, to drag me up the high kerbs.I was beginning to wonder whether the secret of achievement in athletics was gross excess. Listening to some old pros at the Lanzarote Challenge last year, they seemed to train on a diet of Guinness and curry.“D’yer remember

GETTY IMAGESWe all know that a healthy diet is a balancing act of carbs, proteins and fats. But there's one factor runners often neglect, warns sports nutritionist Becky Stevenson (proactivate.co.uk): "Whether you've done an easy 20 minutes or been

if improving performance is as easy as making a few changes to your diet? Next time you need to run faster, stronger or longer, try these simple staples for a peak performance.Porridge Goldilocks was onto something when she raided the three bears' house

drastic low-fat diets: you need healthy fats to absorb fat-soluble vitamin D (and vitamins A and E). Beat it: At Munich University, Germany, runners who drank two pints of non-alcoholic beer daily for three weeks had more killer T-cells, which indicate a

that the typical diet in the United States contains about 10 omega-6’s to one omega-3.My recommendation: Don’t run out to the store, buy a bottle of fish oil supplements, and down the whole thing at once. For fish oil to work, you need to increase omega-3’s while

.The magnesium supplementation may have been superfluous in this case, since the male runners’ diets already contained more than the DV of 400 milligrams of magnesium. In other words, more does not mean better.My recommendation: Try to get your magnesium from

foods to ensure adequate mineral intake. Also do not completely eliminate salty foods from your diet. These will help to ensure you have adequate electrolytes to balance fluid losses each day.—Joe Beer, sports scientist and level two triathlon coach

Q I have recently discovered that when I’m training and racing hard I end up suffering from a terrible sore throat. I eat a well balanced diet, take multi-vitamins and have tried echinacea. Should I take antibiotics, cut down on the alcohol – I don

. This has been diagnosed as worn vertebrae, which are pinching the nerves exiting the spine. My doctor and my osteopath both say that the condition is inoperable, which I accept, but I can’t face the diet of swimming and cycling which they’ve given me

, sodium, calcium and magnesium in your diet. You can also incorporate plyometric exercises (ie bounding and hopping) into your sessions, to improve the strength and endurance of your leg muscles. An ideal time to incorporate plyometrics is before a speed