.My running shoes are like soldiers in my war against the ravages of age and a less-than-healthy previous lifestyle. And I’m the general. I’m the commanding officer of the brigade of shoes at the bottom of my wardrobe. I can choose my weapon from my shoe

. Dedicate 35 minutes to carbs. Add 15 minutes of protein and healthy fats. The remaining 10 minutes? Have fruit for dessert.BAD GUY: SALTThe good news: It's always wise to keep your salt intake below 6g a day. Yet during long runs "prolonged sweating can

responds to endless questions and really inspires us to carry on when we feel like giving up.”Phil Wilson, 36, from Nottingham — sheet metal workerWhile the running has been going well for Wilson – he is doing 12-15 miles a week – kicking his smoking habit

and run at 65 per cent of your working heart rate. (To calculate effort based on your WHR, subtract your resting heart rate from your max – eg 200-40 = 160WHR. Then calculate 65 per cent of that = 104, and add it back onto your resting rate = 144 target

."NUTRITIONPass on the extra carbsBread, bagels, pasta, potatoes and pancakes - you just can't get enough, right? Wrong, says sports nutritionist Nancy Clark, author of Nancy Clark's Food Guide for New Runners (£12.95, Meyer & Meyer Sport). Running two or three miles

salespeople who are themselves runners and who understand the particular needs of beginners. If you need a recommendation of a shop, ask on our general forums. When you shop for shoes, do these three things: (1) Go late in the day, when your feet

,” he says.A 10K race after Christmas was Wilson’s first competitive outing, where he posted an impressive 44:05. Shortly afterwards, he started getting pains in his knee, but with time off running, it is now better. He is looking to start building up

At the last count, 132,000 runners had posted 1.6 million messages between them on the Runner's World forum. That's a ton of useful tips!Our readers already helped us pick out some of the best threads (or 'conversations'). Now we've gone a step

adult life. And if I thought about stopping, my partner and daughter would kick me out of the door and tell me to get on with it.Nick Troop Years Running 20+ Finishing a marathon is easier than you thinkWhen I started running in the 1980s, the marathon

:48 and on that day I passed through the half at 1:47 and 25km at 2:09, which was also a PB. I think it works better for longer distances - I've done sub four minutes for 1K and 23 mins for 5K but never dipped under 48 for 10K. I can run fast for short distances