Marcin Sikora

Who I train with

I specialise in runners aged 45 and over — people who have either been running for years and want to keep getting faster, or who came to the sport later and want to do it properly. Some are chasing a personal best that's still ahead of them on an age-graded basis. Others simply want to still be running well in ten years, without the injury cycle that ends so many masters seasons.

I take on a small number of athletes at a time, because this kind of coaching only works with genuine attention.

If you're in your early forties and already noticing that recovery takes longer and the old training doesn't work the way it did, this applies to you too.

Why training after 45 is different

Endurance holds up surprisingly well with age. What declines first is strength, power and neuromuscular coordination — the losses begin with the nervous system, not with muscle mass, and type II muscle fibres atrophy fastest. That's why the same training that worked at 30 stops working, and why the injuries change character: Achilles, calf, hamstring origin, plantar fascia.

So my coaching adds things a standard plan leaves out:

1. A structured strength programme, periodised alongside your running, targeting the fibres and qualities that decline fastest — with eccentric and isometric loading, cluster sets, and no training to failure, because that's what the research supports for this age group.
2. Regular exposure to fast running, in doses you can absorb, to defend the speed that disappears first.
3. Recovery treated as data, not guesswork. I monitor how you're actually responding and adjust, rather than holding you to a plan written six weeks ago.
4. Durability as a training goal in its own right — tendon loading, single-leg strength and balance, and a baseline of strength tests we re-measure so progress is visible.
5. Fuelling for an older body, particularly protein intake and timing, where masters runners are most often short.

Who I am

I hold UESCA ultra coach certification, earned in English under the substantive supervision of Jason Koop, and I've been working with athletes for over eight years. I also completed Steve Magness and Jonathan Marcus's mentoring programme.

I don't stop at generally available knowledge. I read English-language literature and scientific papers, and I write about what I find — several of the articles below are my own reviews of the research on ageing and performance. I want to know not only what works, but why.

What disciplines I coach

Long-distance running, from 10 km to 100 km ultramarathons — road and trail. Each distance has its own demands, and after 45, those demands change again.

Where I live

I'm based in Poland and coach remotely, so we can work together wherever you are — we only need to account for time zones.

My training principles

1. Everyone is different, and after 45, the differences get bigger. Training history, injury history, sleep, stress and available time matter more than any template. Sometimes it takes a little experimentation to find where your opportunities actually are.
2. Progress is never linear, and it requires patience. Communication and a real feedback loop matter more than the plan itself — with older athletes, what you tell me about how you feel is genuine training data.
3. I emphasise the process rather than the results.
4. I ask for regularity and commitment, and I stay flexible enough to keep training smart and enjoyable.
5. I would rather you arrived at the start line slightly undertrained than not at all. Consistency over the years beats any single heroic block.

How much it costs

We start with a Masters Running Audit — 200 PLN / €60. You complete a detailed questionnaire covering training history, injuries, strength and recovery; I age-grade your performances and send back a written assessment of your real limiters and what I would change first. It is useful whether or not we go further, and if we do, the full amount is credited against your first month.

Ongoing coaching is 500 PLN per month for athletes based in Poland, €150 per month international. No lock-in — but I will ask you to think in three-month blocks, because visible change in strength and durability takes that long.

What's included

1. A plan written for you, and rewritten when needed. Not a template with your name on it. If your recovery, sleep or a niggle says the week should change, it changes.
2. A 30-minute video call every two weeks, plus a call whenever something needs one — an injury, a bad block, a race decision. You don't wait for a scheduled slot.
3. A weekly written review of your training: what worked, what didn't, what changes next week and why.
4. An individual strength programme, built from your own baseline tests and progressed alongside your running.
5. Strength and movement testing every 12 weeks, so progress in the things that decline with age is measured, not assumed.
6. Video review of running form and strength technique.
7. Everything in one place in Good Coach App — running, strength, recovery tracking and our conversation.

I coach a small number of athletes so that all of this is real.

See my articles on running training:

1. Why are master runners slower?
2. The impact of ageing on sporting performance - more ways to improve
3. Sprints as a supplementary workout for long-distance running
4. Sprint running practice - part 2
5. Stretching in the context of running training