Preparation is key to successful racing. So do and I say, and not as I do, to give yourself the best possible advantage. Do take it easy on the days before your race. Keep your weight off your feet. Don't carry a bag the weight of another human on your back for the best part [...]
Your friends and family can't run the marathon for you, but some well organised cheering and a suitably timed friendly face can help make it a special day and the miles fly by. Almost. Support crews are great - but here's what your support crew needs to know about the big day to make sure [...]
Everyone knows one: those annoying people that turn up to the start of a race having done almost no preparation over and above pinning their race number to their shirt and then turning out a pretty good time. So it got me thinking, why can't I be one of those annoying people?Obviously training would be [...]
This week I turn 30. The kind people at the Thailand International Half Marathon reminded me of this just yesterday by sending me an online registration form to fill in for the race next week. For the first time I ticked 30-35 as that will be my box when I race. I don't mind turning [...]
DOMS noun abrivition of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, the phenomena where your muscles ache more the second day after exercise than they did the morning after. Can sometimes be used to refer to Delayed Onset Munchies Syndrome, but I think that's just me.Chicked verb for a man to be defeated or overtaken in a foot [...]
Struggling to motivate yourself to run today, here's five very good reasons why you should stop fighting it and go for a run. ONEYou won't have to run tomorrow. Think how pleased with you your future self will be. Don't you want to be that person tomorrow who gets to sit down knowing they banked [...]
Dalat in the south central highlands of Vietnam is a place where newlyweds from Saigon honeymoon, others seek shelter from the sticky heat of the city to bask in the mountain air and a place where runners (by which I mean me) come to run. There's three good reasons to run in Dalat: it's got [...]
Thousands of miles away from home where I don't speak the language or know anyone in a city of five million people, I knew a place I could go where a group of runners would welcome me like an old friend. A place where everybody knows your (hash) name. It's like 'Cheers' but with a [...]
If you're new to running, or thinking about stepping it up a gear to take on a few races, there's a few things that your nearest and dearest need to know - for your sake and theirs.You're going to be a bit of a boreAchieving new distances, times and tackling hills you once thought was [...]
I may be a gazillion miles away today, but I'm thinking of London. In six months time on 27 July 2012, the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games will be held. It feels like only yesterday I was (sort of) running the Olympic marathon myself. Did you know that there's certain elements that [...]