The Liverpool Half Marathon next March seems a long way off, but for a trio of Merseyside runners, the training starts now.

Ben Rimmer, Matthew Dobb and Kristaps Sens are gearing up for their next challenge, drawing on their experiences from earlier events. 

The three friends from Southport, who have been running together since their school days at Stanley High School, are no strangers to pushing themselves to the limit. Matthew, who currently lives in Coventry, recalls how their running journey began when he stumbled upon an article about the Southport Half Marathon.

He said: “One day, just scrolling through my phone, I found an article on the Southport Half Marathon. I put it in the group chat and said, ‘hey lads, why don’t we do this?’ And Ben and Kris were eager.”

Matthew Dob running through the Chester Marathon while being cheered on. Photo by Benjamin Rimmer
Matthew Dobb running through the Chester Marathon while being cheered on by the crowd / Photo Benjamin Rimmer

For Matthew and Ben, they participated in the Southport Half Marathon, and both got over the finishing line. But for Kris an injury would unfortunately keep him out of the event and highlighted the importance of following a training plan.

He said: “It’s been very difficult, as I was supposed to do the Southport Half and I was very excited to do it. I was training leading up to it and the worst thing possible happened. I received an injury, which kind of put me out of commission for that event.

“I was confident, I was excited. And then my entire soul was just kind of putting it off for most of it and not following the training plan. And that’s kind of where it led to me not performing as well as I kind of wanted to.”

Ben brought up the importance of keeping fit for a run whether it be a marathon, half marathon or any other race. Despite all the effort, he says the most rewarding aspect is to complete a run.

The 20-year-old said: “These plans are three to four months long and it’s a big chunk of your life dedicated to the marathon, and it’s hard.

“You constantly think about your runs. You’ve got to think about your recovery, the way you eat, the way you train in the gym, maybe where you sleep. It’s just a big sacrifice you must make just for one day.”

Ben highlights the joy that any runner would be feeling once crossing the line and describes it as “The happiest place on earth.”

Kris describes the feeling of running a marathon as “draining” yet “rewarding” while explaining the strict preparations required.

He said: “It’s quite hard, you have to sleep early because you have to run. You can’t be going out to drink, because then you’re just not going to be able to perform the next day in that run.”

Matthew’s gruelling training plan for the latest Chester Marathon saw him preparing through summer.

He said: “I would say all summer, I was training multiple times like six or seven even 10 times a week. I was thinking about how to slot my day into my runs like that was my priority.”

The runners highlighted the importance of balancing race-life responsibilities, not burning out and to avoid putting too much pressure on yourself, and to ultimately have fun.

“I think everybody should at least try,” said Matthew.

“When I first started half marathon training, if you said I’m going to do three marathons by the time I was 20 and you’re going to go to foreign countries and run, you just wouldn’t believe it. But running can take you places you probably don’t realize. It’s a very easy and accessible sport.”

 

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR