Center Stage / the conversation
British 24-Hour Record Holder | Ultra Endurance Coach & Athlete
In February 2023, Robbie Britton ran 277.439 kilometers — 172.392 miles — in a single day in Turin, Italy. He ran in 1-kilometer circles, lapping Ruffini Park for twenty-four consecutive hours at an average pace of 5:11 per kilometer, breaking a British 24-hour record that had stood for forty-one years. The record had been set by David Dowdle in 1982. Robbie had been chasing it for a decade.
In February 2023, Robbie Britton ran 277.439 kilometers — 172.392 miles — in a single day in Turin, Italy. He ran in 1-kilometer circles, lapping Ruffini Park for twenty-four consecutive hours at an average pace of 5:11 per kilometer, breaking a British 24-hour record that had stood for forty-one years. The record had been set by David Dowdle in 1982. Robbie had been chasing it for a decade. The moment he crossed the line, he collapsed. He described it afterward as the hardest thing a human body can do. Robbie Britton is a British 24-hour record holder, one of the most respected ultra-endurance coaches in the world, and a man who has turned the philosophy of suffering into a professional science. He is a UKA Athletics Coach, holds an MSc in Performance Coaching and an IOC Sports Nutrition postgraduate diploma, and is a member of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland 24-hour team management. He began coaching professionally in 2013 and has worked for over fifteen years in ultra-distance running and cycling — starting when he quit his last tutoring job after competing in the World 24hr Championships and discovering that coaching gave him both the flexibility to train and the intellectual challenge of a second career. He is also the author of 1001 Running Tips: The Essential Runner's Guide, a must-read for anyone serious about the discipline. But Robbie's authority is not built on credentials alone. It is built on the specificity and intimacy of what he has put his own body and mind through. He knows what a 24-hour race does to a human being — because he has done it multiple times, at world championship level. He knows what it means to run when the legs are broken and the mind is screaming to stop — because he has been there. He finished third at the World 24hr Championships in 2015, covering 261 kilometers. He set the Fastest Known Time on the 650km Jordan Trail in 2019. He won the Wicklow Way 127km in 2019 with a course record. He has represented Great Britain at four World and European Championships. Now based in Italy — where, as he notes with characteristic dry humor, his British name becomes "Brighton" in Italian pronunciation — Robbie trains some of the finest ultra-endurance athletes in the world while simultaneously preparing himself for the 2025 World 24hr Championships. His philosophy is precise: "Simmer, don't boil." You cannot win a 24-hour race in the first half. You can only lose it. The entire strategic architecture of ultra-endurance, Robbie argues, is about learning to sustain the right effort for the longest possible period — not maximizing effort at any single moment. This principle applies not just to racing but to training, to recovery, and to the mental management of discomfort over time. Robbie Britton joined Mornings in the Lab's Center Stage because of a video — his teammate showed it to the hosts — of Robbie crossing the 24-hour line and collapsing. The question that generated the invitation was simple: how do you train your mind to get to that point? Robbie's answer, across the full arc of the conversation, is the reason this episode exists.
172 miles in 24 hours: the British record
172 miles in one day — for all my American friends, do the math. 172 miles in one day.
The raw number is the headline. 172.392 miles in 24 hours — at an average pace that would represent a respectable marathon finish sustained for a full day. This is the credential that opens every door in ultra-endurance, and the record that Robbie pursued for a decade.
Training the mind to keep going when everything says stop
He crossed the 24-hour line and just fell over — I don't know how do we train to our minds to get to that point? Robbie is the pinnacle of that.
The question that generated this episode — how do you train the mind to keep going when everything says stop? — is the most important question in endurance sports. Robbie's ability to answer it from lived experience, not just theory, is what makes him irreplaceable as a coach.
The psychological battle: 18 hours of hurt still to come
The psychological battle was as hard as the physical one out there this weekend. The legs start hurting early doors and you still have 18 hours to go.
This is the defining challenge of 24-hour racing that distinguishes it from virtually every other athletic competition: the knowledge that suffering will last for most of the day, with no relief, no change of terrain, and no finish line to count down. Robbie has learned to inhabit that space — and now teaches others to do the same.
The 24-hour mental trap: effort and time decoupled
It doesn't matter if you're going fast or going slow. If you're sitting down or sprinting, the clock goes at the same pace. It messes with people's heads.
The unique psychological torment of 24-hour racing is that effort and time are decoupled — unlike in almost every other sport, where working harder gets you closer to finishing faster. This insight is the heart of what makes ultra-endurance mentally different, and why most people who try to race it psychologically collapse.
Simmer, don't boil: the ultra-endurance philosophy
Simmer, don't boil — that's how I often explain it to our GB&NI 24-hour runners.
This is Robbie's core strategic instruction for ultra-endurance competition: sustain the maximum effort that can be held for the entire duration, not the maximum effort available in any single moment. It is also a philosophy applicable well beyond running.
The 24-hour truth: finishing means arriving broken
You never finish a 24-hour race you might feel good about your performance but your body is always broken. There's no easy finish.
This is the honest reality of the discipline — you arrive at the 24-hour mark not in triumph but in ruins. Understanding this in advance and choosing to continue anyway is what distinguishes 24-hour racers from every other category of athlete.
A dream come true: the decade-long pursuit of the record
The British 24hr record has been a goal for me for so many years, it's a dream come true to finally run it. It means the world to me to be able to call myself a British record holder.
Robbie's own words after setting the record capture something essential about his character: the decade of commitment, the emotional weight of the pursuit, and the humility with which he received it. This is not performance — it is a genuinely human response to a genuinely hard-earned achievement.
Character: holding difficult things lightly
I'm from London but I'm joining you from Italy — ironically my name is Britain, but here in Italy they pronounce it Brighton.
The wit that Robbie brings to his own identity — British by name, living in Italy, running for Great Britain — reveals the character that makes him an exceptional coach as well as an exceptional athlete. He holds difficult things lightly without undervaluing them.
Endurance Unleashed
Episode #CS-009
Center Stage
172 miles in one day — for all my American friends, do the math.
The legs start hurting early doors and you still have 18 hours to go — the psychological battle was as hard as the physical one.
Simmer, don't boil — that's how I often explain it to our GB&NI 24-hour runners.
Robbie Britton is a British ultra-endurance athlete and professional coach who holds the British 24-hour running record, set in February 2023 in Turin, Italy, where he covered 277.439 kilometers (172.392 miles) in 24 hours at an average pace of 5:11 per kilometer. This broke David Dowdle's record that had stood for 41 years. Robbie also holds the Fastest Known Time on the 650km Jordan Trail and won the Wicklow Way 127km in 2019 with a course record. He represented Great Britain at four World and European 24-hour Championships, finishing third at both Worlds and Euros in 2015. He is now based in Italy and serves on the Great Britain and Northern Ireland 24-hour team management.
Robbie Britton has been a professional endurance coach since 2013, specializing in ultra-distance running and cycling. He holds an MSc in Performance Coaching and a postgraduate diploma in Sports Nutrition from the International Olympic Committee. He is a UKA Athletics Coach and serves on the management team for British Athletics' 24-hour squad. He began coaching to support his own athletic career but went full-time after his 2013 World 24hr Championships appearance. His coaching work spans athletes from beginner ultra-runners to elite national team members. He is also the author of '1001 Running Tips: The Essential Runner's Guide,' widely regarded as a definitive resource for serious runners.
Robbie Britton's 'simmer, don't boil' philosophy is the strategic core of 24-hour racing and, he argues, ultra-endurance in general. The principle holds that the goal is to sustain the maximum effort that can be maintained across the entire duration — not to maximize output at any single moment. In 24-hour racing, there is no finish line to count down, no terrain change to reset the mind, and no way to 'work harder' to get to the end faster. The only winning strategy is to find the effort level that can be sustained for 24 hours and hold it — simmering, not boiling. This philosophy applies to training periodization, race-day execution, and the mental management of discomfort over time.
Robbie Britton's approach to mental training in ultra-endurance is built on the reality that psychological challenges in 24-hour racing are inseparable from physical ones. Knowing that legs will hurt from early in the race, that there are still 18 hours to go, and that the clock moves at the same pace regardless of effort — these are facts that must be accepted and integrated, not fought. Robbie prepares his athletes and himself by rehearsing the mental states that will occur, developing emotional tolerance for discomfort, and building the specific mental skill of continuing to move when every signal says stop. He appeared on Mornings in the Lab's Center Stage specifically to address the question: how do you train your mind to get to that point?
In February 2023, Robbie Britton competed in the 24 Ore di Torino in Turin, Italy — a 24-hour continuous race run in 1-kilometer laps around Ruffini Park. He covered 277.439 kilometers (172.392 miles), breaking David Dowdle's 41-year-old British record of 274.480km. After finishing, Robbie collapsed at the finish line. He described the record as 'a dream come true' and acknowledged the psychological battle was as hard as the physical one — with legs beginning to hurt early and 18 hours still to run. The achievement was the culmination of a decade-long pursuit of the record. He was fueled by 90 grams of carbohydrates per hour and wore Nike AlphaFlys throughout.
Robbie Britton is the author of '1001 Running Tips: The Essential Runner's Guide,' a comprehensive running resource considered a must-read for anyone serious about the sport. The book draws on Robbie's fifteen-plus years of competitive ultra-endurance experience, his MSc in Performance Coaching, his IOC Sports Nutrition diploma, and his work coaching athletes from beginner to world championship level. It covers training methodology, race preparation, nutrition, mental performance, and the technical elements of becoming a more efficient, more durable runner. It is particularly valuable for ultra-distance runners who need guidance on the specific demands of events beyond the marathon.
coming back with Robbie Britain bring him into the lab and let's get to know the young man Robbie Rich Chris Robbie Rich we've got John am Marty coming back what's up Robbie Britain hello in the audio works right now that's the main worry at this point I I think I think we have you working there we got Johnny coming back here what Shak and Robbie where are you joining us from today you were joining us from London no I'm from London but I'm joining you from Italy so ironically my name is Britain but here in Italy they pronounce it Brighton so myself I just want to fit in and not C any Dr there you go so Robbie is a let me get my camera feed here so guys Marty Rich Johnny Robbie is a professional endurance coach since 20 specializing in ultra distance running and cycling he's the author of a,1 running tips the essential Runner guide to must read for anyone serious about running we're going to get that for John Anderson coming up here he holds the British 24-hour record covering an incredible yeah incredible 172 miles in one day for all my American friends do the math 172 miles in one day he represented Great Britain and nor Ireland in a 24-hour race earning third place world and European championships he's now part of the management team for British Athletics 24-hour team sharing his experience and expertise in endurance science Richie Ingram coming to you brother when you said hey I got somebody for the show you're like I got somebody for the show and you're like we got to get Robbie on the show Richie in a sentence or less why do we have Robbie Briton on the show today this guy represents everything there is about endurance like like I said Robbie showed me that video of when he crosses the 24-hour 24-hour line and just fell over I I don't know I want to know exactly like how do we train to our minds to get to that point yeah and Robbie is the Pinnacle of that
Introduction from Italy: the man with the British name · ~2 minutes · Robbie joins from Italy — a British man known as 'Brighton' to his Italian neighbors — and the show establishes his extraordinary credential: 172 miles in a single day. · The moment he fell over: what happened at 24 hours · ~4 minutes · The video that inspired the invitation — Robbie crossing the 24-hour line and collapsing — is the entry point for the central question: how do you train your mind to get to that point? · The British 24-hour record: a decade in the making · ~4 minutes · Robbie traces the ten-year pursuit of David Dowdle's 41-year-old record — the preparation blocks, the training camps in the Alps, the race in Turin, and the emotional weight of finally running it. · The mental architecture of 24-hour racing · ~5 minutes · What makes 24-hour racing psychologically unlike any other athletic competition — the decoupling of effort and time, the inability to accelerate toward the finish, and the requirement to inhabit suffering for the entire duration. · Simmer, don't boil: the strategic philosophy · ~4 minutes · Robbie explains his core competitive instruction and coaches it as a life principle — not just for running, but for any sustained effort across time under conditions of discomfort and uncertainty. · Coaching elite athletes: what the work actually looks like · ~3 minutes · Robbie's fifteen-plus years of coaching ultra-distance athletes — the MSc, the IOC nutrition diploma, the Great Britain team management role — and what the best coaches understand that good athletes often don't. · Leadville 100: racing at 3,000 meters in America · ~3 minutes · Robbie's preparation for and experience at Leadville 100 — finishing sixth overall among more than 400 runners — as a case study in cross-discipline training and adapting ultra-endurance skills to new formats. · 1001 Running Tips and writing for runners · ~2 minutes · Robbie's book and its value for runners of all levels — the distillation of fifteen years of competitive and coaching experience into practical, accessible guidance. · Training at the edge: what 200km weeks feel like · ~3 minutes · Robbie's current training loads — 200-kilometer running weeks during 24-hour prep blocks — and the physical and psychological demands of operating at the outer edge of human endurance capacity.
