The day for which you have been preparing for many months is at hand and your level of excitement has probably been building for days. Therein lies the danger.

So many times I have witnessed runners setting off like greased-lightning at the gun, zig-zagging wildly in and out of other competitors and thought sadly to myself, there goes one who'll be walking before the finish.

Here's the problem. Normally when we run we continuously get feedback from our body about just how much effort we are making. As we speed up, our breathing rate increases, we huff and puff, our heart rate increases, our legs begin to complain and become heavy, warning us of impending danger if we maintain too quick a pace. We each rely on this constant feedback to assist us in seeking out and maintaining the maximal-optimal pace we can hold till the finish line without crashing.

Unfortunately, those feedback mechanisms don't all start full-bore at the gun. They take some moments to get up to speed and during the first four to six minutes after the start you are essentially running "blind".

At this point you are probably thinking, "come on, it's only the first few minutes" but a lot of damage can be done by an over-enthusiastic start.

So, on the start-line, don't set off as if on fire. It's the biggest sin you can make and one guaranteed to ruin your entire performance. What's the point of being 30 seconds ahead of target pace at the one-mile mark if by so doing you crash and burn out there somewhere and lose three minutes having to walk/jog the last two miles?

Instead of a flash-bang start that soon fizzles out, aim therefore for a slow burn: a strong steady pace that builds and can be maintained from start to finish.

Each runner only ever has one question to ask during a race; can I go faster and maintain it till the line? One single question, but he/she must ask it repeatedly, every step of the way.

If the answer is positive, gently edge up the pace, check for sensory feedback, and ask again. If the answer is negative, hold steady and become ultra careful.

The call to arms

My wife Carol, a winner of this event many times, freely admits that when she dons her running kit on race morning she does so as a warrior preparing for battle.

This is rather apt, since sport is often likened to 'war without the bullets'.

Of course, competition with rivals compels us to dig deeper into ourselves and achieve effort levels we could not reach if running alone.

I've said many times, no-one runs a world record in training. We all need the trepidation and anxiety brought on by competition to drive us to our best.

Yet, ultimately, the real battle is an internal one. Your true adversary is yourself.

If your aim is to achieve your maximal performance on the day, you must expect a steadily rising clamour of painful feedback from your body. You will be taking your body very close to its physical limits and it will not do so either willingly or silently.

It can take every element of willpower to maintain, at the 12-mile mark, the exact same pace that felt like jogging at the start. If earlier I talked of a slow burn, by this point in the race you are throwing everything onto the fire. The final miles are about nothing else except sheer guts.

By that time your legs, lungs and every fibre of your physical being will be screaming at you in a bedlam of complaints or offering seductive visions of how wonderful it would feel if you would just stop and walk a little.

Just for a minute... here the true warrior's only possible response must be, "We're fine! Shuddup! Keep running!"

No-one will ever know if you succumb to temptation and back off: no-one but you yourself.

Here, far from spectators, is fought the loneliest battle, and it is one you must win. Here is where the ultimate satisfaction lies: the true reason why we seek out start-lines.

It's not about finish times really or a medal around your neck. This is a rare opportunity to discover who you really are as well as a chance to forge yourself into the person you wish to be from now on.

As the miles unfold, harden your heart against the crippling effort and the dreadful fatigue.

Tear down the walls of fear and doubt and growing apprehension that threaten to engulf you.

This battle is long and hard. Resist all temptation to yield and cross the finish line triumphant.

Emerge from the contest forever changed, even if utterly spent by the effort. Pain will pass, self esteem thus earned lasts forever.

Know it will not be earned easy. Physically prepared, today seek inner calm to ready your spirit. Arm yourself, and just before it begins, silently mouth the warrior's final prayer: I ask only that you help me to live the coming moments well.

See you on the line.