Whether you’re deep in training or just toying with the idea of running a marathon, today’s episode of An Irishman Running Abroad contains gems of information, tips and anecdotes from two of the most knowledgeable people you could find. One is of course our resident coach and all time athletics legend, the icon, the goat and the former World Champion Sonia O’Sullivan and the other is the brilliant standup comedian and author of “26.2 Miles To Happiness” Paul Tonkinson. Both perspectives are invaluable help in figuring out how you want to approach your race if at all. Sonia answers our listeners questions and gives us an update from the road while Paul delves into the new runner mentality and how he ran a sub 3. Jarlath and Paul know each other from the U.K. comedy circuit but that was before Jar took the plunge. Now Paul offers him the advice he and you will need on using the race to guide you, make better decisions, channel pain and emerge a better human on the other side. It’s a big change from our normal episodes and even includes and inspiring extract from Paul’s best selling book. As always our Patrons get illustrated episode notes with extra tips exclusively from Sonia herself.   Join our running event on strava.com/clubs/irishmanrunningabroad and help raise vitally needed funds for our chosen charity partner jigsaw.ie and all the work they do to support young people in Ireland. Why not join Jarlath in raising money for Jigsaw by signing up to the Irishman Abroad challenge over at https://www.idonate.ie/event/2576_.html    To hear every episode in full and to gain access to the entire back-catalogue of over 500 Irishman Abroad episodes that are not available on iTunes for just the price of a pint every month visit www.patreon.com/irishmanabroad   Supplementary research provided by John Meagher.   The Irishman Abroad Liveline is now open. You can now get in touch with us and feature on our shows by sending your WhatsApp voice note to 0044 7543 122 330. Why not pose a running question to Irish Olympic Legend Sonia O'Sullivan or ask our America Correspondent Marion McKeone her thoughts on a current talking point Stateside? Of course, if you have an issue with traffic or elephants on the loose in your area, Jarlath can do his best to sort that out too.   Our charity partner is jigsawonline.ie. In these tricky times, Jigsaw provides a range of resources, advice and care for your people to help them strengthen their mental health and the skills needed to navigate life. Please visit their website and consider making a donation.   For updates on future episodes and live shows follow @jarlath on Twitter, visit www.jigser.com or email the show directly on [email protected].   Disclaimer: All materials contained within this podcast are copyright protected. Third party reuse and/or quotation in whole or in part is prohibited unless direct credit and/or hyperlink to the Irishman Abroad podcast is clearly and accurately provided.