Category: TRAINING

Two of the Best Mobility Exercises for Runners and Triathletes

Posted on 09/07/2021 by Elsa Smith

Find out what mobility is, why it’s fundamental to your performance and try two exercises from our Move Better Mobility programme for runners and triathletes to help you improve your range of movement Mobility and flexibility are often used interchangeably, but they mean two different things. ‘Mobility refers to joint range of motion while flexibility refers to the length of a muscle,’ explains GRTW founder, Rachael Woolston. ‘When it comes to minimizing injury and improving performance, you need to have the ability to move through the required range of motion for your activity.’ ‘What we always say to our athletes

Five Ways to Develop a Winning Mindset

Posted on 28/06/202124/06/2021 by Ruth Martin

When the going gets tough, how can you train your mind to keep going when all you want to do is give up? When training for an event or race, the physical preparation is all you need to perform well and achieve success on race day right? Mmm, not really. Humans are a complicated species and ticking off all the physical sessions on your training plan, whilst 100% important, does not guarantee that the journey to the finish line will be a breeze. The mind plays a very big and important role in performance and will be the thing that

THREE WAYS THAT PARKRUN CAN MAKE YOU FASTER IN A MARATHON

Posted on 24/06/202101/07/2021 by Ruth Martin

Want to get faster over a marathon distance? Start using parkrun in your training and see how it can improve your training and race times It helps you to run faster All good marathon training plans, irrespective of whether you are a first time marathon runner or going for a Good for Age place, incorporate speed work (check out the GRTW marathon training plans here). Running faster, makes you a faster runner. But no one likes the thought of speedwork, right? Step forward parkrun. ‘Going faster than your goal marathon pace over a shorter distance helps to get your legs

How to Get a Parkrun PB

Posted on 16/06/202122/06/2021 by Ruth Martin

Get set to getting a park run personal best when it returns this July with our four tips from the Girls Run the World coaching pros to help you get in tip top form Are you excited for Parkrun to make a comeback? Who knew you could miss a Saturday morning 5km quite as much as we have all missed Parkrun? This free 5km running (or walking) Saturday morning event is much loved by many worldwide and for dedicated fans has been something much missed during the pandemic. ‘What we love about Parkrun is that it is open and accessible

How to Hydrate During Training and Racing

Posted on 28/05/202127/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

How do you know if you are hydrating properly in training and racing? Ruth Martin reveals the essential tips to ensure you hydrate correctly for performance and health What effect does dehydration have on performance? Our bodies are made up of 60% water, which we use to control our body temperature, brain function and join lubrication in every day life. Imagine the pressure that training and racing adds to that. Dehydration occurs when you lose too much fluid through sweating and don’t replace it. It can result in a lack of energy, brain fog and muscle cramps. Just two percent

Eight Ways Hiking Can Improve Your Running

Posted on 25/05/202126/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

‘You’re not a real runner’ if you walk’ or so the adage goes. Think again, as hiking is a powerful tool in your training tool kit as Ruth Martin discovers Was there ever a year when more people got outside walking and hiking than in 2020? Small wonder it became so popular with with working-from-home life providing the time, and the pandemic restricting movement offering the opportunity. According to Strava’s annual Year in Sport the UK saw an 82% increase in outdoor activities being posted. And activities classified as walking outdoors increased threefold compared to 2019, not just amongst those

PERFORMANCE BENEFITS OF COFFEE AND TEA

Posted on 21/05/202120/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

What do you drink before a race or training session? Tea or coffee? If you simply can’t head out of the door on a run or ride before you’ve had your dose of the good stuff, don’t worry, your caffeinated beverage of choice actually does have performance benefits. Studies highlighted by the Tea Advisory Panel show that regular tea drinking can have positive benefits on brain health thanks to the combination of polyphenols, caffeine and the amino acid L-theanine. This magic combo can improve mood and a sense of calm by relaxing blood vessels and improving their function. Tea polyphenols

3 Signs You Are Training Too Hard

Posted on 17/05/202105/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

Sometimes the hardest part of any training plan in the lead up to a race, challenge or event is listening to our own bodies and knowing when to take it easy and when to push on. Juggling life, work, training and responsibilities is a fine balancing act and judging when we need to take it easier in training can be a minefield when we want to compete well or complete a session on a training plan. How do we know when we are genuinely doing a bit too much compared with that feeling of ‘kind of want to go for a

BEST OPEN WATER SWIMMING GOGGLES

Posted on 15/05/202105/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

Goggles are an essential part of open water swimming kit. Our latest Real Women review asks our community of female swimmers what brands and models of goggles for open water swimming they most love and why Come on in, the water’s lovely. TYR Special Ops 3.0, £32 and Speedo Vanquisher 2.0, £25 – Coaches Recommendation “For marathon swims, the TYR Special Ops 3.0 available in a Femme and Normal size. I’ve worn these for up to 9 hours without a goggle mark after! Super comfortable and most swimmers I recommend them to also love them. For up to 10k or

RUN FASTER WITH STRENGTH TRAINING

Posted on 07/05/202105/05/2021 by Ruth Martin

What do you think when you hear the term strength training? Hours spent in the gym with vast amounts of equipment? Another thing to fit into a busy schedule when you’d much rather be out running? We hear you! Hitting the trails or road would always be our destination of choice. But what if adding strength training into the mix could actually make you a better and faster runner? What if it meant you could go for longer and not get tired or injured (aka the holy grail of running). Sounds great right? Well, the science backs it up. A