On this bumper edition of Marathon Talk, Martin & Deena cover all the news in the marathon world, as a new series is announced and a legend leaves us.

We're first joined on the show by trailer runner, coach and author Allie Bailey to hear more about how mindset is vital in endurance running. And to wrap up the show, David Jackson, The Breathing Coach joins us to talk about how long distance runners can use breathing exercises to improve their running efficency.

You can buy Allie's new book: 31 Days

David's book is available to buy here: Breathe Smarter, Run Stronger. Breathwork To Transform Your Running

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 00:00 - Intro
• 01:05 - What Has Been Happening?
• 04:29 - Round-Up Of News From The Marathon Running World
• 19:33 - Marathon Talk Meets Allie Bailey
• 40:58- David Jackson Speaks To Martin About This New Book And More

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Allie Bailey | Instagram

David Jackson | Instagram

Our first Marathon Talk Extra of the new season, and on this Tokyo Special, Martin and Deena are joined by David Macnamara from Abbott World Marathon Majors, and they look back on a great day of racing, which saw Tadese Takele, Brigid Kosgei, Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner claim victory in the Japanese capital.

David also gives some insight into what the race week has been like and makes a frankly embarassing attempt to speak Japanese. See if you can figure out who wrote this bit!

All this, and more, on Marathon Talk Extra!

As we look ahead to the first Marathon of the new season in Tokyo, we catch up with US long-distance great Sara Hall as she prepares to return to the Japanese capital for the 3rd time.

And we'll hear from Abbott World Marathon Majors' David Macnamara with a round-up of things happening during race week.

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 00:00 - Intro
• 01:00 - Happy Birthday, Deena!
• 05:40 - Tokyo Marathon Preview
• 16:00 - Sara Hall joins us to talk about her prep for Tokyo, her career and more.
• 39:11 - David Macnamara is here to tell us all about what is happening in Tokyo on race week.

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Sara Hall | Instagram

Marathon Talk is back for 2026, and what an episode we have for you to start the new season! First up, we're joined by Spencer Matthews, as he prepares to head to Japan to take on the Tokyo Marathon.

Our second guests, whom you may have seen on your social media feeds over the last few weeks, Aubrey Mvula and Liz Newcomer, were judges for the recent Abbott World Marathon Majors Marathon Tours & Travel World Tour competition.

They talk us through the process they used to find their winner, Leodhais MacPhearson, and we also have the chance to speak to the man himself as he prepares to run every Abbott World Marathon Major over the next two years.

We're so excited be back!

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 00:00 - Intro
• 00:46 - Martin & Deena catch-up
• 03:37 - Marathon Talk meets Spence Matthews
• 35:24 - We meet Aubrey Mvula, Liz Newcomer and Leodhais MacPhearson to talk about the Abbott World Marathon Majors Marathon Tours & Travel World Tour competition.
• 1:06:01 - Wrap-Up

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Spencer Matthews | Instagram | Untapped Podcast on Spotify

Aubrey Mvula | Instagram

Liz Newcomer | Instagram

Leodhais MacPhearson | Instagram

It's nearly Christmas! And on this episode of Marathon Talk, we're joined by content creator, runner, comedian, and public speaker, Laura Green, for a special episode of Christmas Running Confessions.

Our listeners have been anonymously submitting their Christmas confessions, so we're going to have some fun reading them! Oh, and plus a little about the recent Valencia Marathon.

Special thanks to our guest, Laura Green, and you can catch Laura as she hosts The Running Game Show in Boston on April 16th 2026. Tickets are available: HERE

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Our show this week is brought to you by the Wahoo KICKR RUN Smart Treadmill

The KICKR RUN offers the freedom and form of outdoor running at home. Its Dynamic Pacing capability means the treadmill matches your pace automatically with no controls needed, offering you a more natural running experience, and its Unmatched Connectivity means you can sync up with the Wahoo ecosystem and third-party apps, including the simulation of routes from the Wahoo App, Strava or Zwift.

Perfect for the holiday season…Marathon Talk listeners can get a Free Headwind smart fan worth $319 or £229, when purchasing a KICKR RUN from wahoofitness.com, using code "RUNTALK" at checkout.

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 0:00 - Intro
• 1:17 - Martin and Deena have a Christmas Update
• 5:58 - Update from the Valencia Marathon
• 11:22 - We hear your Running Confessions, with Laura Green.
• 37:44 - Wrap-up

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Laura Green | Instagram

Got a question you've always wanted to ask the team at Abbott World Marathon Majors? Well, now is your chance! We're joined this week by Abbott World Marathon Majors Cheif Operating Officer Danny Coyle, and Stew "Statman" Haynes, who are here to answer your AWMM questions.

Martin and Deena also talk about their marathon highlight of the year, and we have news from last weekend's Shanghai Marathon as it bids to become an Abbott World Marathon Major.

Before you press play, just to let you know our next episode will be our Christmas Special and we'll be joined by content creator, runner, comedian, and public speaker Laura Green, who will be here to absolve you of (and maybe chuckle at...) your Running Confessions.

You can submit yours today via this link: https://forms.gle/AzVpqadH2Sr22xJ76

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Our show this week is brought to you by the Wahoo KICKR RUN Smart Treadmill

The KICKR RUN offers the freedom and form of outdoor running at home. Its Dynamic Pacing capability means the treadmill matches your pace automatically with no controls needed, offering you a more natural running experience, and its Unmatched Connectivity means you can sync up with the Wahoo ecosystem and third-party apps, including the simulation of routes from the Wahoo App, Strava or Zwift.

Perfect for the holiday season…Marathon Talk listeners can get a Free Headwind smart fan worth $319 or £229, when purchasing a KICKR RUN from wahoofitness.com, using code "RUNTALK" at checkout.

On this episode of Marathon Talk, we're joined by British Paralympian and world record holder Richard Whitehead, following his incredible achievement of running his 100th marathon of his career at the TCS New York City Marathon.

Before we speak to Richard, Martin and Deena discuss what to do now that, for most, the marathon season has come to an end. How do we keep the fitness levels where they need to be, without overdoing it? How do we stay focused, and what do we plan for to keep us excited?

Finally, Deena had the chance to speak to Rob Dalto, who was representing Team Abbott in New York, and told us about this running story.

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 0:00 - Intro
• 1:24 - Deena is at the finish of the Everywoman Marathon in Scottsdale, Arizona.
• 7:04 - Now that the season is over, what do we do?
• 18:09 - Richard Whitehead MBE joins us to tell us about his recent achievement of completing his 100th marathon.
• 46:13 - Deena and Rob Dalto go for a short trot around Central Park, talking about the race, the city and the communities that help make the race a highlight of the sporting calendar.
• 57:12 - Wrap-up

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Richard Whitehead | Instagram

Rob Dalto | Instagram

One of the major talking points to emerge from last weekend's TCS New York City Marathon was Eliud Kipchoge. Following the completion of his Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star journey, it felt like the end of an era for the 11-time Majors winner, 2-time Olympic Champion and former World Record holder. On this episode of Marathon Talk, we look back on Kipchoge's career—the highs and lows—and what we will do next.

And one of the things he's suggested he'll be doing next is running a marathon on Antartica, so we're very fortunate to be also joined by a man who knows a thing or two about South Pole running, President of Marathon Tours & Travel, Jeff Adams joins us to tell us more about how the running tourism industry is booming now, and where he'll be taking runners to next.

On this episode of Marathon Talk:

• 1:49 - Martin and Deena discuss all that went down at the TCS New York City Marathon
• 13:04 - We look back on the career of AbbottWMM Six Star finisher, Eliud Kipchoge
• 30:14 - We're joined by Jeff Adams, president and owner of Marathon Tours & Travel.

Links & References:

Abbott World Marathon Majors

Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Marathon Talk

Facebook | Instagram | TikTok

Martin Yelling | Instagram

Deena Kastor | Instagram

Marathon Tours & Travel | Instagram