Paula Radcliffe's Top Ten Training Tips
British athlete Paula Radcliffe shares her top ten training tips to help you prepare for Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life, supported by Tesco.
- Get fitted for proper running shoes that suit your style of running and fit you correctly.
- Set realistic goals and targets.
- Join a local group or hook up with a group of friends to run with. Running with others helps motivation, makes it more fun and is also safer.
- Stretch regularly before and after running.
- Always wear reflective gear to train in the dark or in poor light.
- Build up gradually. Stick to the 10% rule; don't increase your runs or total volume by more than 10% at any one time.
- Modify your diet slightly: add more slow release carbohydrates to fuel your training and also slightly more protein as your muscles need to build themselves up too.
- Take a multivitamin plus iron to keep your immune system strong.
- Be sure to drink enough. As a general rule drink 1.5 litres a day plus an extra litre for every hour of training. Adjust if you sweat excessively or in very hot conditions. Remember you lose fluids even in cold weather.
- Run in several thin layers in cold weather rather than one thick so that you can gradually remove layers as you warm up.
