting for me. For starters, the Chianti video. The super shoes video (soon online), the interview with Luke Grenfell-Shaw (coming up) and the usual administration. So my legs had it easy; my head didn’t. For my body, stress is stress. Mental or physical doesn’t matter.

What didn’t help as well, was that I came home sick. A nasty cold. Ask Sara; I passed it on to her. She’s still coughing. I can’t say I’m a hundred percent yet. I should have been in bed last week. Yet, I had to work. That’s what happens when you’re your own boss. Sick days don’t exist.

Getting food poisoning the week before the Chianti Ultra Trail didn’t help either. I mean, there was nothing in me anymore after a night of throwing up. It was clear water coming out. The good thing was, the bad stuff was out. The bad thing was, the good stuff (electrolytes) was out as well.

One more week

There is one more week to go to the Rotterdam Marathon. I’m holding on to that. I still have a lot of work to do, but I’ll allow myself some rest. I have another sports massage planned. And Rotterdam is only one hour away. Not two days, like Radda in Chianti. So I’m still going for my personal best. Even if my data is all off.

Keep on Running.

John Kraijenbrink

Running Coach - Massage Therapist - Yoga Teacher - Journalist - Gear Tester. I run for the joy of running. Yet, I like to challenge myself to be the best version I can be. For me that means dedicating myself to a structured training plan. You can find me on the road, trails, on my gravel bike or in the swimming pool.