The long and short of it….getting long runs right.
The time has come for those running a spring marathon to think about adding longer runs into their training. This year some of the ladies from our group Lancaster Women’s.. read more
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Archive for the 'Running Training' Category
What’s that coming over the hill….
As any of the ladies from the Lancaster Women’s Running Group will tell you, I love hills! The feeling I get when hill running is great, you get all the.. read more
Last minute marathon panic (I mean planning)
OK so the time has almost come to pack your bags and set off on your marathon voyage. This can be quite a nerve wracking experience, whether its your first time.. read more
Make the first step….
Starting running can be really daunting and it can take a great deal of courage to make the first move. Joining a group like the Lancaster Women’s Running Group can really help as you do not have to run alone and there is a lot of support and help available. You do not have the added pressure of thinking of somewhere to run, all you have to do is make the move and turn up. You will see you fitness improve so much in a short space of time if you stick at it and come regularly. If you run with the group once or twice a week plus a circuits class your fitness and stamina will come on in,leaps and bounds. You will see an increased level of energy as your body adapts and your muscles will feel firmer. See below for many more benefits!
Starting as I mean to go on….my marathon training plan….
My first training run was 10 miles out and back along Morecambe Promenade. The weather was not great and after a tough session (training not drinking!) the night before my legs were not playing ball. I eventually finished feeling windswept and carbohydrate deficient. Note to self for next time, do not do hard sessions a few hours before hard runs with just a jacket potato and a few hours sleep in between!
Call yourself a runner?
I love to run, it is my passion. I have loved running since the first ever run in training for the Race for Life in 2005. At that point I thought ‘I will never be able to run’. Now I can’t stop!
So why do we run? Running wakes me up and starts my day off or winds me down from a difficult day. It makes me feel alive, and even if I am tired and don’t feel like getting out of the door I am always glad I did. So is it the fact that I run races that makes me a runner? Or that I sometimes run with a club? No I think it is the fact that I get out there and do it, come rain or shine and the fact that I enjoy and choose to do it that makes me a runner. It does not matter how fast you run, how far or how often. I don’t like the word ‘jogger’. You either run or you don’t. You are runner from the first time you lace up your running shoes.
This is a marathon – not a sprint
Well are you in or are you out? The time has come where thousands of runners find out if they have got a place in the Virgin London Marathon. For most people the response is the same. “Oh No I’m not in”. And more often “OH NO I AM IN”. Whatever your emotion – pleased, terrified, relieved, excited you have got a lot of work to do to get to the finish line. Training is not to be taken lightly and needs to start months before the race. Many runners do not know where to start, how far and how often to run, what to wear, what to eat and drink. This causes people to give up on their training and get despondent, or injured. On the other side of the coin they over train and arrive on the start line exhausted and in no fit state to run a marathon. My marathon advice takes you through training plans, food, drink and clothing and relates to any marathon, I am just using The VLM as an example. I have ran 5 marathons over the past 3 years, some good, some (very) bad, but all hard work.
The race is on – advice on race day
Race day can be daunting for even the most experienced runners. Whether you are preparing for your first race or your fiftieth the same race day logistics apply. After training hard you do not want to be let down by a minor incident on the start or finish line. Preparation is the key. Make sure your hard work and training doesn’t go to waste by reading my race day advice. Beginning with before the race, getting to the start line, during the race and after the finish, these points will help you have an enjoyable race day.
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