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25th March 2025

The father of a 9-year-old boy asked me if I could coach his son 1-1 with his running technique. I said, ‘No.’ Boys that age should be playing outside with their friends, not stuck in an awkward situation with an experienced coach and an expectant father watching on. Unfortunately, the boy attends a private school […]

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Athletics Club

Excelsior ADC: Athletics

Excelsior ADC training

Welcome to our Athletics Club page. We have weekly sessions in the Spring and Summer that are open to all, plus workshops and seminars. We are a fully affiliated Athletics Club and a member of British Athletics.

We accept athletes who are in school year 6 and above. Before that, we recommend they get outside and play and enjoy school activities.

Training 2025

We will hold weekly training sessions in Cullompton and frequent workshops at Exeter Arena.

In the autumn and winter, we run weekly ‘Strength and Coordination’ sessions in Willand to help the athletes prepare for the next season. This also helps with their overall development and transfers well to other sports.

Bookings and Timetable:

Club timetable for Apr-May 2025

Book on Spond here. Secondary school age only.

They will include:

Warm Up and Structural Integrity exercises (to prepare the athletes for the events).
Technical drills and exercises for sprints, hurdles, throws and jumps.
Challenges and races to apply the learning and practice: and to have fun!

Club Membership is £9.50 per year, plus individual session fees.

Feedback from the athletes

At the end of each block of training, every athlete is asked to provide some feedback anonymously. Here is what they had to say after the Autumn block.

I shall use this information to adjust what we do accordingly. Thanks to everyone for this useful information.

The programme shall be self-contained but will provide the foundation for future work. It will include:

How to warm-up
Structural Integrity work (https://excelsiorgroup.co.uk/blog/structural-integrity/ )
Jump and landing mechanics
Strength training
Cooldown

Whilst the benefits of running are well known, there are also risks of just being a runner: overuse, monotony, one-dimensional approach to fitness. As a member of the Excelsior ADC, you will benefit from expert coaching to help you get better at running, but also be fitter and healthier overall.

Head Coach James Marshall is the author of Run Faster and has coached athletes from many sports to run faster. He designs the training sessions with the participants’ ability in mind. He is a fully licenced Athletics Coach with British Athletics

An example of the coaching tips you get is here:

For those wanting Individual running coaching with James Marshall, see the Run Faster page.

Our base is in Willand, Cullompton, Devon, Ex15 2RN. This is only 15 minutes from Tiverton and Wellington in Somerset, only 25 minutes from Honiton, Exeter and Taunton in Somerset.

Club Merchandise can be bought in our online shop.

Further reading:
Should I start running?

Client Testimonials

South WestFencing Hub

Working with James has been a pleasure and education for all of the fencers and coaches, from beginner fencers and trainee fencers, up to international fencers and coaches with decades of experience. We really appreciate James' desire to challenge assumptions but simultaneously his ability to listen to both fencers and coaches on technical and tactical points. He manages to keep his sessions fresh and innovative without losing sight of our central goals. His sessions are challenging and fun and his attention detail is a tribute to his professionalism. Thank you.