Now that sadly the 40^th Anniversary Robin Hood Marathon has been postponed until next year you might be thinking about putting down those running shoes and sticking your feet back up on the sofa? But we at Nottingham Sport have some suggestions that might get you up jogging and out and about again.

Running has always been popular, but a surge of shoe sales nationwide indicates even more participants since the lockdown of 2020 when the Government issued just an hour’s exercise outside per day.

Those days of limitation seem thankfully behind us now and we can start to exercise more freely with a number of locations on the hotlist of best places to run in Nottingham and across the county of Nottinghamshire.

We’ve picked our top ten below for you to give a try…

Wollaton Park

Our route: 3.6km

Difficulty: ****

Often used for cross-country and for many times plays a part in the Robin Hood Marathon too, Wollaton Park and its fabulous Hall is as idyllic a running spot in Nottingham City as anywhere nearby.

The run around the lake is just short of a mile but from the car parks and back it is nearer 3km and a loop or two around the circuit can easily get you up to your preferred distance. There is plenty of elevation especially around the Hall and although the park gets quite busy there is plenty of running space too, just watch out for those deer as you go.

Holme Pierrepont

Our route: 5.41km

Difficulty: ***

The main Regatta Lake around the National Water Sports Centre offers a perfect flat tarmac running track with a looped rectangular distance of near 5km. But there’s plenty in and around the location to switch it up if running in straight lines is not for you.

With water and wildlife side by side this is one of the most popular venues for joggers, walkers and cyclists in Nottingham but it never seems too busy due to its vast size. If you have ran in Nottingham but haven’t yet ran at Holme Pierrepont, you can not yet be classed as someone who runs.

Victoria Embankment

Our route: 4.57km

Difficulty: **

Hugely popular along the embankment of the River Trent is the walkway between the old Wilford Toll Bridge and the world-renowned Trent Bridge near the football and cricket grounds. Just under 2km in distance it can get busy in the summer but is often worth it taking in the ambience of those relaxing by the river as children and pets both play by the water side.

There is a loop if you cross over both bridges or if indeed you cross the suspension bridge in between but watch out for people. Perhaps those who like things a bit quieter could chose their run a little earlier in the day.

Gedling Country Park

Our route: 4.27km

Difficulty: *****

A new entry in that this is one of the newest parks in the county but one tough and demanding, perhaps our most enduring of all as built on the old site of Gedling Colliery it takes in spectacular views across the South East of the county.

With the outer loop just over 4km in distance it provides a good which elevates up to almost 120 metres which includes grades of around 10%. Not one for the feint-hearted but one certainly for those experienced runners who like a cross-country challenge with a hill or two.

Colwick Country Park

Our route: 3.71km

Difficulty: ***

Located on the opposite side of the water to Holme Pierrepont and the National Water Sports Centre, Colwick and its lakes offer an even more stunning location to run or jog with its circuit looped around the vast waters nearby aside the River Trent.

Running around the two lakes in total covers just short of 2 ½ miles with plenty of nature to keep the eyes occupied along the way. Slight elevation it can feel a bit of a maze too, watch out for ducks and children along the way.

Highfields Park

Our route: 3.69km

Difficulty: **

The University Park at Highfields and its stunning but simple lake in front of the iconic Trent Building offers a beautiful backdrop to what is a very pleasant and peaceful running layout.

In all a single lap of the lake is 1.85km but with vast grounds across the University campus running around the Beeston Lane offers a quiet route where traffic is minimal for those that want to cover larger distance. From the University Boulevard car park, running across the back of the lake and up Beeston Lane before coming down Cripps Hill is over 3.5km in distance with plenty of alternative avenues to ensure you hit the distance that you want to cover.

Rushcliffe Country Park

Our route: 2:49km

Difficulty: **

Home to one of the most popular park runs, Rushcliffe is a good place for novices to start with an outer loop roughly around 1.5 miles in distance mostly on gravel wrapped around the vast open green space of Ruddington Fields.

With various but clear shortcuts and with little but rewarding elevation it offers a bit of everything without having too much of something to put you off. A good place to start on a crisp winters morning or early summers evening.

Sherwood Pines

Our route: 5:07km

Difficulty: ****

New visitors to the area might be mistaken for thinking they have found themselves in up state New York or Vermont with its tall tree-lined avenues but this stunning woodland is of course the heart of the most famous Forest in the world and better still, it’s right on our doorstep.

With a number of narrow tracks to run around it might all seem a bit of a maze but once you find the right running route for you there is nowhere more iconic, peaceful and beautiful in Nottinghamshire than the heart of Sherwood Forest Country to run around.

Rufford Country Park

Our route: 1.32km

Difficulty: *

One of the shortest routes is to jog around the lake which is just over 1.2km but a run around the outside of the beautiful grounds of Rufford Abbey and you can easily tot up 2.5k in a single loop.

Packed with picnic goers and dog walkers the otherwise peaceful route takes in greenery and wildlife from the open space around the Abbey to the woods around the lake.

Clumber Park

Our route: 5.94km

Difficulty: ****

Another stunning back drop in the heart of Sherwood Forest the lake around Clumber Park is large and scenic and at almost 6km to run around covers a fair distance for those more advanced athletes to take in.

Not the most difficult terrain but with plenty of grounds to mix it up it certainly offers enough distance and space for those in marathon mode who enjoy running in peaceful surroundings midst clean Nottinghamshire air.

Missed out your favourite? Obviously we have compiled just a short list of our ten favourite places to try but if your best place to run in Notts is not in our top ten please let us know where it is below so that our readers can enjoy some alternative locations.

*Main image @AthleticsWeekly Wollaton Park is one of the most popular running spots in the city.