Who’s the coach?

England Athletics running coach, Mary Brooking, will be leading the sessions. Mary has been a runner for many years participating in a variety of events from park runs to marathons and is keen to share her love of running, her understanding of its mental and physical benefits, and the importance of having a structure to your running to prevent injury as well as improving performance. Mary is also a Sports Massage therapist so brings a unique combination of skills to the running sessions she leads.

Mary has been leading Hilly Fields Run Session since 2022 so knows the paths and grass of Hilly Fields very well. There’s plenty of scope for challenging run intervals, and also for shorter and flatter options.

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Who’s it suitable for?

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Beginner:

It’s suitable for all running abilities, but if you are completely new to running this probably isn’t the most appropriate course for you. ​If you are a running beginner I frequently recommend following a 0-5k or Couch to 5k plan as its structured approach is well designed. It builds running fitness gradually and also means that our joints, tendons and muscles have time to adapt to the demands of running, thereby reducing injury risk.

 

Getting going:​

Once you are running for 2-3 minutes 3 to 4 times within a run or 10-15minutes continuously then this course will help you take your running further. Don’t wait to get fitter or feel more ready to join - just come along, this is the perfect time! Hopefully you’ll find that the variety and challenge of the sessions boosts both your running motivation and fitness and the technique tips result in not only performance benefits but reduced injury risk.

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Experienced:

If you are an experienced runner maybe your running has got a little bit lacking in variety, perhaps many runs are roughly the same pace, or the same length. Our sessions, and the notes that come with them, will give you ideas for some different things you could include in your runs eg shorter intervals, hill sprints, progression runs or fartlek. These should hopefully not only give your motivation a boost (if that’s needed) but will help improve your running speed and endurance due to the training benefits of higher intensity and interval based training. Running technique plays a big part in not only performance but also injury prevention so the sessions are also an opportunity to get some tips from a running coach, and try some running drills, which you may find helpful.