Phrase Writers Group

For seven years, from 2007 to 2014 I was a UK Athletics coach. I helped hundreds of runners from around the world at weekly hill training sessions.

Like me they were members of London’s Serpentine running, athletics and triathlon club. Members of our club are called 'Serpies'.

This article was published in the club’s magazine 'Serpentimes'.

THE SECRET TO A FASTER YOU

You’ve seen the magazine headlines. “4 weeks to a 10K personal best”, “A faster YOU in just 5 minutes a day” and “The secret to running fast”.

Well, here’s the secret; running faster involves regular, focused and varied training.

Here are some pointers to help in your training. Though they are described individually, they are all dependent on each other.

Smorgasbord A wonderful Swedish word for variety. Look at the different training sessions the club offers. There are Sunday long runs in Richmond Park, Saturday hills in Greenwich and Primrose, and various track and interval sessions on Tuesday and Thursday. Find out which ones will help with your racing or running objectives.

Add variety to your routes; running 2 Parks twice a week for 6 months can get boring. Try running 2 Parks clockwise for a change, though watch out for Serpies coming in the other direction; they hunt in packs you know! Look on the website for other routes.

Vary the frequency and intensity. Too many runs can lead to injury. Consider the types of runs, for example: a weekly long run, one or two (but no more) hard runs or training sessions each week, a recovery run, social runs to catch up (sic!) with friends. Remember that conversation can be good, as talking regulates breathing.

Then there’s the Swedish Fartlek workout, or “speed play”. During a regular training run, select random points and run fast and hard till you reach them, trying to maintain your sprint. It will add variety and help build fitness.

So many choices, yet without structured and committed training the improvements and rewards will be frustratingly long in coming.

Look at what the club has to offer, try out the various sessions, and find what works for you, your goals and your lifestyle.

Enjoyment Running keeps us fit (so we can eat mostly what we like), introduces us to people from around the world, and is enjoyable. As long as we can avoid injury...

Rest There are many neglected aspects of training. Factoring recovery into your training schedule is one. This means allocating at least one day per week for no running or other exercise. Thus your body gets time to repair itself and in the process you get fitter and stronger.

Having an easy week every 2 months and a week’s break from any exercise every 4 months will help prevent injury.

Every single aspect of the club, all activities visible and behind the scenes are put on by unpaid volunteers. So when you are resting, recovering from injury or recuperating after a race, why not help at a club activity. “Meeting and greeting” on Saturday mornings and Wednesday evenings are valuable jobs. Marshalling or helping on water stations is vital to any Serpie event. And it helps you to run better, as you will meet different Serpies and swap training and racing experiences.

Practise, Perseverence, Patience, Perspective One or more of the 4 Ps can be applied in many ways including:
-- when you’re injured
-- missing out on a PB (Personal Best time)
-- spending 3 years (for example) to achieve a sub 40-minute 10K or your first ultra. An ultra is a run or race longer than a 26 mile marathon
-- missing a big race through injury
-- winter training when it’s dark and cold
-- transport problems
-- pub running out of best bitter or chips!

Injury There are books and magazines devoted to injury prevention and recovery from, as well as (sometimes) expensive private healthcare professionals. The Health and fitness part of the Advice section on the Serpie website contains a wealth of advice on injury prevention and recovery from. NOTE following any advice is at Your Own Risk!

Remember to build up gradually, whether you are starting training or returning from injury. Keep increases in mileage or time on feet to no more than 10% a week. So many injuries come from increasing mileage too quickly, or returning from injury too early.

A few points to consider: remember to stretch after running (see below), practise rehydrating (drinking water and/or sports drinks) during training, learn to tell the difference between aches born from tiredness and pain indicating an injury. If it hurts, stop.

Enjoyment (2) Remember to smile. Imagine holding a crisp between your fingers on each hand; it will relax you. Think happy thoughts as they will also relax you. And you will run better, train better, race better. Works for Paula Radcliffe, and it can work for you.

Stretching You should carefully stretch after running. But it is all too easy to go through the motions, and for errors to creep into your stretches. If possible, book a session with a fitness professional and review the stretches you do both before and after training and races. They may also suggest other exercises suitable for you. Core stability (for maintaining good posture) and conditioning exercises are also worth investigating.

Acknowledgements Thanks to senior club coaches Malcolm French and Malcolm Hinsley, and Wayne Edwards (Senior Podiatrist at Health and Fitness Solutions) for their valuable advice.

Serpentine is central London's running, athletics and triathlon club. For more information see serpentine.org.uk