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This site is dedicated to making you a better runner, whether you're a beginner or a competitive athlete. Many of the articles are general in nature, but specific attention is given to the marathon and ultramarathon distances. I don't claim to have any specific training beyond my own experience as a competitive ultrarunner and I advise you to Trust No One. I'm a believer in the scientific method, and so this site is a mixture of my personal perspective and my analysis of the Science of Running. I also believe that Documentation Is Evil and therefore try to keep things short and to the point. You can Contact Me to ask questions, suggest articles, or to disagree with what I've written.

1 Running for Beginners

Main article: Running for Beginners

I started running in my 30's, overweight, unfit, and without the benefit of the Internet to provide me with even the most basic of advice. I've listed the core advice and answers to common questions in Running for Beginners, which includes a plan for Starting to run, advice on Motivation, critical tips such as Cadence, and more.

2 Advanced Running

Main article: Advanced Running

If you've been training for a few years and you've mastered all the foundations of running (especially things like Cadence), then you're ready for some of the more Advanced Running topics. This covers things from the Zen like concept of Stillness in Motion, to Running Form, Altitude Training and more.

3 Training

Main article: Training

The pages on training for general fitness and racing include the basics of how recovery, not exercise, makes you fitter and what happens when you do endurance training through to the various types of workout from the Long Run to High Intensity Interval Training.

4 Running Marathons

Main article: Running Marathons

If you're racing a marathon, be it your first or your fiftieth, the advice in Running Marathons will help, covering core topics like the Top 10 Marathon Training Mistakes and Top 10 Marathon Racing Mistakes, through to the much debated question of Negative Splits and the greatly overlooked Impact of Heat on Marathon Performance, plus A Comparison of Marathon Training Plans.

5 Ultrarunning

Main article: Ultrarunning

For those running the longest distances, the advice on ultrarunning includes the Essential Ultrarunning Tips, Fixing problems in Ultramarathons, a list of Ultramarathon Training Plans, plus specifics for the 100 mile and 24 hour races.

6 Nutrition and Weight Loss

Main article: Nutrition

Like any sport, Nutrition is important to achieve optimum performance and health. A core part of effective sports nutrition is to understand when to eat specific foods to achieve optimum recovery and weight management. There is some general advice for the The Runners Diet, along with many specifics for things like Fiber and Potassium.

7 Ketogenic Diet

Main article: Ketogenic Diet

The ketogenic diet restricts carbohydrate intake, and to a lesser extent protein intake, to the point where the body converts fat into ketones. These ketones are an alternative fuel source for most cells in the body, supplementing or replacing glucose as a critical fuel source. The ketogenic diet has the potential to help with a number of health conditions, but also has some significant potential health risks.

8 Injury Prevention and Recovery

Main article: Injury Prevention and Recovery

My success as a runner has had a lot to do with being able to fix minor problems before they become injuries. My main tools for staying healthy have Massage and Cryotherapy (icing), combined with an acute awareness of the importance of rest and recovery. The page on Injury Prevention and Recovery gives both general and injury specific advice.

9 Product Reviews

Main article: Product Reviews

My Product Reviews include comparisons of Running Shoes, GPS Watches, MP3 Players, Running Lights, Energy Gels and many more.

10 Software

Main article: Software

My utilities include the VDOT Calculator, Marathon Pace Band , SportTracks Dailymile Plugin, and more specialist software such as the Hypoxic Timer for Intermittent Hypoxic Exposure. In addition, I've documented the use of software for High Speed Video Analysis.

11 Controversial Topics

There are a number of topics where the science my personal experience has led me to a radically different and controversial opinion.

  • Tempo Runs. The preponderance of scientific evidence indicates that tempo runs, also known as threshold training, is the least effective form of training and should be avoided.
  • Downhill Running. For endurance runners, I believe that downhill running is the most valuable and most overlooked form of training.
  • Overtraining Syndrome. I believe that Overtraining Syndrome is best considered a form of clinical depression, and concluded that running 3-4 time per week is optimal.
  • Maximum Heart Rate. You have to measure Maximum Heart Rate, you can't calculate it and more than you can calculate your weight from your height.
  • Lactate Threshold. Most methods of measuring lactate threshold are deeply flawed, but the valid approach of Maximum Lactate Steady State (MLSS) is difficult, time-consuming, and probably not worth the effort.
  • Shoe Modifications. I cut the toe box is my running shoes open, something that seems surprisingly controversial to me.
  • Ketogenic Diet. My analysis is the science and personal experimentation is unlikely to upset both sides of the low carbohydrate debate.

Not all of my suggestions are controversial, as my belief in things like the importance of Cadence and High Intensity Interval Training are mainstream.

12 Recent Changes

This list of recent changes is automatically generated, but it should give you a rough idea of what's been published recently.