Boost Your Running Stamina With Britain’s Marathon Man

Team GB Olympian and 29-year-old Surrey native Scott Overall is kind of a big deal when it comes to running, having qualified for London 2012 by sprinting last year’s Berlin Marathon in a ludicrously speedy time of 2:10.55. That’s five minutes a mile. We asked him to tell us how to prepare for a long-distance slog, and he kindly shared some of his top training tips.

Scott’s marathon training regime

01 Barbell roll out

Good for core strength. Scott says: “Kneel on a mat with your hands shoulder-width apart on a barbell. Slowly roll out the bar until you are fully extended and then try to gently reel yourself in again back to a kneeling position. This is a brutal exercise, but it really improves your core by working and stretching your abs.” Reps: 3 sets of 8 rollouts

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02 Weighted squats

Good for power and stability. Scott says: “Keep your back straight and squat down so your knees are at a right angle. I place a small disc underneath my heel, as it increases the range of motion and provides a greater test to the muscles I use in a race.” Reps: 4 sets of 6 squats

03 Hamstring killer

Good for strengthening hamstrings. Scott says: “Endurance runners’ hamstrings are weak and can be susceptible to injury. This happened to me in 2009, so I do this drill every day. Kneel, get a partner to hold your ankles and slowly lower yourself down onto your front. Do not try and raise yourself back up, it’s nearly impossible!” Reps: 6-8 reps

04 Hurdle walk over

Good for joint mobility. Scott says: “This mobilises the key joints you use when running for long periods, specifically around the hip. Hold a medicine ball above your head and extend your legs over each hurdle. Now repeat backwards and sideways.” Reps: 6 sets of 4 hurdles

05 Foam roller

Good for recovery. Scott says: “I run 100-120 miles every week, so tightness is a huge issue for me. To ease this I use this foam roller to give myself a massage after each run. Put on as much pressure as you can bear in the affected area and then gently rock back and forth over it. And, you can do this in front of the telly.” Reps: 10 mins on each area

06 Barefoot hop

Good for injury prevention. Scott says: “This may look simple, but you must hop off the ball of your foot, as this is the most efficient way to run. Trainers don’t allow much movement around the foot and ankle so doing this barefoot helps strengthen this area.” Reps: 4 sets of 10 hops per leg

FYI

Scott smashed the Olympic marathon qualifying time in Berlin in 2011, and was subsequently the first man picked for the GB Olympics team. Mad skills.

Scott’s only superstition is screwing up his race number into a paper ball at the beginning of every race before pinning it on all creased and that.

Top running apps

01 Run Keeper. Price: Free. Best for: Tracking your progress. Available on: iPhone and Android. Great all-rounder, with GPS-tracking and the ability to post to Facebook or Twitter so you can tell everyone how badly your training is going.

02 Ghost Race Pro. Price: £0.69. Best for: Beating your personal best. Available on: iPhone and Android. Compares your performance to previous efforts that appear as a ‘ghost time’ – like ‘time trial’ on Mario Kart.

03 Run Coach. Price: £1.99. Best for: Marathon training. Available on: iPhone. Designed by Olympic runners, this has training plans and maps for half and full marathons that can be personalised.

Photography by Glen Burrows. Scott wears Adidas 2012 Virgin London Marathon technical apparel; virginlondonmarathon.com