Crash diet a.k.a. fell running

I mean, how else can you name running uphill till you spit your lungs out and then racing downhill through the Welsh hills, or fells as the locals call it? And it does involve a lot of crashing falls. Turns out it’s quite a popular sport with a growing number of runners tired of doing their running rounds on paved or flat paths turning to it:

Snowdon race - see any fatsos here?. By The Ancient Brit

No big surprise to me, I mean, how lame must this:

Respectful, but monotonous. By Thomas Hawk

seem in comparison to this:

Running on the edge. By Lulemon athletica

Unlike street and flat terrain running, fell running provides the ultimate heart pounding challenge. It takes the endurance of ordinary running multiplies it by altitude change and thows in the thrill of mountaineering. No wonder then that while covering miles and miles in flat terrain gives a well deserved sense of achievement, conquering these peaks will boost your make you feel like a superman:

Snowdonia peaks. By MarchiCTID

I came across this fat busting activity browsing the BBC website where I stumbled across an article on Snowdonia race gone dangerously close to tragic. A change in weather conditions, which turned unexpectedly atrocious, forced organizers to call the annual, 22-mile Welsh 1,000m Peaks Race 1,000 off. This time all missing runners were rescued, but there have been casualties in the past so always keep in mind that it's the mountains and not a city park you are dealing with.

For useful tips check out the Fell Runners Association website or Snowdonia Running Guides.

Hope to see you running past me on the trail!

Tags: Snowdonia, fell running, mountains, extreme sports, challenge