the coaching files part III, to coach or not to coach?

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Tomorrow I send the boys to Arizona ahead of me so I can take an exam on the renal system. Makes me want to pee myself right here and now. Luc promised me that when he gets there he will turn up the sun as hot as it can go. Good for me, Curt rolls his eyes. Curt's doing great in taper week...... he's rested, he's giddy (I know.... mister sunshine is giddy!) and his bike is in Arizona. I am so excited for him. It's Ironman time baby.

Curt is the prime example of being one of the few athletes who can successfully self coach. I attribute this to be because when he began the responsibility was on the athlete to figure things out. Through trial and error and a lot of reading Curt has coached himself through World Championships, and Ironmans better than anyone else I have ever seen do it. The man knows his body, he knows what it takes to get himself to a PR at just about any distance.

Many of the things I have learned about coaching..... I have learned from him.

Coaching is an interesting business. It's a luxury for sure. Hiring me won't feed your family. I have always loved to work with a coach. I have had the fortune of working with some really talented ones, right now being the absolute highlight. The amount of learning that has taken place for me in the past 6 months is absolutely amazing.

People are a little funny when you ask them who their coach is and if they have one. Some people like to keep it a secret.That's my favorite. I think that there are really 2 people in this world who people are interested in knowing who their coach is: Chrissie Wellington and Craig Alexander. Beyond that..... we are just regular folks.

What is not important is who your coach is. Or if you even have one. What is important is that you have a good solid plan to follow. AS they say, failing to plan is planning to fail.

How do you go about finding a coach if that is what you are interested in? Kind of the same way that you go about goal setting. Determine why.

Why do you want to hire a coach?

We live busy lives. Hiring coach saves us time. They become in some ways the manager of our training. Figuring out what works for each athlete takes a lot of time. Hiring a coach gives us someone to collaborate with on the journey to achieving our goals. Hiring a coach gives us objective feedback. Two days after an Ironman you are putting in a 4 hour training day? A good coach would slap you silly.

A coach can help you keep in line with your goals. Steps back and sees the big picture, will be honest with you that a four hour training day after a big race is not the way to move forward. They will have the honesty and objectivity to tell you that.

Cost

I have seen some ridiculous pricing on either side of the coin when it comes to coaching fees. I have seen people with relatively little experience coaching charge the same amount as someone who coaches the pros (and is successful at it). You have to decide what your budget is and then work from there. Many coaches will tell you.... it's only XX dollars per day..... are you not worth the investment in yourself?

Losing your house is not worth the investment in yourself.

On the other hand, athletes also need to understand that while many coaches work online and from home..... time is money. Trading coaching for free T shirts, coffee, the works just doesn't add up.

Bottom line about cost when choosing your coach; make sure you can afford it without denying your child their field trip because of your habit.

Credentials

The way that the Coaching Certification is set up is so that any human being can sign up to become a certified coach. Many of the good coaches out there aren't certified. What a certification does is give you that recognition within a governing body.

When looking for a coach look at their credentials of course..... but look at their coaching experience. If you take a look at many credentials of coaches they list their athletic achievements first. It's nice that they have won races and have been to Hawaii..... that experience is valuable to them coaching of course...... but just because you won your age group in a national race doesn't make you a good coach. Paul from Life Sport seems to have a pretty good track record with his athletes.... but I don't even know that he's ever competed in a triathlon. Does it matter if he has or has not? I don't think so.

My father has always been and continues to be the greatest coach I have ever had or will have. Not only has he never completed a triathlon, I don't think I know if he knows how to ride a bike. He's never run a step in his life except to chase me down the hall when I was bad :)

Through the years he has studied swimming. He'd sit at swim meets and time each 25 and each flip turn during my 500 and 1,000's. It was he who pointed out that if I slowed down my first 100 I could negative split the race. He began doing this because ... he was bored. Ever sit at a swim meet? Then you know. That, through the years has transferred to triathlon. He came to my first Ironman, but now prefers to sit at command central, follow on IM live and watch splits.

He has the ability to analyze, to watch, to observe.

Look at a coaches athletes. Talk to their athletes. Ask them to speak to 3 of their athletes and get their feedback. In all honesty I think this is the big key. DO their athletes come down with a lot of injuries? Do they consistently have good performances? A good coach will share that with you, I think it's a sign that they are comfortable with their coaching.

Personalization

If you wanted a stock plan you can buy a cookie cutter stock plan. A coach should individualize your workouts to fit you and your life. Their are different protocols that they / we follow, the trick is to adjust them to fit the athlete we are working with.

While I have my particular system...... as an example we alternate functional strength and weight room training this time of year. I have one athlete recovering from being hit by a car, her program is different than one who is recovering form surgery, whose program is different than one of my guys who is 38 and healthy, whose is different from the young guy who is 23. The protocol might be the same, but there is great individuality in their programs.

My girl who was hit by a car.... we develop her weight training program with her Physical Therapist. Right now she is most comfortable working with free weights and redeveloping her functions are priority. Another one of my girls who is recovering from surgery is a Physical Therapist, so she can review the plan and say yay or nay to specific exercises.

The point...... your coach should individualize your program. I know that Cait Snow and I both ave the same instructions for our Endurance runs.... yet how that is configured into the week is different.

You can only write a workout so many different ways. There are only so many workouts in the universe. The saying my old coach Doug liked to use was: there are no new workouts. Again, how they are applied to you is what is important.

Self Coaching

What if you are not interested in a coach or right now it just doesn't fit into your budget? First of all, don't let the coached group try to make you feel inferior for it. It is more important to put that few hundred into the children's college funds. It is important to pay your mortgage.

So what do you do?

You do what Curt Eggers did. You read. You research. You look at plans, you look at yourself. You learn yourself. You learn your body. You become successful at becoming your own coach. You develop the plan and set those small mico goals along the way. You check in with yourself each week and track your progress, Track it, don't let be up in the air because in 2 months you will wonder if you have made improvements. Know you've made improvements because you are accountable to yourself.

During this off season take a good look around. What fits your life, your budget, your style? Don't be afraid to ask questions, in fact ask a lot of them. If a coach is what you are seeking.... then take some time. This is an investment that you want a good return out of.

After all, it's your life.