A warm welcome to Freeblog!

Musings on run training, tips and trips.

Hurrah, I have finally got round to starting Freeblog, to hopefully share some topical and useful stuff on our delightful pastime of running! Coach Aly here. Just a bit of background of where we started and where we are now, and I know I need to keep it brief - screen time is precious. In early 2020, I was looking at some new local running initiatives for folks that were not necessarily in a club or participating in events. I did plenty of research, developed a few ideas, and wham, covid hit us. The loss of routine was pronounced, and in between lockdowns when safe to do so with lots of guidance, support and documentation, Freerun time-trial events began in Oaks Park, at the southern tip of the London Borough of Sutton. Several other locations were considered, and we followed up with events in Beddington Park and Overton Park. We've covered distances from 2km up to 10km, from those early in their running journeys to those wanting to challenge themselves.

As time went on, I realised how hard the pandemic had been for so many sporting and exercise activities - the Great Reset - I often consider it as. On the one hand, we saw experienced and committed athletes achieve amazing things, but for many (including myself, recovering from a non running-related freak injury) a battle to resume fitness endeavours to the point prior to the pandemic. I suspected there were plenty of people who were looking to regain lost fitness and wondered how I could serve some of these folk better than the Freerun events or other options. So I enrolled on the UK Athletics (UKA) Leadership in Run Fitness qualification, for many the first step on the journey to being a running coach. It was a very engaging course and I set up Run Fitness Classes in summer 2021 in Overton Park. It was great to have clients who were really at the very early stages of their journey, and see them make progress.

Fast forward to 2023, I completed my UKA coaching qualification (Coach in Running Fitness) and am very excited to pass on the excellent learning and skills gained to new clients in the Start 5K and Speed 5K programmes, to serve beginner and improver runners respectively. Both are quite different in their approach, and I can't wait to see runners achieve their goals! I really hope you enjoy reading this blog, and do send a message via the Contact page for any topics you'd like covered.

In May 2023, we've added a new one-to-one programme - Sustain 10K+ which, as the name suggests, focuses on runners wanting to increase their distances, and for structured progression at achieving event targets in the 10km to marathon distances. We've also added an exciting new in-person group Freerun Circuits class which focuses on providing a range of benefits to runners - drills, strength and conditioning, run segments and so forth - as well for those seeking to improve general fitness.

For more information on our classes & programmes, and for registration, please head to https://www.freerun.org.uk/run-classes-training