Jasmin Paris on the steps you can take to reduce your impact on the environment

In a How They Train special interview in the May issue of AW, Jasmin Paris outlined the methods and approach that helped her to become the first woman ever to finish the notoriously difficult Barkley Marathons in America earlier this year.

It was the latest in a string of accolades for the accomplished athlete who has a habit of producing off-road excellence, but running is far from being the only thing on the 40-year-olds busy agenda.

Paris is a multitasker, balancing her training and competition targets with a young family, a full-time job as a small-animal vet and also her work as co-founder of The Green Runners, a running community making changes for a fitter planet.

We want to inform and empower runners to make more planet-friendly decisions, says Paris of the organisation. I think a lot of people are put off by the idea that you need to be perfect, but thats not the case. The idea is to bring it into peoples consciousness that there are things they can do as a runner to lessen their impact. We just need to try to be better.

The Green Runners have four key pillars which are fundamental to their cause:

How you move: The biggest impact we have is travelling to races and events, says Paris, a member of Carnethy Hill Running Club based just south of Edinburgh. Personally, I try to prioritise things that are really important to me and travel less in general or try to travel without flying, so for the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Innsbruck last year I travelled by train, which was totally doable. Flying to the Barkley Marathons [in Tennessee] was quite a dilemma. It was a challenge for me to consider that, but I couldnt replicate it or replace it with an alternative event, its just too unique.

How you kit up: I think this is an obvious one. Ive worn the same t-shirts, the same coat, the same shoes, the same lengths for the last three Barkleys, so Ive not had any new kit in the last three years essentially. Ive maybe bought one other pair of shoes.

I didnt have quite the right size running pack so I just borrowed one from a friend as it was just for Barkley. You dont need the newest kit. I personally think that as long as youve got some shorts and t-shirt to go out in and a coat if its cold and something to carry your stuff, and as long as youve got a reasonable pair of shoes with a grip, thats all you need. It certainly doesnt need to be new.

In fell running its almost like a mark of respect if youre wearing the same shorts that you were wearing 40 years ago. You get extra kudos for that and thats an easy thing that people can do to just not buy more kit. If I can do it, then I think other people can do it as well.

How you eat: We all know that eating less red meat and moving towards more of a plant-based diet is better for the environment. As a family we eat more plant-based meals now and we cook all of our meals from scratch. We dont buy very much meat anyway and if Im eating on my own Im pretty much vegan.

Ive always liked a lot of fruit and veg. When Im running races I dont use many gels or stuff like that, I tend to just eat normal food when I can. I save gels for the moments when Im having an epic bonk and I can easily get that down to recover, but I dont use much.

How you speak out: Obviously I try to use my platform to talk about The Green Runners. While flying to Barkley was a dilemma, I was aware that if I managed to pull it off then potentially the coverage for The Green Runners would be great.

For more about The Green Runners, ideas to consider and reducing your own impact, click here.

To read more about how Jasmin Paris trains, download the May issue of AW here.