Forest Trail Running in the UK: Raw Trails. Real Runners. No Gimmicks.

Urban loops won’t pressure your form. Pavement won’t test your stabilisers. Concrete won’t ask what your ankles are made of at mile seven on a slick descent. If your watch tracks zones—not just steps—you’re in the right place.

Trail Running Tours builds sessions for athletes, not hobby joggers. We work with UK-based ultrarunners, competitive trail racers, and city professionals chasing performance gains on real ground. From Sherwood’s soft turns to Whitleather’s climbs that won’t quit, we build runs using terrain gradients, heart rate zones, and fatigue logic—not recycled park circuits.

Train Like You Mean It: Services That Hit the Ground Running

We don’t run laps. We run sessions built around stress points, form limits, and terrain that checks your ego. Here’s what we offer—built for those chasing data, not medals.

1:1 Performance Sessions (2.5–3 hours)

Personalised deep-dive sessions built to test and refine your limits—across terrain, tech, and thresholds. We start with your training history and end with actionable metrics.

We track live performance data, including cadence, ground contact time, stride rate, and braking metrics.
Real-time feedback is given on your footstrike, running posture, and breath control during the session.
You’ll test different shoe and grip setups across a range of surfaces like wet rock, loose soil, and rooted trails.
Post-run analysis covers lactate threshold data and heart rate decoupling to show how fatigue affected your output.
We close with tailored recommendations to improve your running economy and recovery strategies.

Structured Group Training (Max 4 runners)

Built for small groups of serious runners. We keep the numbers low so coaching stays sharp and sessions stay tough.

Each session includes high-intensity intervals over technical terrain to simulate race stress.
You’ll perform hill repeats with short recovery windows to push lactate clearance and aerobic strength.
Oxygen debt drills are integrated to build resilience when breathing feels limited and legs feel heavy.
We track heart rate decay and split drift to monitor how well you handle fatigue.

Trail Race Simulations

Whether you’re prepping for UTMB, Lakeland Trails, or just want to stop blowing up at mile 30—this is the closest you’ll get to race day without the bib.

We replicate full race routes using elevation profiles and terrain types that match your target event.
Aid station timing drills help you manage fueling and hydration stops under real fatigue.
Long runs are structured with planned fueling windows and shifts in perceived effort to mimic actual race demands.
Sessions are adapted based on weather, terrain conditions, and your current load tolerance.

Route Design & Load Planning

We don’t just find trails—we engineer them for TSS, terrain type, and energy system engagement. Each route is a plan, not a guess.

You’ll receive GPX routes mapped specifically to match your Training Stress Score targets.
Every route includes risk assessments and clear exit points in case of injury or sudden fatigue.
We design pacing overlays that adjust your effort for steep climbs and technical descents.
Each route balances aerobic, anaerobic, and recovery segments based on your current training cycle.

Performance Debrief & Recovery Planning

You’ll know how you ran—and why it mattered. We break down more than splits; we look at form decay, fatigue signs, and gear performance under strain.

After each session, you’ll receive a detailed PDF report with heart rate zone data, cadence shifts, and stride breakdowns.
You’ll get gear feedback, including hydration pack movement, friction zones, and footwear performance.
Based on your output, we’ll build a custom 3-week training plan to build on your gains and prep your next peak.

Logistics Add-ons

We support you like a pit crew—not a yoga retreat. Available with advance notice.

Hydration and nutrition drops can be pre-placed along your route to support long efforts.
We provide foot taping for arch support, pronation control, and blister prevention.
Real-carb fueling strategies are available, including salt, gel, and natural food timing for max effect.

Why Choose Us

Because we don’t build sessions from theory—we build them from soaked gear, missed cutoffs, and proper race fatigue.

Our crew includes trail coaches, ex-military medics, and data specialists who’ve been through it and come back with better plans. We know how to load a CNS and how not to break it. We train in terrain that eats up gear, and our prep reflects that.

We’ve worked with over 300 UK-based trail runners, logging 25,000+ combined trail miles—and our planning shows it.

Your Run. Your Data. Our Terrain.

Let’s test your numbers where it counts—on singletrack, under fatigue, across gradients that don’t forgive bad form.

[Book your forest run session. Spots fill fast—this isn’t tourism. It’s training.]

Tactical FAQs

What HR zones do you target?

Z1–Z4 depending on the block. We structure around warm-up, base effort, and threshold development.

Can I wear carbon-plated shoes?

Only if grip allows. On forest trails, most plates return nothing but risk.

What if trails are icy or soaked?

We adjust for traction loss, gradient danger, and RPE shift. Surface compounds are tested in advance.

What post-run metrics do you track?

Cadence drift, HR decoupling, vertical oscillation, stride pattern decay—all logged and reviewed.

Can you simulate aid stations?

Yes. We time stop strategy and simulate fueling windows mid-run with real fatigue variables.