Leading the field: Paula RadcliffeThe Athens Olympic Marathon in 2004 was meant to be Paula Radcliffe's race. Since her marathon debut in London in 2002 the British world record holder had never been defeated over the distance. Certainly the Kenyans
I've ticked most of the 'must-do' boxes in my 20 years of running, from 5Ks to marathons, a multi-day event and even a night run. But I've never raced a mile, attempted cross-country or donned fancy dress. Nor have I run a European city marathon
Start racing faster"To improve your time, you're going to need to run faster throughout the race, not just at the finish. Many racers start too slowly and then end up running too quickly
to tweaking your training, to eating race-friendly foods. If you're a Runner's World UK magazine subscriber, you can see all 9 PB-busting tips here. Otherwise, enjoy these two as a preview - and if you want to subscribe, you can save 30% right here.Strong Legs
The 5K is a perfect distance for the beginner looking to run their first race. But, given that it’s halfway between middle and long distance, it’s also a notoriously difficult distance for the experienced runner to master. Whichever camp you fall
at Loughborough University. "So there is a conditioning aspect to it and a technical aspect to it. But it also creates those race-like conditions so you are better equipped to handle tempo changes. You don't get that from more singular forms of training
-road terrain is that you are running on an uneven surface, so you need to prepare your body for that," says Barden. "If you were to do all of your training on the road, you might initially feel OK in a cross-country race, but your body will fatigue a lot
Closing Soon…Bungay Black 10K Series (Suffolk, May 25) RW Says: Series of three 10K races in May, June and July. Enter all three to gain a discount.Bexhill Seafront 5K Series (Sussex, May 26) RW Says: Scenic seafront race series held
legend Liz McColgan, who has set up a new elite training facility in her home town of Carnoustie, Scotland. "When you're tired, the first thing to go is your form – when I was gearing up for big races I'd almost focus more on this than my running
and infection after the race. You may also be feeling disorientated – or even depressed – in the come-down after achieving such a significant running goal.Unfortunately, there’s no formula for calculating how long your body will take to recover – this will vary
