Olympian Liz McColgan praises jogscotland
14 / 09 / 2012
The running star chats with jogscotland member - and soon to be TV star - Linda Mackie for the STV programme Coached off the Couch.
During the series, Liz and her daughter Eilish spent time with the Mackie family of Peterhead to encourage them to adopt a more active lifestyle.
The Mackies, including Linda - who runs twice a week with her local jogscotland group - are one of several families to have been filmed for the series as they receive advice and coaching from sporting stars.
Chatting to them about how to incorporate running into their everyday lives, Liz said: “The beauty of the social side of running is the jogscotlands and the parkruns that we’ve got on now. We’re getting a lot of people who want to just keep fit and healthy, enjoy what they’re doing but they do it with a social group so that they’ve got company.
“It’s great when you can just go along the road and you’re jogging with someone and they’re chatting to you because the time will go by without you even noticing it…if you’re out there and its raining and its snowing and its windy and you’re on your own the motivation’s not quite the same but if you’ve agreed on a set night ‘Well I’m meeting Annie or Johnnie or whoever’, you’re going make that effort to go along whether you really feel like it or not, so that’s why these social running groups are really, really important. At the end of the day you’ll always find somebody that’s at your pace and you’ll just go along and trot along and enjoy doing what you’re doing and get the benefit for the health and the wellbeing of being out there and exercising.”
To watch the clip, CLICK HERE and to see the Mackies training with Liz and Eilish, CLICK HERE.
The series starts tonight at 8pm, with an episode featuring four nursery nurses from Dundee who take a shot at judo, rugby and roller derby. Other episodes feature star coaches including Mark Beaumont, Scott Hastings and David Wilkie. Challenges featured later in the six-week series include football, swimming, archery - and even geocaching.
The programme's website has more information about the series, tips from the stars and help getting started with new activities in your local area.