LUNGES, press-ups and sit-ups. Never for the faint hearted, Nick and Dan embarked on yet another varied training session in preparation for running the London Marathon.

LUNGES, press-ups and sit-ups. Never for the faint hearted, Nick and Dan embarked on yet another varied training session in preparation for running the London Marathon.

On April 25 - less than three weeks away - the journalists will take on the most physical challenges of their lives. So far they have enlisted the help of running equipment specialists, running coaches and triathletes in a bid to build up the necessary fitness and techniques to take on the gruelling 26.2 mile run.

Most recently, the 20-somethings met up with Mick Ratcliffe and Alex Sullivan, personal trainers at the Lord Butler Leisure Centre on Peaslands Road, Saffron Walden.

Alex, who is fitness manager at the leisure centre gym, explains the background to the sessions: "Mick and myself put the boys through two different training sessions that will really benefit them in their training for the marathon.

"Mick ran them through a cardio workout to make sure they had good technique which is fundamental.

"My session was more about core strength and stability which is really important. You need to have good muscle strength to be able to complete a marathon. It doesn't matter how fit you are, if you don't have strength you will run out of energy. And you are much more likely to pick up an injury."

And how did the boys get on?

"They did well," said Alex. "I was surprised at how different they are in terms of their strengths and weaknesses. If we had some follow up sessions, we would have identified those better and tried to set out a personalised programme to help them improve."

For more information about personal training and the many benefits, call Alex or Mick at Lord Butler on 01799 522777.