BY ADIDAS COACH NICK BESTER · sub 2:20 MARATHONER
How I Dropped My 5K From 25:14 to 14:34.
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What's Inside The Playbook
9 pages. Five pillars. One four-week plan. One race-day mind map.
Built from a decade of coaching.
The 5 Pillars
Structure, race-pace work, race-day feel, pacing, and the one thing most runners get wrong — consistency.
2 Predictor Sessions
The exact track sessions I use to know — almost to the second — what 5K shape I'm in before I ever race.
My Favourite Speed Session
8×400m + 8×200m — 4.8km of work above goal pace. The session that's stayed in my training for nearly a decade.
The 5K Mental Map
Kilometre-by-kilometre — exactly what I tell myself when the demons start. Pulled straight from my sub-15 race.
A 4-Week Training Block
Build, sharpen, peak, race. A copy-able template you can drop into next month.
My Coaching Principles
Easy days easy. Hard days hard. The fundamentals I send to every Best Athletics athlete on day one.
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About Coach Nick
Not your average running coach.
I'm Nick — a 2:19 marathoner, adidas Running Coach, and founder of Best Athletics, one of the UK's fastest-growing running clubs. I've raced 100+ marathons across 8 countries and now I help everyday runners train like the people I line up against on race day.
2:19
Marathon PB
World Athletics-ranked sub-elite
65 000+
Km Covered In a Decade
Through Races + Training I have technically ran around the world
Adidas
Running Coach
Active coach with Adidas Runners
70K+
YouTube Community
@justalilbester — training vlogs & race breakdowns
Founded Best Athletics in 2020 — now one of the UK's fastest-growing running clubs, officially registered with England Athletics. Whether you're chasing your first sub-4 marathon or a Boston Qualifier, the principles I share are the same ones that took me to 2:19.
Newsletter Preview
Here's What Is Inside Every Newsletter
Every week you get real coaching — not generic tips. Here's a breakdown.
Start Here: The 5 Most Popular Issues
New here? These are the best places to start — hand-picked by Coach Nick for first-time readers.
Community
The Boom Shakalaka Runners Hub — our free training community
Join the free hub where runners share goals, swap workouts, and hold each other accountable between issues.
Race Strategy
The Half Marathon Playbook
Nick's 7/7/6/1 race structure broken down — the exact mental and pacing framework he used at Hackney Half.
Mental Racing
How I Mentally Break Down a 10K Race
The mental segmentation strategy Nick uses to stay controlled in a 10K — so you never blow up in the first half.
Training Metrics
The Training Scoreboard That Actually Counts
Forget Strava kudos. Nick reveals the one metric that separates runners who improve from those who plateau.
⭐ All Articles
All Weekly Coaching Blogs
Every weekly coaching blog in one place — browse by topic and find exactly the training insight you need right now.
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Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How often do you send?
Every Monday morning — one focused issue. Built around Nick’s proven training methods and real-world coaching experience, so you're always getting fresh perspectives from someone actively in the running world, not recycled advice. Sometime we do an Arc for big marathons.
Is this really free?
Yes, 100% free — no credit card, no trial period, no hidden tier. You get the full newsletter in your inbox every week at no cost. Nick's mission is to make elite coaching insights accessible to every runner.
What distances do you cover?
Everything from 5K to marathon — and beyond. Whether you're targeting a parkrun PB or qualifying for a world major, the principles Nick shares apply across all distances. The training science scales with your goals.
Can beginners follow along?
Absolutely. Nick breaks down complex training concepts into clear, actionable language — no coaching jargon. Beginners love it because every issue explains the "why" behind each workout, not just the "what."
Who is Nick Bester?
Nick is a sub-2:20 marathon runner and certified adidas Running Coach based in UK. He's competed at sub-elite level internationally and now channels that experience into helping everyday runners train smarter. With 12,000+ subscribers and a reputation for no-nonsense coaching, he's become one of the most trusted voices in the running community.
🛠️ Free Tools I Actually Use
These are the kind of tools that take the guesswork out of training.
Use them to dial in your pacing, understand your zones, and train with purpose.