The 2021 athletics season has come to an end and as I look back and analyse the year, it is easy to look at the things that didn’t go well rather than the constant improvements I have made and also the consistency of my performances.

My highlights of the year have been, South of England Champion, England Champs Bronze Medallist, England International 4x400m Relay Champion, ran 6 of my top 10 all time performances in the 400m this year, 400m PBs and also ran my fastest 200m times since 2013.

My proudest moment this year was definitely winning a Bronze medal in the 400m at the England Championships, which took place at Bedford International Athletics Stadium on the 17th and 18th of July.

Getting it done in the heat

There were two rounds of the competition, the Heats were on a Saturday and the Final was on a Sunday. It was probably one of the hottest days in the year, but I really enjoy running when the weather is hot and I am use to training in those conditions, being in South Africa early on in the year.

I’ve competed at the England Championships many times before from the 100m up to the 400m and have never won a medal, my best performance prior was 4th place in the 400m in 2017.

So was very happy to get a medal and execute a ‘good’ race.

I set out to actually win the race, but you never know what will happen on the day, all you can do is put yourself in the best possible position both physically and mentally.

Executing well on race day

I tend to do a lot a breathing exercises leading up to a race to calm the mind and also a few days before visualise how I want to execute my race plan.

I feel I executed the race plan well on the day but there were a few things I could of changed, but I guess as an athlete we are always searching for more.

I won my 400m heat on the Saturday and felt good going in to the final, running the first round a day before has it’s advantages as you already feel warmed up for the final, if there are rounds, I tend to run faster the next day.

Running back to back days of the 400m can be tough, so you have to take special care and manage your body the best way you.

I tried to sleep early, eat well, made my own food rather than go to Nandos which I loved to do when I was younger, made sure I warmed down after my heat and also going in to the final the next day, conserving as much energy as possible from the travel to the stadium to my warm up.

Did I also mention I also ran a new personal best of 53.23!

Being a strong part of the team

By winning a Bronze medal at the England Championships, I was selected to compete for England in 4x400m relay at Manchester International on the 18th of August.

The event took place at Manchester Regional Athletics Stadium which is right next to Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium.

This was my second time competing for England in the 4x400m relay. The first time was at Loughborough International and we won the relay in 2019.

We also won the relay in Manchester and I really enjoyed being part of the England team again, the England staff were very supportive, which really helped me to be calm and I wanted to give my best for the team.

I ran on the first leg, which they say is the ‘hardest leg’, but I treated it similar to how I would run a normal 400m and was determined to pass the baton to my teammate first, which I did successfully.

I am happy with how my season has gone overall but not satisfied.

Photo: Provided by athlete

Keeping motivated throughout the season

Watching the Olympics was great, but it was a reminder that I had not reached my main goal of the year, which was competing at the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Finding the motivation to keep going throughout the season was difficult, but was determined to finish the season healthy and strong, so was grateful that there was an England Championships to aim for and also an opportunity to be a part of an England team.

As I look to winter training, with four International Competitions to aim for in 2022, the European Championships, World Indoors Championships, Commonwealth Games and World Championships.

I am excited about the next few years leading up to 2024 Olympic Games in Paris and I’m looking forward to continuing to learn, grow and progress.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me this year, special thanks to Performance Plus Sport, a charity who has supported my athletics journey over the past three years and has played a huge part in the athlete I am today.

The post And that’s a wrap appeared first on Fast Running.

May is really the month where you start to feel like all the things you have worked on in training over the past year, is all coming together. Key words being “in training”.

I have been feeling really good “in training” running PBs for 250m, 300m and 350m. But training is like a dance rehearsal, everyday you practice elements of your race, paying attention to small details, that make a big difference.

The 400m is all about finding your rhythm and how you can distribute your speed more evenly. The overall goal is being able to execute your race plan successfully and of course, run FAST!

Getting back into the swing of competition

Due to the 2020 lockdown and restrictions, I only competed twice last year and finding my rhythm in 2021 has taken longer than expected, so I was happy to qualify for the British Championships in my first race of the season.

My first three races the main focus was all about getting my rhythm back. June is a great month for training and competitions, the weather is better and guess what? I found my rhythm.

The first competition in June was the new National League for my club, Newham and Essex Beagles.

Seeing your wider track and field family

The meet was a great experience. You tend to see many people you have grown up with in the sport, as well as coaches I have known since my first day arriving at the athletics track. Back then I was a young girl with big dreams.

It gives you as sense of happiness that they have supported your journey and progression over the years.

The National League race was okay, but, most importantly, it gave me confidence. It allowed me to to figure out my rhythm and that meant I was confident of running faster in the competitions ahead.

Turning training into success

The next race was the South of England Championships. It was a better executed race and that showed in the outcome. I won and was so happy to become the 2021 South of England 400m Champion, but I knew in my next race I was going to run a PB.

There wasn’t a long wait as I competed again the next day at the London Marathon Community track. This is right next to the 2012 Olympic Stadium and is also the home track of my club.

As I was warming up, I felt great, everything was clicking. All the training and dedication to work on the small things, came together and I ran a new PB of 53.38.

With only two weeks to go until the British Championships, confidence is high. My times will get faster and the work I have put it will show in my performances.

Follow my journey leading up to the 2021 Olympic Trials on the 25th – 26th June.

The post Competition time! appeared first on Fast Running.

Welcome to Susanna Banjo’s first Fast10 blog of 2021, talking about aspirations, progression and being self-coached. 

My dream was always to compete at the Olympics from the age of 5 years old, not knowing what it would take or how many years it would take to get there.

Throughout my school years I regularly won sports days and was considered the “fastest” often beating the boys as well as the girls.
Then going on to win a Bronze medal in 2007 at County level. I thought my pathway to the Olympics would be a progressive transition, but there is more to the Sport than just training and competing. It’s also about who you have around you and how those people are helping you to achieve your goals.

By 2016, I’ve seen three Olympics go by and it was time to take action, I decided to coach myself for three seasons.

Self-coaching shows promise

The main reasons for being self-coached was not being able to find the right coach or training environment and I also wanted to be in control of my own destiny.

I improved my personal best time in the 400m from 56 secs to 54 secs, which I was proud of but after the initial excitement of studying the coaching side of the sport and writing my own programmes. I missed interacting with others.

I knew that I could no longer live a secluded life if I wanted to be in the next Olympics. I needed to be around people, experience something different. I needed to ask for help! I needed support!

The decision was made to go and train in South Africa and I know many people saw it as a random move but, I’ve always wanted to train in Africa and experience a different way of life. I was so grateful to have found my sponsors Performance Plus Sport and their Director James Feaver.

They gave me the opportunity I was looking for, to try something different, they have helped me to keep believing in myself.
Performance Plus Sport is a charity that helps support sportspeople who wouldn’t normally have the opportunities.

New location and new opportunities

I have a great mentor, former International Tennis player John Feaver and I also mentor young athletes, which brings me great joy to encourage young people to keep believing in their dreams.

Performance Plus Sport also help by taking away the financial pressure that is required to be able to reach the highest level of Sport.

I have been based in South Africa since the end of 2018 with a great training group and coach Hennie Kriel. I have progressed even further, running a PB of 53.49 secs and competing for England in the 4x400m for the first time in 2019.

At 31, still improving and getting closer to my goals, I now realise and understand the importance of having people around you.

Support is the Key! Follow my journey this year and I’ll update you on my progress next month.

The post Making changes to progress appeared first on Fast Running.

As endurance athletes we love to see people who actually run with real, breathtaking speed and 200 & 400m runner Susanna Banjo fits the bill. With sessions that look like inverted endurance workouts, the rest multiple times the actual interval, we only dream of running that hard over a shorter distance.

Banjo will hopefully give an insight into the training and mindset of one lap specialist and there is something all of our readers will be able to learn.

Profile

Name: Susanna Banjo
Age: 31
Hometown: London
Club: Newham and Essex Beagles
Main discipline: 400m
Other disciplines: 200m
Full-time athlete
Goals or targets for 2021: Qualify and compete in the 400m at the Olympic Games.

Past Running highlights

2019 4x400m relay England International Champion (Loughborough International)
3 x County Champion
3 x Inter-County Championship Medalist
2x England Championship Finalist
2x South of England Championship Medalist

Photo: Provided by athlete

Interesting or fun fact: I love musical theatre!

I run because… I love the feeling of improving every day. I’m obsessed with time, every second counts.

Favourites

Favourite training session: 3x250m with full recovery. I feel confident in competitions having completed this training session well.
Least favourite training session 5x500m
Favourite pre-race food: Granola Bars
Favourite post-race food: Nandos
Favourite running shoes: I usually wear really lightweight running shoe.

Brands or organisations that support me:

Performance Plus Sport
GLL Sport Foundation
Everyone Active Sporting Champions

Follow Susanna on Instagram @susannabanjo and throughout the year in the Fast10. 

The post Fast10: Susanna Banjo appeared first on Fast Running.