Last week I spent six days cycling through Europe. We set off from London and headed to Dover where we took a ferry to Dunkirk in France before heading through Belgium and Holland. We cycled more than 300 miles in total, had some good times and some tough days. It was a great way to [...]

I sat down by the side of the road and refused to move. I’d thrown my bike towards the hedge. I wasn’t getting back on it. “I’m not moving, you’ll have to come back and fetch me in the van.” It was a hot day in the Lake District. We’d headed out for a 30 [...]

A few weeks ago I cycled along behind another rider on my way to work. His bike was laden down with bags, it was clear he was going on a bicycle tour and as we wove through the back streets of King's Cross and I wondered where he was going. He stopped at a junction [...]

Race report: Copenhagen marathon Copenhagen marathon had been in my diary for a while. Since a disastrous race at London last year, I've been scared of trying to run fast. So I ran a few marathons with friends, ran at a relaxed pace and focussed on a couple of ultras where the emphasis was on distance rather [...]

Last month I ran round Manchester marathon with Phil. I asked him to write about it. Here's what he said. On the road to Manchester marathon I found my running mantra. I had tried repeating a few. “Peace, dignity, and love” did not fit in with my essential beliefs. “Asics, Adidas and Decathlon” felt a little [...]

"It's an experiment" I said. "A shot to nothing. I wouldn't advise anyone I coach to try it." I was talking to my coaching mentor and explaining my rather unorthodox approach to training for the Copenhagen marathon. It involved peaking with a 50 mile run then doing two marathons a week apart. But it's not [...]

1) It will warm up. Both after you get in and from week to week. Two weeks ago I swam at Hampstead Heath ladies pond. On Sunday I did the Capital Tri 750m Splash. The water was 2C warmer and though that might not sound like a big difference, it seemed warmer. Or I was [...]

This race sells out fast, and with good reason as I now know. It's slickly organised by a really friendly bunch of triathletes and has some of the best marshals I've ever been cheered on by. To say I enjoyed every minute would be an understatement. I enjoyed my disappointingly slow swim. I enjoyed running [...]

It's been a while since I decided I wanted to be a running coach. I'd been to a talk by one of the coaches at my running club and it was obvious how much they loved running and sharing that with other people. While the rest of the runners in the room asked questions about their [...]

"Pour some coke on it" said my friend Josie. "That'll kill any bugs." "Yes! It can clean a 2p piece so it'll clean your foot" chipped in Helen. The first open water swim of the year also means the first wearing of plastic flip-flops of the season. I'd met Josie from the tube and we'd [...]