Luton Half Marathon - the surprise race of 2019 For 12 weeks I ticked off the runs on my training plan, with a little readjustment here and there and a lot of juggling to make them happen. I got up early during the heatwave, and I headed out after dark as the nights drew in. [...]
How to train after a cancelled race In the past year we've seen a number of races get cancelled, mostly because of the weather, but also (as my race last week was) because of other incidents beyond the organiser's control. How you train after your race is cancelled is something that probably isn't covered in [...]
How to Write a Training Plan for Winter Running For many runners, the time between autumn races finishing and training for spring races starting is a time to run when and how much you want. And that's absolutely fine. But for others, having some structure during this period can help you keep on track and [...]
10 of the Best Big Marathons in the UK and Ireland I ran my first marathon at Brighton in 2010. It was the first year of the Brighton Marathon and I entered after missing out on a place in the London Marathon. I think that's how a lot of runners' journey begins - and entry [...]
Running in Sicily: Palermo and Cefalù This summer, I spent two weeks in Sicily. I was in the middle of half-marathon training, so while it wasn’t a planned ‘running holiday’ I was on the look out for places and ways to get some training runs in. Here’s what I found while Googling ‘running in Sicily’ [...]
What can you still achieve this year? I know this is a question that gets a lot of attention in January, less so in September. For many of us, September can feel like a new beginning and one that should come with new stationary. But the deadline of 31 December can feel limiting. There’s a [...]
Teaching People to Run The other Tuesday evening I was watching my group of runners warm up when I had a realisation. Those 20 women jogging and skipping their way round the netball court were there because of me. They'd turned up on a Tuesday night, not for the first time, and put their training [...]
Everything runners need to know about running, pregnancy and breastfeeding I may have slightly exaggerated the title, but there IS a lot in this page on running during and after pregnancy. It's a compilation of all the posts I've written and had written for me over the past couple of years. I guess that now [...]
Breastfeeding and running - the end of my 19-month experience What follows is my experience of juggling breastfeeding my son with getting back to running and running a marathon and eventually, after 19 months, stopping feeding. I’m no expert. If you’re finding breastfeeding or stopping breastfeeding difficult, there’s more sources of information at the bottom. [...]
Magic numbers don’t exist in training When runners come to me for help with their training, we discuss their goals. We discuss what their current running looks like and how much time they have available to train. And then, sometimes, they tell me that they don’t think they can run X time in their [...]
