Lakeland Trail Marathon - ConistonI entered this race in January having seen the glorious pictures of the event in 2011 warm, dry not weather you'd associate much with a Lake District marathon! This year, sadly, normality resumed - a mild day but with lashings of rain on already soggy ground. This, however, did not detract from the enjoyment of the event.Looking in the results afterwards there we…

Do consult your doctor before beginning any fitness program. Life can generally get in the way of following a program like this to the absolute minute. If you're unable to follow it exactly, work each session into your week as & when you can. Try to have at least one rest day between each session allowing the body to adapt without over-stressing it. Following this type of program prevents you f…

The Pilgrim Challenge is a two-day trail race organised by Extreme Energy (XNRG, www.xnrg.co.uk ). You can see all the details on their website but Day 1 consists of a 33 mile run east from Farnham to Merstham (near Redhill), along the North Downs National Trail in Surrey with an overnight stop in St. Nicholas School hall. Day 2 is a 33 mile return trip west along the same route back to Farnham. Q…

Growing up along the Comrades route it was destiny for me to run the great event, but not before moving to the UK. While preparing for an Up run, I decided to run the famous London-Brighton run, historically linked closely with the Comrades, very often won by South Africans runners.   Unbeknownst to me at the time, my 2005 race was the last running of the event as we knew it. This event is abo…

APEX SPORTS GUIDE TO RUNNING FOR BEGINNERS Congratulations on choosing to start running, one of the most progressive (in more ways than one!) individual sports you can do. Almost anyone can do it, its (mostly) a matter of discipline and motivation which we all have, and once you overcome this and get fitter, you will notice results almost immediately, seeing yourself continually progress by the a…

The Brooks Cascadia 6 Victoria looks at Brooks' trail shoeUp until a couple of months ago, wearing a trail shoe was more of a means to an end, a shoe to avoid those embarrassing slips or injury. My trail shoes were ok, just rather stiff and clumpy; they did their job, stopping me slipping. But they were always a second choice to my road shoes, which I would wear off-road if I could possibly …

Saucony Kinvara 2 ReviewHaving run in conventional running shoes for about 20 years, I have had a gradual patella issue intensify in the last few years. It came to a head last year stopping me from running. It was diagnosed as patella tendonitis, a common Runner's Knee issue. I followed the strengthening advice which helped a little, but not much. Rest seemed to help but when I'd start up again it…

BROOKS PUREFLOW REVIEWThe Brooks PureFlow is a neutral, lightweight trainer. In common with several of the new generation natural running styles, it has a 4mm heel to forefoot drop which helps to make it easier to land in a flatter, mid-foot position. Brooks seem to have taken the decision not to compromise on cushioning, so although the shoe weighs in at a mere 247g it still has full-length BioMo…

Training the Mind"I could never run 10k" is a common phrase uttered by non-runners, beginner runners, even intermediate runners! Yes, you probably could, you just don't realise it. In fact there are probably bigger distances you could run, you just don't realise it. I believe there are a lot of capabilities people could tap into themselves... if they just believed it!The furthest I've run is a 1…

The Grand Union Canal UltraRyan takes on the classic 145mile, non-stop raceHaving been a long distance runner for a few years and done numerous 35+ milers plus the London to Brighton & Comrades (both 55m), I decided to test my endurance in 2007 in Britain's longest & toughest non-stop run the Grand Union Canal Race ('www.gucr.co.uk). It is 145 miles non-stop along the Grand Union Canal from Birmi…