-twitch muscle fibres will not in themselves make someone a fast runner. The one thing that is consistently proven to improve fitness (and speed) is training. Generally the more you train the better you get. Less is NOT more! Don't get worked up about what your

on the back)? Why don't runners who feel the need to do this just run a training session faster...? I've never heard of an elite athlete saying that this type of weight training has contributed to their success. It's almost exclusively men that do it, so

it in my head that I want to do the Southend half-marathon on 10 June – exactly two weeks after Edinburgh. I've been told by my friend's bloke, a seasoned marathon runner, that it's a horrendous idea. Is he right? Given that it's my first marathon, I

– the curry was a lot better at slowing me than a couple of beers! – Jason XThis is the real worldA binge the week before isn't strictly in the elite marathon runners' preparation plan, but in the real world we have many different priorities. – Dad Of Two