Whether you are celebrating a holiday this December or not, things tend to get a little out of synch in terms of routine at this time of year. Schools’ break-up for a few weeks, gyms often embrace amended timetables, friends and family travel the globe to spend time with loved ones… there are many variables. 

“All we have is the here and now”, was my thought as I stood in my starting pen and shuffled towards the start. 8 minutes to go. I kept my warm layers on until 3 minutes to go, when I then handed them to a volunteer who was promptly collecting the donation clothes from the railings.

What you do today will likely impact your life in 12 months. From the decisions you make to the habits that you endure. You are gradually, day by day, carving out your future. Similarly then, what you were doing 12 months ago has impacted your current day to day.

From work deadlines, to family commitments, to relationships dramas; life can be stressful. In the right doses we need stress, and it’s certainly something that we factor into training cycles in order to improve.

At the end of last year, like many, I set some goals for 2023. One of which was “to focus on recovery from sessions”. The reason for the goal was fundamentally because I knew that if I wanted to train more, I need to recover more (better). When I wrote it out as a goal, or course it seemed super simple. Then I started to unpack it, and realised that there were many, many layers. 

Having goals in running is common. But sometimes it can be tricky to know where to start. There are multiple avenues that people go down; so here are some tips to help you set and accomplish your next running goal(s)…

One of the most common running injuries is shin splints, especially among those who are new to the sport and training has suddenly ramped up. Broadly speaking, shin splints refers to pain and/or tenderness along the shinbone (tibia).

Dubai, like many cities is a busy place. People come and go. And for many, the weeks, months, or years just fly by. Perhaps you sit down at the end of the weekend and wonder where the time has gone, or worse, you dread the upcoming week. I have certainly fallen into this pit previously, and found myself constantly chasing my tail to keep up.

Post race blues are real, they happen. It’s quite natural that regardless of the result of your race, you feel a little bit lost once it’s all over. So, how do we combat these blues? That dreaded answer… it depends. But it’s true.