you must reach to perform well at any distance of triathlon. Improving base fitness is essential if you want to improve your performance. Every athlete must return to base training every year, regardless of his or her experience or ability, and keep

Sam is one of the UK's leading fitness experts, and a keen runner. She has completed 15 marathons (with a PB of 3:22) and the Himalayan 100 Mile Race among numerous others.In addition to her first class degree in Sport and Exercise Science, Sam is a

Q I’m not running the Flora London Marathon this year, opting for a summer marathon instead. I have run under 3:30, am pretty sure that I can manage a sub-3:10, but would really love a crack at sub-3:00. How do I know what to aim for, and am I

.”Mile 20For most runners, passing the 20-mile point breaks a major psychological barrier, and if things are going well – as they were for Sodahead – it’s a great moment. He says his best moment of the race this year was “getting to the 20-mile marker

day'. When his father died, raising money for the hospital where he had been cared for was the incentive Stuart needed to apply for the 2000 event. He completed the race in 4:12, off the back of a training regime that he describes as "just going out

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

. Also try toast with raisins or grapes.Q. I returned to running three years ago at the age of 42. My half-marathon PB was 1:12 in the early 1990s. I have now lost nearly four stone in weight and my race times are starting to get a lot faster - recently I

, you might think, but not so, according to the many nutritionists who have turned the concept of healthy eating on its head.In recent years carbohydrates have taken a battering because they have been linked to the increasing incidence of obesity. A

James Barnard is Multimedia Designer at Runner's World, and blogs about running as Sir Jogalot (www.sirjogalot.com). He paced the 11-minute mile group at this year's Virgin London Marathon - the following is an excerpt from his blog.Two words sum up

If broccoli and spinach are the rock stars of the vegetable world, then celery and lettuce are the stage-hands, working hard out of the limelight. For years we've dismissed these pale staples as nutritionally barren, focusing our attention