Become a Student of the Sport

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Start of the first ever Ekiden (road relay) Kyoto, Japan
I did my first race in Bude, Cornwall when I was about 10 years old at primary school. It was a cross-country race organised by the scouts. I finished 3rd. Over the next 25 years I competed over a range of distances over a variety of events, along with some long breaks from running where I pretty much gave it up.

I've done track events from 400m to 10,000 and the odd relay race. I did Cross-country for my school and county. Cross-country relays, nationals and south of England champs at Parliament Hill for Crawley AC and later Bedford and County.

Running stopped for a few years at Uni and during a gap year. After meeting a coach at Uni, I got back to the track, but it didn't excite me so I took to the roads. I started racing 10km and half marathons. After a few years I did some marathons, trail runs, and ultras. I've done 1km vertical races in the alps, orienteering races, turkey trots, duathlons in Greece, Off-road Duathlons in Wales and a race where I was chased down by David Coulthard (Wings for Life). I've done some fell runs and part of the Bob Graham Round. I was the first military person to win the hill race at the Braemar Royal Highland Games, hosted by the Queen. I've done multi day races such as the 4 day Cyprus challenge.

I've now competed over most distances from 400m to 50km in a variety of countries and terrains. I have raced in Falklands, Cyprus, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and France. There are a lot more races I would like to do and books such as Epic Runs of the World and the 'World's Ultimate Running Races' just adds to the list. I've also never done an altitude training camp, so will add that one too. I've met older runners such as Ron Hill, and more recent stars such as Sir Mo. I like to stay current in the world of running news through podcasts, magazines and the latest books. I also feel that it is important to know the history of the Sport. This helps to motivate me to get out running and also highlight how prestigious some races are. Of particular interest are those great RAF runners that came before me. Most are engraved on the RAF XC trophy along with my own name.

This post isn't meant to be boastful. I just wanted share some of my running experiences and how much variety there is out there. Along with reading about running, I look to other sports for inspiration and training ideas. From Tom Brady in American Football to Mike Tyson on Boxing. My job as an FDI allows me to deliver lessons on resilience and mindset. With this I read a lot of books on psychology, performance and learning theories. I have created a top 10 list of books and podcasts below that may help.

Thanks for reading.

Running Books

  1. Ready to Run - K. Starrett
  2. Unbreakable Runner - Mackenzie
  3. When Running Made History
  4. Today We Die a Little - Zatopek by Richard Askwith
  5. The Art of Running Faster - Goater
  6. Running with the Buffaloes - Lear
  7. From Last to First - Spedding
  8. Running Hard  - Chilton
  9. Feet in the Clouds - Askwith
  10. A Clear Cold Day - Edelen
Sport Books
  1. First - Rich Froning
  2. Swim Bike Run, Brownlee
  3. My Time - Wiggins
  4. Undisputed Truth - Tyson
  5. Touching Distance - Cracknell
  6. The Sports Gene - Epstein
  7. Running with the Kenyans - Finn
  8. The Way of the Runner - Finn
  9. The TB12 Method - Tom Brady
  10. Paula - My Story So Far - Radcliffe

Other Books


  1. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck - Manson
  2. First Man In - Middleton
  3. Bounce - Syed
  4. Mindset - Dwek
  5. The 10X Rule - Cardone
  6. What you see is what you get - Alan Sugar
  7. Can't Hurt Me - David Goggins
  8. The Fear Bubble - Middleton
  9. Wild Diet - Abel James
  10. Fast Fuel: Food For Running Success - Renee McGregor

Podcasts


  1. Marathon Talk
  2. Marathon Training Academy
  3. The Morning Shakeout Podcast
  4. The Rich Roll Podcast
  5. That Peter Crouch Podcast
  6. Sports Motivation Podcast


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