at the same time.Why? Testosterone? Fear of ageing? Mindless machismo? Nope. It’s just great to annihilate someone who challenges you. And it’s just as much fun in a running event as it is behind the wheel of a car.Okay, I admit it – I’m a closet competitor

In summer 2004, more than 20 forum members pledged to take on Ironman Switzerland in July 2005 - that's a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile cycle and 26.2-mile run. Many of them - including Jellybabe - were complete triathlon newbies at the time... Here

The only thing runners fear more than rabid dogs and toilet emergencies is getting hurt. An injury means taking a break, and runners hate the thought of losing fitness, gaining weight or missing an endorphin fix. But what if you knew what injuries

, the Geordie failed to show up and Bunk feared the worst.It turned out he’d tried to hang himself from a wooden beam placed across the trapdoor to his loft. He’d kicked away the chair, the beam had snapped under his weight and the two jagged ends had fallen

fitness while running is reduced or even temporarily cut out completely. This could prove especially useful at the end of a gruelling season; you could stop running for a while and switch to cross-training for a physical and mental break without fear

desire and competitive aggression. But does sex really deplete your reserves, as athletes have traditionally feared? Rubbish, says Emmanuele Jannini, Professor of Endocrinology at the University of L'Aquila, Italy. In fact, pre-race sex can give you a

was gentle, the organisation full of thoughtful touches, the marshals had obviously taken their happy pills and the miles simply flew by, largely thanks to views that were consistently easy on the eye. Enter online. 8. Bupa Great South Run 2011, Portsmouth

As the Trans 333 looms ever closer, a frisson of pure terror is rippling through our little band of British ‘disties’ – we who are either too old, too fat, too lame or generally too congenitally useless to run anything under 100 miles in a time

Devils Chimney Chase (Cheltenham, July 16)Feel the fire in your legs and chest as you take on this fiendish run. This mischievous 9.6K race organised by Cheltenham's Almost Athletes starts off gently, but will soon have you breaking into a torturous

from injury you can maintain your resistance workouts with aqua jogging. "It removes the high impact associated with running but recruits and trains similar muscles," says Lane.2. Calculate your maximum heart rate accuratelyWomen's hearts