Speed, like weight loss, is a simple concept. The only way to run faster is to run faster. What that means in practice, especially for a beginner, is moving from a single-speed run to variable paced training. This is initially difficult because

my friend wants to do is train for a marathon, or anything like that. Three or four miles a day, every other day – that’s his thing. Speedwork? Forget it. Train at the track? No way. Just make the activity a little more palatable, he asks. Please

. Sometimes I get up at 5.30am to fit in speedwork or distance with a friend. On Fridays my club does a circuit session open to kids so we get a core session and they get the basics of good health. You really do have to be flexible and work things around

or another location of your choice.We can’t overemphasise the importance of running at your VO2max pace. Far too many runners think interval training means speedwork. No doubt you can and have run 400m intervals faster than your VO2max pace. Well, stop it