Matt Baird

4 weeks ago | 220triathlon.com | Matt Baird

Credit : Getty Images Training is uninspiring in the off-season months, right? It doesn’t have to be. Here are 10 fresh and free ways to boost your fitness while bringing the variation to the tri-training party. Time to prepare for zombie attacks, Cyndi Lauper, and raw-dogging. 1. Get lost!Remember orienteering from school camp? I do, and it was great fun. And then I forgot about it for 30 years.

1 month ago | countryfile.com | Matt Baird

A 2.4-mile (3.8km) open-water swim before 112-miles (180km) on the bike and a 26.2-mile (42.2km) marathon run. Or the equivalent of swimming from London Bridge to Big Ben in the Thames, cycling to Bristol and then running down to Glastonbury. In less than 17 hours. There’s a reason an Ironman triathlon is seen as the ultimate one-day endurance sport challenge.

1 month ago | countryfile.com | Matt Baird

Its origins may stem from Ancient Greece, but the marathon run is still a distance that captivates and inspires athletes in the 21st century. It's one of endurance sport's ultimate challenges and it's a distance not to be sniffed at: some 26.2 miles/42.2km where smart pacing is paramount, a nutrition strategy is mandatory and serious pre-event training is performed to avoid bonking at the dreaded 18-22 mile segment, often named 'The Wall'.

1 month ago | countryfile.com | Matt Baird

Twenty-six miles and 385 yards. 42,195 metres. Some 55,000 steps. However you judge it, a marathon run is one of endurance sport’s ultimate tests. Yet for some runners, the iconic distance just isn’t enough, and they need to make things longer, higher and tougher. Enter the ultra marathon, currently being undertaken by the former Made in Chelsea star and Radio 1 presenter, Jamie Laing, for Comic Relief. Laing is set to run 150 miles from London to Salford in Manchester over five days this week.

1 month ago | countryfile.com | Lauren Franklin |Matt Baird |Helen Susannah Moat |James Witts

With spring in the air and summer around the corner, now is the time to try something different. From hiking in the hills to wild camping and seeing sharks, here are some exciting ways to expand your horizons in the year ahead. Having goals are a worthy pursuit but can often fail due to a lack of focus (‘get fitter’ being a prominent example). So how about combining your love of the countryside with a specific fitness-building goal, no matter the distance or elevation?