by barney nicholls We all want different things from a race: PB hunters, medal collectors and those that just want to run alongside others because misery loves company. But one thing we all want from a race is value for money. I can run 10 miles on my own and time it on my Garmin, [...]
Until today, there were three things I knew about running-induced calf cramp. These are, in no particular order:1) It feels like your leg is about to explode, possibly with an alien life-form bursting through the skin to attack you. On a couple of occasions I've willed this alien to hurry up and put me out [...]
Today I had a day off and the sun was shining so I decided to go for a run at a fairly slow pace, take my time and explore. As Blogger Stats tells me that a lot of my readers live outside the UK, I thought I'd take some pictures along the way so you [...]
Kate Bush was on to something. She knew the impact hill training could have on running performance, so much so that she wrote a song about it. In all honesty I hoped that she and the thousands of other hill training devotees were wrong and that it wouldn't work. Unfortunately it does. I say unfortunately [...]
With less than two months to go until marathon training starts in earnest, I've been spending more time than usual looking at training plans, comparing them and itching for training to start. It seems odd that I don't see the running I'm doing at the moment as 'training' but more 'maintenance', and as a result [...]
We run for many reasons: to get fit, to lose weight, because we enjoy it and sometimes to raise money. A lot of people sign up for a race as a way of raising money for a cause that means a lot to them while others might raise money for a cause as a way [...]
Make-up. If you don't wear it you may as well stop reading this post right now because it will seem like it's written in Latin. Before you go though, let me say I'm envious of you. I'm envious too of many of you that haven't already hit the 'back' button. Those of you that wear make-up like it's [...]
This week I announced my intention to knock 31 minutes off my marathon PB this year. Ambitious? Yes. Achievable? I think so. I'm thinking positive but staying realistic and I believe I can do it. But I've also been thinking about quite how long 31 minutes is.31 minutes is...longer than my train journey into worklonger than [...]
A while ago I discussed how to choose the right race. That post was prompted by negotiations between me and a friend about what autumn marathon we would take on this year. It's his first marathon and it's my second - he's looking to get round in one piece and I'm looking to knock half an [...]
The other day a colleague said to me: "I really like the idea of running but I just can't enjoy it". My response was "do you eat olives?"To me running is a bit like eating olives. When you first try them as a child or in your late teens they are vile. To me they [...]