Client Testimonials
Book Your Free Consultation
London Marathon Success
What can I say about John? Only he is an amazing running coach. When I got the chance to run the London marathon this year April 2023 through my running club. I really wanted to challenge myself and get a time of 3 and a half hours. I contacted John to see if he was able to coach me so we went through my lifestyle, work and 3 small children etc and where I could get in my short and long runs, and even down to what runners etc I was going to be wearing while training and on race days. I found his plan so easy to work with, with my busy lifestyle and I looked forward to each day to a different run / weight session etc. My long runs were on a Sunday morning which worked really well for me. I put 100% into my training plan that John designed for me and I took 27 minutes off my last marathon Belfast Oct 21 which was 3 hrs 57 mins and in London 23 I achieved my 3 hrs 30 mins 😁. Now for my new plan for London 24 😀
Margaret - London Marathon
Erica Runs an 11 Minute PB
I cannot recommend John McDonnell Running Coach enough!!! I wasn't sure if I could take 4 mins off my previous marathon pb to get a sub 3 hour 30 time, but followed John's plan 100% over the last 4 months and ended up coming in well inside my goal, in 3.23.24, an 11 minute marathon PB 🤗
Erica - Staines TMNT Marathon
Paul Smashes Sub 36 10k
Thanks to my coach, John McDonnell, his excellent coaching style and brilliant knowledge of the sport and how to get the best out of me, from the start I felt we were on the same page. I was able to just focus on running and working hard towards the goal for this block.
The goal was to break 36. After I beat my previous PB by a minute and 2 seconds to achieve a time of 36:07, I wanted to back it up and shave 8 seconds off my time. We worked hard to try to achieve this goal.
A special mention has to go to my brother for getting me the voucher to work with John it was certainly the push in the right direction I needed. I won't lie, I was slightly nervous and unsure about what a coach would do for me before I eventually bit the bullet and messaged John. But I can honestly say I would not be writing such a positive post today without his help, I’ve never met someone with such a passion for thier sport before and I cannot recommend him enough. I look forward to continuing to work with him in the near future.
Paul - Enniskillen 10k
Glenda's First Marathon
Thank you to my coach, John McDonnell, for all your support and encouragement and getting me over the finish line on my first marathon. Highly recommend John as a running coach.
Glenda - Manchester Marathon
BQ for Ailish
Boston Quaifiying time-Be rude not to..🤔🤣I'm still so chuffed with this time. 👊👍Definitely would not have been achievable without John McDonnell, my coach.His programme was easy to follow and, throughout, helped to build up my confidence in different paces.
The weekly check ins and chats with John played a massive part in both the physical and mental prep. Whenever I had doubts or insecurities, he was on hand to help and encourage me to keep going.I will undoubtedly be back to try and gain a new PB..But for now, I am a 3.18 Marathon Runner!👊👍👌I would highly recommend John if you are thinking of doing a marathon or have a time in mind that you want to hit.👊
Ail - Dublin Marathon
John Runs 2:49 in Berlin
London based athlete, John Henry, tackling his second major of the year, visited Berlin coming off an amazing 16-week training block. John always puts in the hard work and is no stranger to coming up with the goods on race day. On this particular day, John ran a spectacular 2:49:13. Please take a moment to congratulate John on his amazing result.
Dublin Result for Sean
I turned to John after running my 1st 2 Marathons in Dublin 22 & Belfast 23. Both my previous marathons I followed my own training plan cobbled together by listening to other runners and running my long miles on Sundays. This worked to a point as i was able to get sub 4 hour times in both whilst also hitting “the wall” very hard around the 20 mile mark.John took me onboard and set down to go through what my goals were. He was very thorough and took into consideration what races i had already had in mind and planned around my working week and family life. Johns plan was very easy to follow but challenging at the same time. This pushed me to new 10 mile and 5k PB results at races early on in my training block.I really enjoyed everything about working with John as he has a wonderful calming demeanour and always seems to have the right words to motivate you or pick you up at the right times. John had faith in me that I didn’t have myself from the get go. This helped me achieve a 16 minute PB of 3:39 in Dublin Marathon 23. I didn’t just get over the wall, I smashed through it and felt great all the way round. I was even strong enough to pick the pace up and finish the last 4 mile as the fastest of the day. All of this was down to the endurance training John had given me. I would recommend John to anyone of any ability regardless of your goal or distance. John is a magnificent coach and I really couldn’t have done this without his help and guidance. I will most definitely be a return customer in the new year for my next target whatever that may be.
Sean - Dublin Marathon