Q. When Alistair Brownlee's goggles were knocked off at the ITU event in Hyde Park last year he finished the swim without them. Is it worth training without goggles to prepare for this eventuality?A. The simple answer is 'be prepared', whatever your

the number of empty calories in your diet. However, the cornerstone of any weight-loss strategy has to be exercise. As a committed runner you already have the basics right, but you can, however, still adapt your training programme to maximise your chance

Q I don’t race longer than 10K. Do my training runs need to be any longer than this distance? A Yes – longer runs are beneficial, even for 5K and 10K runners, because there is a relationship between endurance and speed. Although a lot shorter than a

Q I have recently discovered that when I’m training and racing hard I end up suffering from a terrible sore throat. I eat a well balanced diet, take multi-vitamins and have tried echinacea. Should I take antibiotics, cut down on the alcohol – I don

Q I know that long runs should be run slower than race pace, but can you explain why. I want to race at eight minute/mile pace at next year’s Flora London Marathon, so surely I should train at that pace? Also, if I run a half-marathon in January

. Is this realistic, and what sort of training mileage should I be putting in?A The John O’Groats-Land’s End run is a real challenge whichever way you do it, and 40 miles a day is pretty ambitious for any runner, but why not?Working backwards, you’ll need

Q. I train four to five times a week, including hills and a couple of interval sessions. However, each time I increase my training, by even a modest distance or pace, my muscles are too stiff and sore to undertake the next day’s session. What can I

Q I suspect that I’m training too hard on my easy days. How do I know what pace I’m supposed to run at on those days, and what is the best way to make sure that I slow down?A Good question. On your easy days, your pulse should rise no higher than

Q. I keep reading that the best way to improve on hills is to ride more hills. It's pretty flat where I live, so should I just keep going up and down the one hill I have access to or are there other ways to become stronger on the bike?A. Utilising one hill to develop your hill st...

their slow brothers in action. And as you progress from moderate to maximum muscle force (think sprinting), fast-twitch type IIb fibres are called upon. If you're a distance runner, you may think you only need to train those slow, endurance-oriented fibres