Written by Paul from our Keswick shop

Trail running is one of the most up and coming styles of running. Running in general is growing year by year, but Trail Running in the last 18 months has really taken off

Why Trail Running?

• It offers something for every age and ability
• A good variety of distances ranging from 4 miles up to Ultra Marathons
• A Global sport - great range of trails from the muddy trails of the Lake District to the dust path trails in Europe and beyond
• Trail running can be as fun or as challenging as you want;
• Places less demand on the joints than road running (and we all want to save our joints!)

Trail Running Equipment

• A light weight, and breathable shoe with a rugged outsole is a must for the trails (my own personal preference is the Salomon Crossmax although there are many others available)
• Waterproofs for the longer trails - especially if you're attending some of our local races here in the Lakes like the 'Borrowdale Trail Run'
• A small Camelbak is needed for the majority of the European trail races
• Clothing - it's down to personal preference whether it's short sleeve top, vest or long sleeve top, and shorts or leggings but a big must is that they are all technical materials to wick away moisture from the body to keep you dry and cool
• Hats and Gloves for the UK weather in winter

Training for a Trail Race

Everyone knows training is hard, but training for a trail race can also be fun. Trail runs offer a variety of different tasks and obstacles. These can range from flat fast running to steep uphills and exhilarating downhills (not quite to the extreme of the fells - don't worry!) Training for this kind of running means you need to do lots of different training to keep it fresh and keep you interested, for example some smaller hill work, longer runs out in the hills for strength, road work to bring up your speed and gym work for general core which will help a lot when running around in the trails.