race weekend.Friday 18:00 - Home Time The words "relaxing commute" are rarely uttered, particularly if you work in the middle of a large city. Relaxation is the key to the perfect race, so you might as well start now. If you usually run or cycle home

-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

race.”Take a little time to visualise the finish, the focus of these last months of training. Imagine running elated up The Mall, with your target time on the clock and thousands of spectators cheering you on. Picture walking on air through the finish

can. It's easier than ever to get information and contact race organisers. Don't go into an event blind."On to the runThe run may hold the fewest surprises, but it's still worth finding out as much as you can about your race. You should know if it