Fiona Bugler takes a light-hearted look at four different types of runners. Which one fits you best? Here are some tips to help you get the best from your running style.

The Hedonist

The hedonistic runner wants to burn the candle at both ends. They love pouring Pimms on hot days but also love to run 20 miles the day after!

Get the best from your running

Join a running club and make it social! Try the Hash Harriers, a club that combines off-road running with beer drinking, or enter races that combine your passions, for example the Medoc Marathon in France, where cheese and wine are served en route. If you want to get the best from your running, make being healthy your passion and swap wine for water, even if only for a few months in the run up to a big challenge, like a marathon.

The Disciplinarian

You haven’t eaten chocolate for 20 years and follow a strict schedule, planned perfectly on a spreadsheet. You rarely miss a run. Races are strategically placed in a periodised schedule, so you never over race and have specific pace targets. You wear a pace band, a training computer watch and monitor and record everything.

Get the best from your running

There are so many amazing online resources and software packages that a runner like you might actually make the most of! Check out our reviews of GPS monitors to get an idea of the technological support you can access. If you’re over disiciplined you may not be enjoying the fun side of running, so challenge yourself by running off-road without a watch, or doing a race on the spur of the moment.

Obsessive compulsive

You’re very like the disciplinarian, but you’ve gone a stage further, and have gone and got yourself addicted to running. You log everything and get upset if you miss a run. You tend to race every week but never feel satisfied with your results. You can push yourself too hard and can get injured.

Get the best from your running

You’re most likely an achiever and do well in races. So make sure you take time out to celebrate your successes. If you get a PB, enjoy it, because you never know if that might be it! Read our feature on racing yourself fit, and try to remember that if you do race a lot you must incorporate it into your training, and accept that not every result will be your best. Like the Disciplinarian you could do with a relaxing run, with no watch once or twice a week!

Chilled out

You run without goals, without a watch and when you want. You love nature, the freedom and running in the moment. You race for you, and don’t ever worry about the result. You regularly say you’re not competitive.

Get the best from your running

Enhance the whole mind/body vibe with some yoga and pilates to compliment your running, or why not try a Meditation Workshop. Want to get a bit more out of your running, then hang out with the nerds! It’s all well and good being in the moment, but ask yourself, is it just an excuse for not pushing yourself? Are you really not competitive? Or just scared of committing to success?

 So which type of runner are you? Let us know in the comments below.

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