I’m running a race tonight and its pretty much all I can think about (in between work, making sure the kids are where they should be, eating and driving). It’s 10k and I haven’t ran a proper 10k race in about 18 months – it’s a good chance to see if the additional miles, track sessions and strength work have paid off.

I’m trying not to set a target time – but I’m still looking at pace calculators to work out how fast I need to go to get a PB. Then I’m getting the excuses lined up for when I don’t achieve it. Why? Why am I putting such pressure on myself?

What I want to do is go to the race and enjoy it. It’s a small, local race in a neighbouring village, not the flipping Olympics. But I also want to see if the extra work I’ve put in pays off…

Argh! I wonder if I’m the only one who does this? A case of unnecessary pressure, with a generous dollop of lack of self-belief and a sprinkle of self-sabotage…