Lazy Girl Running

6 days ago | lazygirlrunning.substack.com | Laura Fountain

We all know it’s harder to run in the heat. And yet, I still see so many runners giving themselves a hard time for not being some sort of superhuman anomaly who isn’t affected by the warmer weather. You might catch yourself naming your Strava run something self-deprecating. Or feeling a bit deflated after a slower-than-usual parkrun.

1 week ago | lazygirlrunning.substack.com | Laura Fountain

Running shorts are a bit of a trigger for some women. You’ve probably seen the Sweaty Betty ‘Wear the damn shorts’ campaign. While I do agree with the sentiment that shorts are for everyone no matter their body shape or size, I know that a few adverts and influencers sharing posts aren’t going to erase the self-consciousness that some women feel overnight. If you want to wear leggings, do that. If you want to wear shorts, here’s some of my suggestions.

1 week ago | lazygirlrunning.substack.com | Laura Fountain

Last week I ran a 5k race. Before and after the race I was chatting with one of the other club coaches about my goal to run a sub 20 minute 5k this summer. The other coach asked me a couple of questions that were useful reminders that my training needs to actually start now. They asked if I was doing any interval session (not since marathon training ended) and if I’m doing any plyometrics (sometimes at circuits but not on my own).

2 weeks ago | lazygirlrunning.substack.com | Laura Fountain

This summer I have set myself the rather bold goal of running a 5k in less than 20 minutes. It makes my heart rate rise just thinking about that pace, but I’m also confident that with a couple of months of focussed training and racing, I can improve on my current PB of 20:28.

3 weeks ago | lazygirlrunning.substack.com | Laura Fountain

Chances are, you know someone who’s done a HYROX or has been trying to get a spot in one this past year. Places are harder to get than Glastonbury tickets, and the hype doesn’t look set to die down any time soon. Over the past few years, more and more runners (myself included) have started blending running with hitting the gym. I took on a HYROX last year as a way to force myself into consistently doing the strength training I’d been avoiding for decades.