I have kept a handwritten diary of my training since I started running in 2014. The idea of a handwritten diary has always appealed to me as I find it to be much more personal than an online, public platform. As much as I enjoy using digital platforms, I believe that my handwritten diaries have helped me get to know myself a lot better and has given me a deeper understanding of my own progress, or, at times, lack thereof. It doesn’t take long to scribble down details of my training together with a short explanation as to how I felt and after a while, it becomes a habit. I love paging through my diaries before I start my preparation towards the next goal. Until now, I have never shared my diary entries with anyone, but I wouldn’t want years of experience to remain unrevealed. I highly recommend keeping your own diary, regardless of your level of running. With a deeper understanding of yourself, you will gain the knowledge to OWN YOUR RUNNING and understand what works for you, and what doesn’t.

You can start by writing down your long-term targets as well as short term focuses, and then start connecting the dots by writing down your daily activities. Here is an example of the weeks leading up to Comrades 2024. I wrote detailed descriptions of my preparation daily and was able to make a finish time prediction accurate to the minute. 


PLEASE REMEMBER: I am a full-time professional athlete, and I am not publishing my diaries for the purpose of anyone to follow this exact program. I want to share this so that you too can get ideas, perhaps inspiration, and most of all, an understanding of what you can do to learn more about yourself.

*Note: I often use abbreviations in my diary entries, so this might make things easier to understand