{"id":746943,"date":"2026-06-19T15:32:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T15:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/746943\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T15:32:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T15:32:10","slug":"dont-be-a-lone-wolf-thats-my-number-one-life-hack-peloton-instructor-and-ultra-runner-susie-chan-shares-her-weekly-fitness-routine-and-tips-to-get-started","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/746943\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cDon\u2019t be a lone wolf, that\u2019s my number one life hack\u201d\u2014Peloton instructor and ultra runner Susie Chan shares her weekly fitness routine and tips to get started"},"content":{"rendered":"

In just 16 years, Susie <\/a>Chan has accumulated more miles and conquered more feats of endurance than most of us achieve in a lifetime.<\/p>\n

All seven major marathons? Check. The notoriously punishing 156-mile Marathon des Sables more times than any other British woman? Check. A 12-hour treadmill world record? Check. Check. Check.<\/p>\n

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Now 51, she\u2019s just added the 81-mile Badwater Salton Sea ultra to her collection, featuring 9,000 feet of total elevation up Palomar Mountain in Southern California.<\/p>\n

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All while holding down a physically and emotionally demanding job as a Peloton<\/a> instructor, and raising her daughter.<\/p>\n

What makes it all the more inspiring is that Chan had zero interest in sport or fitness until her brother signed her up to the Farnham Pilgrim Half Marathon in 2010.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI didn\u2019t even have trainers,\u201d she tells Fit&Well. \u201cI had gym shoes on. I had no clue.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt really hurt\u2014I\u2019m not going to pretend it didn\u2019t\u2014but it showed me what I could actually do if I really wanted to.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThat\u2019s something I\u2019ve maintained. That one little spark of what I can do if I really want to has propelled me to do all of the other long endurance races since.\u201d<\/p>\n

It has also propelled her into a new career as a running coach, to writing a book called Trails and Tribulations<\/a> about the trials and tribulations she\u2019s encountered along the way, and to inspiring others to lace up their running shoes\u2014or gym shoes\u2014for the first time.<\/p>\n

Recently returned from the Salton Sea ultra, I caught up with Chan to discuss what her weekly workout routine typically looks like when not scaling mountains or traversing deserts.<\/p>\n

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Susie Chan\u2019s weekly workout routine<\/p>\n

For the past decade, Chan has been clocking an average of 50 miles a week. When not hitting the road or trails with friends, she’s leading treadmill workouts in Peloton’s London studio or at fitness festivals around the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I haven\u2019t got a race, I\u2019ll typically run five times a week\u2014minimum,\u201d Chan says, casually.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my main source of exercise, but I\u2019m also really enjoying my Peloton bike right now. I love it as an alternative. And I\u2019m trying to dial down my mileage and build more strength.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how her week typically breaks down.<\/p>\n

Monday
30min run or Peloton Bike class for recovery.<\/p>\n

Tuesday
Leading Peloton treadmill classes and full-body strength workout.<\/p>\n

Wednesday
Leading Peloton treadmill classes and easy eight-mile run with friends.<\/p>\n

Thursday
30-60min interval or speed run, plus leg workout.<\/p>\n

Friday
Leading Peloton treadmill classes and easy 60min run or ride with colleagues.<\/p>\n

Saturday
45-90min long run.<\/p>\n

Sunday
60min slow yoga class focusing on single-leg strength.<\/p>\n

Susie Chan\u2019s advice on how to get started with running Start slow and steady <\/p>\n

If you\u2019re completely new to running, or you\u2019re getting back into it, think tortoise, not hare.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got to start off slow and steady,\u201d Chan says. \u201cIn my very first run I just ran as fast as I could. It was awful. Don\u2019t do that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, Chan recommends using run-walk intervals at a 1:1 ratio.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you’re brand new to running, alternating two minutes of running with two minutes of walking, or whatever it is that you can maintain, is a good place to start.”<\/p>\n

After a couple weeks, you can increase the running intervals or reduce the recovery period to progress toward a 2:1 ratio.<\/p>\n

Make it social <\/p>\n

Chan says everything hard becomes easier when you share it with others. That’s especially true when trying to build momentum at the start of your running journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very much not a lone wolf,\u201d says Chan, of the way she prefers to keep active.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you have other people to work out with it just takes the edge off. They help drive you, encourage you, enable you. For me, that\u2019s the number one life hack for training. It just makes everything feel easier.\u201d<\/p>\n