it is often said that there are as many reasons for running a marathon as there are participants. Nevertheless, for me the following three stand out head and shoulders above the rest... Read more >>

As we all know at this stage, one's enjoyment of running depends crucially on one's inner attitude. However, many people just surrender to whatever mood they happen to be in on the day and let the race turn out accordingly. With a greater awareness of their inner attitude they might just be able to turn the "race from hell" into an experience to be grateful for. Sounds difficult, but it can be done! Read more >>

In April 2007, Harita Davies from Christchurch, New Zealand completed the Self-Transcendence Six-Day Race in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in New York, home of the famous Unisphere sculpture. Here she talks about why she runs ultra-distance races, and how they have made her a better and stronger person in many different ways. Read more >>

When discovering the joy of running or exercising for the first time, the tendency is to begin each run the same way you mean to continue it, and perhaps even get carried away with yourself if the opening stages. However, gradually one learns the importance of having a proper warm-up schedule either the easy way (by listening to older and wiser heads) or the hard way (getting injured!) Read more >>

Many of us have ambitions to keep up a steady fitness program. Often we will begin one and be inspired by the fact we are doing something new, but then the novelty wears off and our enthusiasm drops off accordingly. Or we start off far too hard, trying to prove a point, and end up succumbing to injury. Here are a few tips to ensure that you can physically and mentally sustain a program for years to come. Read more >>

The Australian Six-Day race at Colac is one of the most well-known ultradistance races in the world. In 2002, Arun Kumar Bhardwaj, to his knowledge the only resident Indian ultrarunner in a country of one billion people, ran this race for the first time. Here he gives a very frank account of the lows and highs of his epic journey, and candidly discusses the lessons he has learned from this race. Read more >>

One of the great things about running is that you need an absolute minimum of gear, but obviously the one thing that will help is a good pair of shoes. There is no one-shoe-fits-all solution; it all depends on what kind of feet you have, what your running style is like, and obviously what kind of running you're going to be doing. Read more >>