You both finished on the podium at London 2012. What are your ambitions for this year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow?
Alistair Brownlee (AB): Same again – maybe even try to get the one-two. The Commonwealth Games is almost a home event for us. It’s on a good course in Glasgow and we’re also involved in the relay, so we’ve got a chance to get two medals.
Growing up, you both did a lot of fell running and cross-country running. What is it that you like about those two off-road pursuits?
AB: We started doing fell running and cross-country running when we were very young. I did my first cross-country race when I was about six at a Leeds Schools event and came 299th, so not a very auspicious start to my athletic career. Then we’d do fell running in the summer. It was great as a kid. You’re jumping over walls and through streams – it’s great fun. We both loved that; it really caught our imagination. We’ve done progressively less of both over the last 10 years. When I retire from professional sport, I’ll definitely do a lot more fell running.
Johnny Brownlee (JB): What I loved about fell running was the freedom side of things: you can run anywhere and enjoy running. Running’s simple: you just need a vest shorts and a pair of shoes. I love that about it.
Would you ever be tempted by one of the iconic fell running events, such as the Bob Graham Round [scaling 42 peaks of the Lake District in less than 24 hours]?
AB: I’d love to do that, yeah. One of our best friends did the Three Peaks the other weekend. I’ve always wanted to do that; it’s a proper iconic Yorkshire event. But, yeah, I’d love to have a go at the Bob Graham – but by the time I get round to it, I’ll probably be so old that I’ll have to walk it.
You’ve been unlucky with injuries this year, Alistair. Have you learned to deal with them better as you’ve got older or is it as frustrating as ever?
AB: It depends very much when it happens. If it’s in the middle of the winter, it’s not quite so bad. If it’s at a time when you’ve been training really hard and you’re getting back on terms with things, it’s really tough to deal with. In some ways, triathlon is easier because you can concentrate on the other two disciplines, but it’s not always that simple.
You’re both forefoot runners. Is this a conscious decision or just the way you’ve always run?
AB: It’s very natural. We both work on our running technique with drill sessions. But by the time you get to our kind of ages, you’re making very little changes. I think we both agree that you’re running technique is very much built in by the time you’re an adult.
JB: The main thing when it comes to running is consistency. Don’t ever try to catch up training. If you miss two days, don’t think you then have to run 40 miles to reach your weekly target. Our coach always says that fitness is like a wheel rolling round: if you hit it too hard it will fall over; if you keep on touching it a little, it’ll keep on turning.
What does an average training week look like in the life of the Brownlees?
AB: We swim five times a week, ride most days, and run everyday and twice on a Tuesday. We run somewhere between 60-80 miles a week.
How much of that is speed work?
JB: Probably only 10 miles. We do a lot of long, slow running. I think that’s important. Yes, you can end up doing junk miles, but running well is a lot about putting the miles in.
A lot of top athletes say they are quite obsessive. Do you recognise that in yourselves?
JB: Every athlete is obsessive, but it’s a scale. There’ll be no athlete out there who’s not obsessive to some degree. I’m certainly an obsessive person.
AB: The interesting thing is, is it obsessive people who go into endurance sport or does endurance sport make people obsessive? It repays obsession, but only to a level: you can definitely be too obsessed – and you see that a lot in sport too.
How strict are you about your diet?
AB: We try to eat a fairly normal diet – just a bit more of it. We don’t think about it too much. We just try to eat good meals. We try to keep the fruit and veg there and eat a bit more protein than is proportionally normal because our training leads to a massive amount of muscle breakdown. We get a lot of our protein from milk, actually.
Who were your sporting icons growing up?
JB: I always looked up to Alistair.I remember feeling very inspired when he got his first Team GB kit. That was more important to me than anyone else.
AB: We were both very much from the Lance Armstrong era [laughs nervously], which was great to watch when we were growing up. But we were more inspired by teachers and coaches who encouraged us. They’re the really important people.
Tell us more about the Warburton’s Half & Half-Terms Games promotion?
AB: It’s all about using the Commonwealth Games as a way of encouraging young people to get active.
JB: Having a home sporting event makes a huge difference. I remember going home to Leeds after London 2012 and seeing lots more kids out on bikes. I asked one of them why he’s started riding and he said: “Because I watched it on TV.” Having Glasgow again, having sport in your back yard, makes it a bit more real for people.
Visit www.facebook.com/warburtons to find out more and the Half & Half-Term Games
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