Ben Lewis Run Coaching

Have fallen *way* behind with Summer Racing Season updates due to busy coaching duties, but here is a collection of photos of the squad out and about, as well as some recent runner feedback! If I have forgotten anybody then just let me know - and don't be shy about texting me your racing updates with a picture or two to make this easier!

Well done, everyone!

Oh, and we have now just passed 300 members on the Strava Group ... thanks for spreading the word. Competition time, maybe? :D

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York Podium 5k
Euan B 14:28 (SB)
Dan S 16:02 (PB)

Burbage Skyline
Sandi C
Karen S
Max R

Swansea Half EA Masters Race
Kate W 2:08 (7th V70)

Rother Valley Relays
Mark J 15:25 (1st overall, 2nd MSEN Team)
Daniel M 17:32
Flynn R 17:33
Ellie W SB (and then improved on that the week after)
Ian H 21:20
Pete K 22:23 SB
Caroline B (part of the 3rd V60 team with Sally and Bernie)
Joe H 22:25 SB

Peak Rack Raid
Karen S

Deadly Dozen Cardiff

Ben W 53.15. 2nd M40. 9th overall

Hathersage Aquathlon
Ellie W 54:51

Hallam Chase
Rich J
Charlie N
Nadine R (Course PB)
Max R (flexing some new moves)

Pretty Muddy Charity Run
Scott S and Nadine R (lovely pic!)

Trunce
Nadine R
Charlie N

Manchester 10k:
Kirk C 49:00

Les Foulees du Couer 15k
John N (1:15, 1st V70)

Second Race of the Loxley Lash 5k Series last night and some really good runs and PBs in tricky conditions (the only weather we lacked was snow?) Well done to my runners representing Steel City Striders Public Page Hillsborough and Rivelin Running Club and Sheff Running Club. Still catching up on all the other amazing achievements in the hustle and bustle of race season, so be prepared for a bumper edition next week :D

Women:
Karen Clark - 24:56 (1st F60)
Charlie Noyes - 26:49 (1st F50) PB
Amy Willoughby - 28:14 (4th F35)
Shawna Strain - 28:52 (8th)

Men:
Mark Jones - 15:41 (1st)
Alex Jenkinson - 17:02 (7th, 4th M35) PB
Lee Baggaley - 18:20 (3rd M45) PB
Daniel Mortensen - 18:58 (4th M40) Equal PB
Richard Johnson - 19:09 (10th M35)
Andy Moore - 19:29 (6th M40)
Ian Hunter - 21:08 (5th M45)
Ben Curran - 24:38 (11th M40) 50-second PB

Some snaps of the crew thanks to Peter Boden. Give him a follow .captures

Congratulations to Catherine and Iran at the Edinburgh Marathon Festival last weekend.

Catherine, who has recently joined the Squad after doing some 1:1 coaching with me working on her power, ran a 4-minute PB (1:48.41) in the Half Marathon, finishing 15th in her category!

Later on that day, Iran ran her second fastest marathon (4:54) in the soaring temperatures of this current heatwave.

Well done both!

Great runs at Mid Cheshire 5k from Euan and Dan. Euan ran 14:30, his fastest 5k in two years, and finished 15th in a stacked field. Dan 197th in 16:07 - a 5 second PB.

Top work!

Race updates and pics. So many races! I currently have a waiting list for new coached runners but if you would like to do a 1:1 coaching session with me you can book me at: www.calendly.com/benlewisruncoaching

Holymoorside 10k: Chiru 51.27 (and NO KNEE PAIN!) ; Scott 1.13

S Yorks 5 Miler at Lodge Moor: Euan 1st M35 and overall; Mark J 2nd SEN, 3rd overall; Cath A 5th in Category; Frances B 7th in Category; Caroline B 5th in Category.

S Yorks County Champs: 1500m Euan B 4.03

Loxley Lash 5k No. 1: Andy M 19:02; Rich J 19:03; Dan M 19:34

Hathersage Hurtle: Tom S 2:34; Sam S 2:53.18 (10-min PB)

Leeds Mara: Andy H 3.54 and then the Beer Lovers' Marathon today ...!

Northern Track League 800m: Dan S 2:12 (after 400m hurdles!); 1500m: Alex J 4:36 (PB)

Eyam Half: John N 2.05 (3rd V70), Rachel H 1:49.40 (3:33 course PB); Sarah M 2:00.51; Hannah P 2.26

Chesterfield 10k: Danny M 35:55; Adrian H 52:22 (2nd V65 soon to be a 'Super 70!'); Christian H 40.14; Josh R 40.15; Chris M, 46:23 (10th M60 ... and fastest 10k in three years!)

The Lap 75k: Verity S 12.27 (1 hour Course PB)

Dukeries 40: Cara H (11-minute Course PB)

Copenhagen Marathon: Adam D sub 3!

White Peak Half Marathon Angharad G 1:48 (4-minute PB)

The Old County Tops Fell Race Mark J 9:05

Terrex 26km Max R 2:49

Parkrun Time Trials: Sandi 29.59, Pete K; 22.57 (and 1st V50 on holiday Skinadin); Nadine R 30:39; Katelyn 26:37 - Orgreave, not Waverley Lakes :D

https://www.instagram.com/p/DYPH_mdjQGq/ Interesting post. Burn fat; save precious glycogen!

I read the Santamadre case study about Yomif Kejelcha’s 1:59:41 marathon debut, and one thing really stood out to me. It was not only about how many carbs he could take during the race. Yes, carbs matter. Of course they matter. Especially in the marathon. But marathon performance is not only about putting more and more carbs into the body. Your body has two main fuel sources during running: carbs and fat. Carbs are powerful, but glycogen storage is limited. Fat is a much bigger fuel tank, but you need to train your body to use it well. And this is where many runners miss the point. They hear “fueling” and immediately think only about gels, drink mix and carbs per hour. But the better question is not always: “How many carbs can I tolerate?” Sometimes it is: “How can I train my body to use energy better, save glycogen longer, and use carbs when I really need them?” This is why easy running matters. This is why aerobic development matters. This is why Zone 1–2 work matters. Not because running slow is magic. But because it teaches your body to become more efficient. For amateur runners, this is even more important. We can’t blindly copy elite runners. They run much higher volume, spend much more energy, and often have full teams around them. For us, the goal should not be “as much as possible.” The goal should be optimal. Enough carbs to support key sessions and race day. Enough food to recover and adapt. But not overeating just because elites burn enormous amounts of energy. Fuel should match your training load. Kejelcha’s team didn’t just “add carbs.” They worked on the whole system: More easy volume. Better training balance. Correcting energy deficits. Fueling key sessions. A precise race nutrition plan. And still, marathon is marathon. He missed two bottles when he needed them most and finished only 11 seconds behind Sabastian Sawe. Could he have won without missing them? We will never know. But this was not just a story about carbs. It was a story about building the engine, fueling smart, and finding what is optimal for one athlete. Train the engine. Fuel the work. Don’t copy blindly. Find what works for you.

Cara ... or the exception that proves the rule?

Big congrats to Cara Hanson Knead To Run for her 4th place at the Dukeries 40 on Sunday, running an 11-minute PB.

Cara is a fellow Sheffield running coach who first started working with me after she asked me to break down a recent lactate test with Tom at Endurolab in Dore. She had, as Tom put it, 'the most aerobic profile I have ever seen'. Lactate was negligible at most paces in the profile, which reflects Cara's background in Ultra running and her training philosophy. But, beyond a certain point, that is a problem or a limiting factor (lactate is a fuel, ie useful!)

I like to think that I have had a big influence in popularising Zone 1 low aerobic training in Sheffield and South Yorkshire, but Cara has been training - and coaching - in a similar way for quite some time too. When discussing her profile, it soon became clear to me that, using the Australian Institute of Sport approach I generally prefer, her Zone 1 training was largely not fast enough or close enough to her LT1, and thus amounted more to 'Active Recovery'/Zone 0 overall. Still hugely beneficial in our stressed out society, but not quite improving her overall engine.

So we moved the zones and 'sped up' her easy work. Note that this is extremely rare and usually the OPPOSITE of what Cara and I do as coaches: we are typically trying to get people to SLOW DOWN to accumulate more volume and develop low-lactate power. So we shifted the zones, put a greater emphasis on more fast-twitch muscle fibre recruitment ('feel good 100s/200s' etc) and set about improving her balance, momentum and timing. We even chucked in some good-old school Lydiard Time Trials (1 mile, 1k), which she is now using with some of her Striders groups. Very cool. More generally, I have great admiration for Cara as a coach because of her inquisitive nature - we are always bouncing ideas off each other and she does great work as a 'hands-on' running coach in Striders and the community more generally. Give her a follow!

All this goes to show ... while there are physiological principles there is no catch-all 'method'. The great thing about testing is that it allows the coach to look under the hood and help understand which levers should be pulled, how much they should be pulled ... and when. The only 'rule' is that everyone is unique.

We now look forward to the next big goal of Valencia Marathon ... very exciting!

The Sub-3 Dream! Big congrats to Adam D for his lovely run at Copenhagen Marathon yesterday. Adam is self-coached using the highly popular Runna app and has been doing 1:1 sessions with me since just before Christmas to improve the power in his stride ahead of the big day - you can see how EASY he makes that 3-hour marathon pace look in a video from our last session. Think his average stride was in the high 1.40s for the whole race ...

Very excited for what is next, Adam: rest up!

Racing updates! My summer squad is now almost full, with just one of 40 coaching slots remaining. Get in touch if you would like to find out more.

This month's athlete review of the month comes from Euan B, one of the most talented and inquisitive runners I have worked with thus far ... and currently the second fastest V35 in the country over the mile:

'Ben is very knowledgeable about running. He has helped me to improve my form through his understanding of biomechanics and to train smarter through his knowledge of sports science research and application of the Lydiard Method. I definitely recommend him as a running coach!' (Euan Brown, S Yorks XC Champion and 29:50 10k Runner). Cheers, Euan!

Results:

Hyrox Cardiff

Ben W – 1:08.53 (5-minute PB)

Worsborough 5-Miler

Euan B – 1st overall – 25:34
Mark J – 3rd overall, 2nd in category – 25:34 (the top three finished at the same time!)
Dan S – 7th in category (28:39)
Danny M – 20th in category (30:58)
Lee B – 6th in category (31:25)
Joe D – 24th in category (31:41)
Max R – 35:29 (35th in category)
Michael S – 36:26 (15th in category)
Chris M – 38:10 (4th in category and 90-second improvement on last year)
Christian H – 38:56, (15th in category)
Catherine A – 41:28, (5th in category)
Joe H – 41:48 (27th in category)
Ben C – 2nd fastest 5k and 5-mile PB 42:03 (28th in category)
Caroline B – 44:40 (4th in category)
Scott S – 55:52 (30th in category)

Run Greno

Sam S – 7th
Lee B – 12th, 5th in category
Paul H – 57th, 22nd in category
Michael S – 12th in category
Charlie N – 16th in category
Nadine R – 38th in category

Parkruns
Monsal Trail: John N – 25:35 (1st in category)
Hillsborough: Chris M – 22:37 (3rd in category; fastest in almost two years)

Big thanks to Carol W, Rob B and Andy K for the great snaps.