We’ll finish this week with another 3 performance based tips to help you with continuous improvement.

6) Stretch- Many runners keep seeing the same running injuries popping up, and they are usually avoidable. Excess tightness in certain running muscles, the glutes especially, leads to the body moving in inefficient patterns and injuries can often happen as a result of this compensation. Remember, a 5km run will see you hitting the ground close to 5,000 times! Make sure your muscles are loose and your body is able to function the way it was meant to by properly stretching after your run.

7) Change your pace. Recreational runners often train at the same pace every time they go out the door and then wonder why they have plateaued. Slow down on your long run; you don’t have to go fast to get all the benefits of this workout. Stay at a conversational pace. With the extra energy you saved by going easy on the long run, take one of your other weekly runs and slowly build a section of it in which the intensity is hard but sustainable, like we do in our intervals. This will give you huge fitness gains, teach your body to run fast, and you will find that when you slow down to your goal race pace it will feel easier.

8) Cadence maintenance: Cadence refers to the rate at which your feet hit the ground. When you learn to run with shorter, quicker strides, your body will spend less time in the air meaning there is less impact each time you land. By bringing the foot down more quickly you will also avoid over-striding, which results in a small but measurable braking effect each time you land. A great cadence target for the recreational runner is 90 strikes per minute per foot. At this rate you can run at any speed; the difference then lies in your stride length.

Week 5 is our midpoint so be ready to step up to the hardest sessions of training starting next week. Good luck to you all in week 6.

Click here for advice on protein