The Runner's Journal
Why is your VO₂ max decreasing? Discover how heat, fatigue, detraining, weight, ageing, altitude and watch errors can make your score fall. Your watch gave you a VO₂ max of 52 last month. Today, it says 49. You have not stopped running. You may even be training more. Yet according to the number on your […]
A higher VO₂ max can help you run faster – but it cannot tell you how efficiently you move, how much of your aerobic capacity you can sustain or whether your legs will still cooperate in the final kilometres. Your watch has increased your VO₂ max estimate by two points. Excellent. But your 5km time […]
Which supplements help runners? Compare the evidence, doses and risks for caffeine, beetroot juice, creatine, iron, vitamin D, protein and electrolytes. Walk into any sports nutrition shop and it can feel as though running now requires an entire cupboard of powders, capsules and brightly coloured drinks. One product promises more energy. Another claims to prevent […]
Marathon tapering should leave you rested, sharp and ready to race. However, reducing your mileage too late, cutting every faster effort or completing one final fitness test can carry unnecessary fatigue into race day. The final three weeks before a marathon create a strange problem: the fitter you become, the harder it is to stop […]
Creatine for runners may support strength, intervals and finishing speed – but does it improve endurance? Discover seven evidence-based benefits and risks. Creatine for runners has moved from a niche idea to one of the most discussed trends in endurance nutrition. Once associated mainly with bodybuilders, powerlifters and sprinters, it is now appearing in the […]
Threshold running helps you hold a faster pace for longer. Discover how to find your ideal threshold pace and seven powerful workouts that build speed, stamina and race-day confidence. There is a pace between comfortable running and all-out intervals that many runners struggle to judge. Run too slowly and the session becomes another easy or […]
Discover how sauna for runners affects recovery, heat adaptation and performance, plus the benefits, risks and safest way to use one after running. Sauna for runners is increasingly used to support recovery, heat adaptation and endurance performance. But does it genuinely reduce muscle soreness or help you run faster? This evidence-based guide explores the benefits, […]
Iron deficiency can make familiar running paces feel unusually difficult – even before anaemia develops. Here are the symptoms runners should recognise, who is most at risk and when to request a blood test. Iron deficiency in runners can look remarkably similar to heavy training. Your legs feel flat, your usual pace requires more effort […]
Your watch says you need to rest, but your legs feel ready to run. Here is what recovery scores from Garmin, WHOOP and Oura actually measure – and how much influence they should have over your training. Learn what Garmin, WHOOP and Oura recovery scores measure, why they can be misleading and when runners should […]
Half marathon nutrition sits in an awkward middle ground: the distance is too long to ignore fuelling, but short enough that you do not need to turn race week into a spreadsheet. From your day-before meals and race-morning breakfast to gels, hydration and recovery, here is how to fuel 13.1 miles without overcomplicating it. A […]