A weekend workshop for runners is to be held in Ambleside in September.
The event is being staged by fitness expert Paul Tierney who is the UK master coach for a natural running technique, and Irish international runner, Sarah McCormack.
It follows the success of an early summer “bulletproof runner” course which attracted athletes from across the UK.
Paul, who is also a sports therapist in Ambleside, is one of 11 Born to Run coaches in the UK, and of those he is the Master coach.
He also runs a weekly fitness class in Rothay Park in Ambleside where grown-ups – ranging in age from 18 to not far short of 80 – run, jump, crawl and climb like children, re-learning how their bodies ought to be used, so that they can better enjoy their sport – or life in general. And he also has running classes in Kendal and Ambleside.
The weekend workshop is designed to “give you the tools to improve your running technique – helping you increase efficiency, improve performance and avoid injury,” says Paul. It’s likely to appeal to physios and sports therapists as well as runners looking for the tools to training pain-free and unlocking their full potential for speed and endurance.
Each participant will be screened for injury susceptibility, and there will be video analysis of running technique, how to apply the appropriate drills to address individual issues, and learning the best neuromuscular drills to increase elasticity, speed and performance. There will also be sessions in how to structure training, lifestyle and diet for maximum recovery and gains in performance; and the most common causes of pain when running and how to prevent and address them.
“Once the fundamental skill and theory has been mastered, we then develop the runner’s physiological capacity for running further and faster by developing elasticity, reactive ability and metabolic conditioning,” says Paul.
“If you spend all day sitting down, doing something high intensity for half an hour is just adding another physiological stress. There is no easy way around it. You have to move a lot.”
Paul, a former top-level Irish hurling player, is soon to defend his title in the Lakeland 100 (mile) race, which he won last year. Known as the ‘Ultra Tour of the Lake District’ this is the most spectacular long distance trail race in the UK, a circular route around the Lakeland fells on public bridleways and footpaths, with 6300m of climbing.
Paul and Sarah, who represented Ireland recently in the European Mountain Running Championships in Italy, run the Missing Link fitness business.
David McGuigan, who attended the June workshop, said: “Paul and Sarah’s courses provide so much opportunity for anyone who wants to improve as a runner. They perfectly blend scientific theory, practical application and the millions of years of human evolution that made us ‘born to run’. A month on I’m improving by the day and have never enjoyed my running more.”
Details of the course on September 3-4 can be found at http://www.missinglinkfitness.co.uk/#!running-workshops/cz8m
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