Brilliant run last night with Stamford Striders, the best running club of all time. As you’ll see from my earlier post I was being a bit glum about my Long Steady Distance 20-miler on Sun, building up my strength for The Coastal Challenge Costa Rica, but a call from my lovely coach Rory Coleman, a lunchtime circuits session and a good fast run with a beautiful sunset from the final hillette above Stamford with my friends has injected the endorphins back into life.

Can’t be bothered to run? Join your local club and kid yourself you’re going for the gossip rather than the run – you’ll soon get into it and you’ll feel so glad you went, whatever the weather or how tired you were feeling beforehand.

If you ever struggle with the motivation to get out on your runs, then join a club. Go every week, at the same time. It forces you out of the house in the worst weather, after the worst day at work, after the most trying time with the kids. After a few weeks you will have made some good friends and before you know it you’ll be meeting them on weekends for Long Steady Runs, swimming, cycling, circuits and socials in the pub.

On Rory’s advice, I ran alongside an Energy Giver – chairman Nick Wells, who inspired the socks off me enthusing about how the club attracts beginners to their annual summer course, the planned new website, how the committee draws on everybody’s talents outside running to run the club and how people want me to suggest trail races for them. These will feature in the Striders next newsletter, so hopefully more members will start enjoying running off-road, and maybe even Trail Running magazine if I’m lucky!