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Wanderers Ways. Neil Thompson 1961-2021

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Posted

There is a heavy genetic component to a lot of skills. But practically anyone can train enough to run a marathon if the effort is put in.

 

Murray was cramping after a couple of hours on a court so clearly there was plenty of room for improvement. Given he built a lot of muscle via gym work I'd not say it is that surprising.

 

You assume that they were already doing the right things fitness wise and that may not be the case. Allardyce once said that many footballers were on completely the wrong sort of fitness regimes and it is why the sports science he introduced helped so many prolong their careers.

 

Practically anyone can train to run a marathon. Practically no one can train to become the best at marathon running, after previously being so so.

 

Adding muscle should make incredible levels of aerobic fitness much harder, not easier to achieve. Muscular people being able to outlast natural 'lightweight' types in sport is frankly a big flashing red light a lot of the time, although I would not exactly characterise either player as heavyset.

Posted

Practically anyone can train to run a marathon. Practically no one can train to become the best at marathon running, after previously being so so.

 

Steve Way.

 

First Marathon in 2006 in 3:07:08 on 3 weeks training as a 16 stone Barclays IT worker.

15th in the 2014 London Marathon, third Briton behind Farah and Thompson, gaining Commonwealth Games selection.

Improved to 2:15:16 for 10th place in Glasgow.

 

Never say never.

Posted

Steve Way.

 

First Marathon in 2006 in 3:07:08 on 3 weeks training as a 16 stone Barclays IT worker.

15th in the 2014 London Marathon, third Briton behind Farah and Thompson, gaining Commonwealth Games selection.

Improved to 2:15:16 for 10th place in Glasgow.

 

Never say never.

 

'Practically'.

 

Andy & Novak both had several years of living in training camps behind them as 18 year old professions so not quite the same. There was very little excess timber being carried.

Posted

'Practically'.

 

The 7 fastest British Marathon runners of all time are:

Steve Jones, Mo Farah, Charlie Spedding, Richard Nerurkar, Paul Evans, Geoff Smith and Ian Thompson.

Of those Farah and Nerurkar had both been outstanding schoolboy distance runners.

Jones was little more than a scrubber but managed to win a Welsh ATC cross-country. He joined the RAF and for years was a solid member of their team before blossoming as an international star.

Charlie Spedding was a solid club man who moved to Marathon after age 30 but was always a star at the distance.

Paul Evans was a local league footballer who took up running at 25.

Geoff Smith was a Merseyside fireman for 10 years and a good club runner before taking a running scholarship aged 28.

Ian Thompson was a solid club runner ranked 75 in the UK over 5k in 1972 who entered the 1973 AAA Marathon to make up the numbers for Luton United's team. None of the other runners in the leading pack knew who he was when he made his winning break

Posted

I'm still not clear which of those is supposed to be a good parallel. The marathon style example here would be someone who has trained professionally for 3 or 4 years and runs around 2:25, steadily improves to a 2:15 over the course of 5 years and then makes a sudden leap to 2:04 after a 45 day winter off-season in 2010.

Posted

Is this filming for cool runnings 2?

That just made me laugh out loud....

Posted

I'm still not clear which of those is supposed to be a good parallel. The marathon style example here would be someone who has trained professionally for 3 or 4 years and runs around 2:25, steadily improves to a 2:15 over the course of 5 years and then makes a sudden leap to 2:04 after a 45 day winter off-season in 2010.

 

I think Ron Hill, and the adoption of the glycogen-depletion diet in 1969 fits the bill. See the early chapters of "The Long Hard Road, Part Two: To The Peak And Beyond".

Posted

I think Ron Hill, and the adoption of the glycogen-depletion diet in 1969 fits the bill. See the early chapters of "The Long Hard Road, Part Two: To The Peak And Beyond".

 

 

i dunno why you think 50 odd years experience being and working with athletes will count for owt with young maaaaaaaaaarsh

Posted

Anyway, back to the tournament, did anyone see the Nadal Brown game, that Dustin Brown is the Harlem Globetrotters of tennis, some bizarre shots played that actually came off.

 

Nadal's time on grass is well and truly over. 

Posted

Anyway, back to the tournament, did anyone see the Nadal Brown game, that Dustin Brown is the Harlem Globetrotters of tennis, some bizarre shots played that actually came off.

 

Nadal's time on grass is well and truly over.

It was a great match to watch

 

I absolutely love Nadal and was gutted when he lost but Brown much deserved it

 

Not sure I would completely write Nadal off yet but I suspect you may be right

 

I fear "our Heather" is gonna get battered today

Posted

Wonder if Camilla camped out overnight to get onto Centre Court yesterday.

 

Do like a bit of Wimbledon. Traditional English fayre!

 

Had 2 very good days out there on Centre Court many years ago. Was actually there when Karl Power came on, but was busy scoffing strawberries and cream and quaffing champagne.

Posted

i dunno why you think 50 odd years experience being and working with athletes will count for owt with young maaaaaaaaaarsh

 

 

Never takes too long for my shadow to turn up with something worthwhile to contribute.

 

In sports where doping controls are pathetically weak, rapid and significant fitness gains from athletes who are already fully trained are extremely suspicious. Not every single one is doping, but the idea that non are is even more ludicrous than the idea they all are.

Posted

Whatever happened to Irish swimmer bird that won a gazillion golds?

 

Did she ever get done?

She got done for doping a couple of years after the Olympics but didn't get done for the Olympics. She was another that journalist David Walsh went after.

 

And after that, she became a lawyer..

Posted

It was a great match to watch

 

I absolutely love Nadal and was gutted when he lost but Brown much deserved it

 

Not sure I would completely write Nadal off yet but I suspect you may be right

 

I fear "our Heather" is gonna get battered today

Or maybe not?! She's giving it a right good go. Ace to see Serena unable to bully her

 

If she loses she's a channel islander. If she wins she can be British

 

Heard she's a right twat when she's in a lift though

Posted

Heard she's a right twat when she's in a lift though

 

 

Only with Aussies

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