for a while,” says Benji Durden, a former Olympic marathon runner who now coaches runners of all abilities. “You need to get your running legs under you.”But what exactly does that mean? Novice runners come in all shapes, sizes and pre

psychologist and marathon runner, has some surprising advice: “Accept it – runners are crazy. The trouble is, we’re crazy in a way that isn’t familiar to most people, and that can be threatening to them.” Here’s Palmer’s advice.Stop trying to turn your friends

fast. If you’re not sure what your rep pace feels like, use a track to run the distance given below in four minutes. 10K Time Half Time Marathon Time Rep pace (mins per mile) 35 1:20 2:45 5:55 (cover approx 1100m

.com) includes a coaching tool to build you up in personally tailored weekly stages - from 5K to 10K, 10K to a half-marathon, then finally the full 26.2 miles - with the pedometer in your shoe and your iPod monitoring your progress to keep you on track to being

for this purpose. We have many students training for various events in hot conditions including the Marathon des Sables. We cannot mimic the exact conditions, but when you do an intense 90-minute cardiovascular workout in 100 degrees heat and 60 per cent humidity

the pace of your runs is essential to improving, it's key to have the correct variation. "You need to make your recovery runs really easy and your hard runs really hard," explains Chris Frapwell, coach to GB Olympic marathon hopeful Dan Robinson. "Easy runs