Running hurts sometimes Age 12, I was volunteered by my class to run the 800m at sports day. I was never an athletic child, and the thought of running around a track, with the entire school watching, filled me with dread. I was so worked up about it, that when I went to the track … Continue reading What running has taught me
How to maintain your endurance
Following the decisions this week of many major spring marathons to postpone until the autumn, how can you best structure your training now to maintain the strong endurance base you have built up? #ukrunchat
The Preston Guildwheel
I went on a mini adventure last week. I jogged down the hill to our local railway station, caught the 09:36 train to Preston, and ran the Preston Guildwheel 21 mile cycling route encircling Preston, before catching the train back home again. At the start/finish point in Avenham Park I’ve been wanting to try the … Continue reading The Preston Guildwheel
Hell of a Hill Marathon Review
This marathon has been on my radar since before I even moved nearby, when I read Robert Young's Marathon Man book about completing the 5 in 5. Yes, that's 5 marathons in 5 consecutive days, where each marathon consists of five 3.8 mile loops up the same hill. My experience wasn't quite on this scale … Continue reading Hell of a Hill Marathon Review
Fell-racing – falling with style
Fell running, sometimes known as hill running, but not to be confused with mountain running, is the sport of running and racing, off road, over upland country where the gradient climbed is a significant component of the difficulty. Since moving to the edge of the West Pennine Moors last autumn, fell racing has been on … Continue reading Fell-racing – falling with style
What running has taught me about myself
December is always a time for reflection, so I sat down today to write a blog post about my year, but was stumped as to how to sum up a year where I've achieved so much without a plan, without sounding like a hypocrite. As a running coach, my business thrives on setting goals, making … Continue reading What running has taught me about myself
What is a real runner?
There has been a little controversy on Twitter this afternoon, which I suppose is not news really; controversy happens most days as people jump to the wrong conclusions and hide behind keyboards, happily ranting. Runners World UK published a web article called "25 Real Runners to Follow on Instagram", which prompted a (quite frankly, very … Continue reading What is a real runner?
What does a running coach do?
One of the questions I get asked most often is what it's like to be a running coach; I mean, what do I do all day?What I've come to realise over the last year of launching my own business is that this career is a bigger responsibility than I ever initially considered. Clients put their … Continue reading What does a running coach do?
What can we learn from a race photo about our running form?
I love to analyse my race photos because they reveal a lot about where we need to make improvements in our form, particularly when race photographers capture us in a fatigued state, usually at the end of a race or at the top of a hill. I was looking at some photos of me at … Continue reading What can we learn from a race photo about our running form?
The road to recovery. (The bit after an ultramarathon that nobody tells you about)
If you're thinking of tackling your first ultra soon, the most important thing to remember about ultras is that it's going to take you a long time to recover. Longer than you think. This may seem like a glib statement. You're embarking on an epic distance; of course it's going to take a while to recover … Continue reading The road to recovery. (The bit after an ultramarathon that nobody tells you about)
