It's an important day today - yes it's only 4 days to Christmas and yes it's the last day for First Class Post, but much more importantly than that it's exactly 3 calendar months until you'll be lining up at the Reading Half Marathon.
Between now and then there's the small matter of putting in the training, come rain or shine. Or, for that matter, come sleet or snow.
Keeping your training going when it's cold, dark, wet and miserable outside is a significant challenge but not an insurmountable…
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Added by George Anderson on December 21, 2009 at 6:30am —
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There are still 15 weeks to the RHM, but you should already have a very clear idea in your mind of what your goals are for the run.
Have you started your training plan with the aim of just “getting round” the course? Have you run it before and would like to go a little quicker this time round? Or do you not have a clue about how quick you want to do it in and are just going to “see what happens”?!
If you fall into one of the above groups then you are not alone as I’d estimate that more than tw…
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Added by George Anderson on December 9, 2009 at 3:41pm —
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On Friday last week I spent 8 hours on Skype with Nick Anderson from Full Potential, developing a series of 5 marathon training programs for the Spring.
Apart from feeling as though I'd actually
run a marathon by the end of it, the session really reinforced many of the principles I have used for many years when it comes to program design.
There are 17 weeks to go to the RHM2010, which means that the 16 week schedules I have uploaded onto the…
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Added by George Anderson on November 23, 2009 at 12:53pm —
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I interviewed Nick Anderson (contributing editor for Runner's World and coach to Louise Damen, RHM 2008 winner) from Full Potential this morning for the
Reading Half Marathon Training Club on the subject of pacing different training runs.
It was a fascinating conversation and really cleared up a lot of confusion about how fast you should be running fartlek, intervals, threshold, long runs, hill runs and recov…
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Added by George Anderson on November 16, 2009 at 1:06pm —
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Quite a few emails came in a while ago from runners asking how they can lose weight whilst training for the Reading Half Marathon. This is an interesting question because weight loss itself is a goal so you have to decide how you're going to approach it.
Many of the weight loss clients I have trained in the past have seen fantastic results by focusing on training for a race, rather than simply trying to lose weight. Most weight loss regimes cut calories dramatically which has a significant impa…
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Added by George Anderson on November 15, 2009 at 7:20pm —
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One of the questions I got on the webcast the other night that I didn't have a chance to answer was from Dave in Thatcham, who asked
"Do you think it's best to train in the morning or evening or does it depend on what your lifestyle allows?"
The answer is pretty much as the second part of the question states - it entirely depends on what your lifestyle allows. If you have the option of training in the morning or evening, then you should train when your body feels most responsive. For som…
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Added by George Anderson on November 3, 2009 at 10:30am —
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It's important for everyone to get plenty of fruit and veg in their diet, but for runners it's especially important.
Running increases the number of free radicals in our bodies which means we need to up the levels of anti-oxidants we consume. The best place to get these? Fruit and veg.
It's not always easy to get 5 portions of fruit and veg a day into your diet (though you should make every effort to get at least this amout). Juicing them is a quick way to get your entire day's intake of these…
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Added by George Anderson on November 2, 2009 at 2:00pm —
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Hey everyone I hope you're loving this great running weather we're still having, apart from yesterday it's been perfect conditions so make the most of it!
Over the next few weeks I'm going to trawl through the 500 or so questions I've recevied about training for the Reading Half Marathon. I put together the report on the top 7, and held the webcast on the same 7, but there are loads of other, equally important questions that need answering.
To kick things off, Chris asked
"What is the corre…
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Added by George Anderson on November 2, 2009 at 9:30am —
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Hey there,
I've just managed to upload Tuesday night's webcast for you to listen to if you missed it. Had a couple of technical probs getting it onto my own site but if you go to
http://www.instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=9638526 you can catch it there.
You can either listen in directly through the website or you can download it to listen through your iPod etc.
I'm also super excited about the launch of the Reading Half Marathon…
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Added by George Anderson on October 30, 2009 at 10:07am —
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Back in September I asked a load of runners what the single most important question they had about their training for the Reading Half Marathon was. I had a HUGE response and from the results I produced a special report.
The 7 Biggest Challenges report details what turned out to be the most commonly asked questions such as "How do I stay motivated?" and "What is the best training program?"
I toiled for days writing this report ;) but I'm giving it away for free! Many of you will already have i…
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Added by George Anderson on October 25, 2009 at 7:38am —
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The Reading Half Marathon 2010 is still over 5 months away but many of you will be starting to think about your training already. I have received loads of emails recently asking when you should start to train seriously for the race.
As for most things, the more you put in the more you get out and so the longer you can spend conditioning your body in preparation for the RHM the faster you are likely to be able to run it. 5 months is plenty of time for most runners, but this may seem like too lon…
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Added by George Anderson on October 16, 2009 at 11:22am —
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Hi everyone
Can anyone recommend any good events? Am looking at any distance from 10k - full marathon....
I've looked at Runners World, but wondered what you guys and girls would recommend?
To kick start it off, I would STRONGLY recommend Reading Half, and would suggest you give Paris Marathon a miss... Atmosphere was rubbish and after 5k I had to stop and wait for 100's of people to squeeze through a narrowing in the road! Only in France!
Thanks
Justin
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Added by Justin Saunders on April 17, 2009 at 3:27pm —
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Hi there, I'm a beginner and I started a month and a half ago with running. I'm doing 2-3 times a week of running. Now I'm a bit embarassed to say how long I run for....anyway, I run for 15 min. I feel like I'm slowly giving in and I'm starting to loose motivation, bit by bit.
I don't know what to do. I do love running, I like the feel of it, but I feel like I'm not getting anywhere.
What shall I do?
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Added by Juliet on April 14, 2009 at 3:50pm —
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Hi there,
Thanks for all the advice. I had a fantastic day, the weather couldn't have been better!
I was hoping for a sub 2 hour. However, I did manage a very respectable time of 2 hours and 19 minutes. I was making really good time until about 6 miles in my toe really started hurting. After 9.5 miles, I was hobbling/running. I remember thinking the pain couldn't possibly get any worse and carried on regardless. This is my first half marathon and I enjoyed the Reading Half so much, I've signed u…
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Added by Valerie on April 6, 2009 at 10:24pm —
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Well done to all!! This was my first ever half marathon and I have to admit I have got the bug too and loved all the music/bands, support etc - they really give you a push!
I started training in January and started off with a goal of 2.30 then 2.15 and then 2.00 and managed to do in 2.00.55 (although I would have liked to come in under the 2hr mark!) And being my first I didn't really appreciate and take into account all the people and the drink stations etc. and how a few of these 'slowing down…
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Added by Pippa on March 30, 2009 at 2:58pm —
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Just like to add a note of thanks to those others on the blogs. I have to say I found yesterday enjoyable but started to struggle near the end (got to work on that).
I've only managed to follow the weekend training runs due to work and family commitments. Got me round in 2:01(ish) so I'll be looking to break 2:00 at Bristol in September and will be looking to get all the runs I need for training for that.
What do I do now? A friend has suggested the Neolithic but the full Marathon is very daun…
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Added by Rob on March 30, 2009 at 10:18am —
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Well I hope everybody had a brilliant day! The best bits were the drum music under the flyover and the finish line!!!! I hope you all made pbs - I did!!! - and if my legs could actually function they would be walking on air!!!
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Added by Gill Lightfoot on March 29, 2009 at 3:29pm —
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Well only 3 days to race day, I've just finished my last training run, and now I can afford to put my feet up, sort out my gear, psych myself up for the big day, and try not to injure myself unnecessarily!
I've been following this network closely for Reading Half Marathon preparation. And I've seen this support network grow from a small group when I first joined, to a huge group of keen, like-minded runners.
One thing that has amazed me is the amount of first timers here, the enthusiasm shown…
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Added by Aaron on March 26, 2009 at 9:33pm —
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As I write this it is almost exactly a week to go until the race. It's always around this time that I feel most excited about the Reading Half Marathon - during the week you get caught up in the usual business of everyday life with only the occasional reminder of the race on Sunday but today, today you get to think about it all day long!
On Friday I recorded a short interview with last year's winner Liz Yelling (she also holds the course record of 69:35!). In the interview we talk about last mi…
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Added by George Anderson on March 22, 2009 at 10:00am —
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The long awaited and much talked about taper!
How long you taper for is up to you but my advice would be to take a minimum of 10 days. This means nothing longer than 6 miles after Wednesday and even then things should be fast not long.
The point of the taper is to get you to the start line feeling like a caged animal, ready to unleash your inner speed on the 13.1 miles of the half marathon.
You may choose to follow my advice of no long runs in the next fortnight and trust the research based e…
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Added by George Anderson on March 15, 2009 at 3:23pm —
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Winter Running Survival Guide
Good running events?
First Timer
First Half Marathon
Who's amped?
