is too slow?Mike Gratton Bruce Tulloh sums it up nicely with a story he tells about British athletes going to Kenya. They asked how much training they would be doing and were told two sessions a day. So they got up and did an hour run with the Kenyans

with a long recovery. Most athletes think the proof you're a tough runner is that you take on speed workouts that are long and draining – the more repetitions and the shorter the recovery time, the tougher you are. The Olympic legend Emil Zatopek

, there are the kids. So it’s hard to say I’m going to focus on this. To run 2:15 or even 2:30, I would have to be really serious. How does that square with your famously competitive nature? No problem. I’ll be running with normal, everyday athletes. My competitive fix

athletes. If you’ve made a pace chart of your mile splits, make sure that you follow it. A heart rate monitor can be a useful check, but only by trial and error over a number of races. (First observe your heart rate in a conservatively paced race, then try

readily-available muscle glycogen to the metabolisation of fat. However, you won't experience this if your body is used to making this transfer (ie if you're a well-trained athlete), or if your pace is slow enough to draw on fat as an energy source from

, one long and one speed in the final week.Tulloh: Once the athlete has got used to running seven to eight miles in one session, they should train hard each time – for example, one session of repetition miles or kilometres, one session of interval

opens up, encouraging a greater range of motion in the muscles and joints. You elevate your comfort zone and, in time, tolerate greater intensity. You feel more athletic and derive an enormous sense of accomplishment.The beauty of integrated training

experience, you could aim for an effort equivalent to a 5K pace; if not, the advice is more general. “I tell my athletes to run at a controlled faster pace,” says Glover, “a pace they know they can hold the whole way.”Sports scientist Owen Anderson, another

them just before your run, as they can act as a laxative. Calories: Roughly 100kcal for five prunesEnergy bars Why they’re good: Designed especially for athletes, you can choose from high-carb bars, protein recovery bars, or ones that contain a mixture

’ve run the Flora London Marathon or the Great North Run, you probably think you’ve been in a big race. But try the Stramilano and think again. Over the race weekend there are actually four events. Elite athletes have the Saturday to themselves for a