Use your holiday to complete your training, not to quit it

RUN CLINIC:I'm halfway through the eight-week programme in "Run Fat Bitch Run" but am going away for a month to visit relatives in Australia. Can I just pick up from where I left off when I get back in December? Siobhán

Geography should never dictate whether or not you go running. Quite the opposite in fact. This is one of the primary advantages that jogging has over other aerobic activities. That you can do it anywhere. And at any time. No classes are required, no special equipment or kit, no teachers, no money to spend, no plans to execute. And as for holidays, they provide the ideal opportunity to improve and extend your running because you have a hell of a lot more time to play with. So don’t even think about quitting the programme and having a holiday from running. Use your holiday instead to complete it.

Running is only going to add value to your experience in Australia. I don’t know where exactly it is that you are going, but the chances are, you will be within striking distance of a beach, and the beaches there are long and flat, ideal for early morning and evening running. Plus, it is going to be Summer there so you can leave all that clobber – layers, waterproofs, hats and gloves – behind you. Don’t forget your trainers though.

I always run on holiday first thing in the morning. I love the sense of freedom I get from running on the beach and diving into the sea or swimming pool afterwards.

Running on the beach has some added grit factor in that it works out your butt and calves like you’ve never known because the give in the sand makes those muscles work even harder. But you are already learning to love hard, so this will be a welcome pleasure at best and, at worst, a challenge you are more than willing to embrace. And trust me, the experience of running through sunrise or sunset somehow amplifies the raw beauty of nature and is just awe-inspiring, but the real joy comes afterwards in the form of all the guilt-free eating and drinking that for me accompanies any good holiday.

No need to make it complicated either. Wherever you find yourself in Australia, just recreate a loop like the one you have at home from the front door of wherever you are staying (what a wonderful way to explore your new environment too) and try it out for the same length of time – jogging – as you do back home.

Make allowances for the climate: it may feel much harder in the heat so slow down and be sure to stay properly hydrated. And, if running on sand, it will hurt but in a good way, so slow down. It doesn’t have to be perfect or precise, just so long as you keep it up, so it is easy to pick up from where you left off when you get home. And the timing could not be more perfect. By the time the month is out you will have completed the eight-week programme in Run Fat Bitch Run and will be able to run for 45 minutes non stop – possibly on sand. This is going to make your old running circuit back home seem like a walk in the park, too easy in fact. You may find yourself adding in sprints and hills to accommodate the dramatic improvement in your fitness and form. Or, you may just find yourself able to enjoy all that Christmas fare back home like never before.

The Grit Doctor says:A month's beach running in Australia will have you coming home looking like "The Body" for Christmas. You lucky b****!

RUTH FIELDis the author of Run Fat Bitch Run. Tweet your query to Ruth at: @gritdoctor