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Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed.
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 2011-09-15 6:07 AM |
Member  54 |  Subject: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed.I live in the Northern VA area. I am looking for a coach for an Iron distance. Anyone have any suggestions on how to go about finding a coach? I've been all over the web but feeling a little overwhelmed. I've found a ton of sites but not sure which way to go. Where did some of you find your coaches? |
| 2011-09-15 6:33 AM in reply to: #3687375 |
Pro 5892    , New Hampshire | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. Talk to some of the local athletes and find out whom they are using. I would highly recommend using a local coach. Both me and my wife used to be coached from a very long distance (we elected to use a US coach while living in Europe) and although you can make the best out of it, you will miss the interaction, possibility to meet up to discuss things, look at your swimming/running technique, etc. Once you have a few local coaches, make sure you meet with them (or over the phone) to discuss their training philosophy, their strengths and weaknesses, etc. You are going to rely on someone to get you to where you want to be, so you are going to put lots of trust in this person. It's important that you feel comfortable that this person has similar ideas as you, and that this person can help you with your weaknesses and continue developing your strengths. |
| 2011-09-15 7:18 AM in reply to: #3687375 |
Veteran 272 Durham | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. My girlfriend uses Jackie Miller. Britfit.com Very reasonable rates, WAAAYYYY more interaction (phone, emails) than I had when I was being coached by someone else. She's very professional, motivated, motivating. She's excellent about adjusting training due to changing schedules, she'll work with you about changing workouts to different days, when needed, and isn't afraid to be firm and let you know which workouts HAVE to be done on specific days. I can't say enough about her. Mike |
| 2011-09-15 7:18 AM in reply to: #3687375 |
| Member 117 Fond du Lac | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. my brother living in europe used endurance nation, and was very pleased said in general just cool guys. then add their tri knowledge on top of that....... |
| 2011-09-15 8:17 AM in reply to: #3687391 |
Member 54 | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. audiojan - 2011-09-14 7:33 AM Once you have a few local coaches, make sure you meet with them (or over the phone) to discuss their training philosophy, their strengths and weaknesses, etc. You are going to rely on someone to get you to where you want to be, so you are going to put lots of trust in this person. It's important that you feel comfortable that this person has similar ideas as you, and that this person can help you with your weaknesses and continue developing your strengths.
Thanks, these are the things that I don't remember I have to think of when looking for a coach. I will also need them to help me out with nutrition. No matter what I do some how I can't get that part nailed down for peak performance. |
| 2011-09-15 8:46 AM in reply to: #3687375 |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. macr6 - 2011-09-15 6:07 AM I live in the Northern VA area. I am looking for a coach for an Iron distance. Anyone have any suggestions on how to go about finding a coach? I've been all over the web but feeling a little overwhelmed. I've found a ton of sites but not sure which way to go. Where did some of you find your coaches? I found one of my coaches from BT, and another one from asking around local triathletes. For me, when it came to picking a coach, the PRICE POINT was the top priority. I knew that I couldn't afford more than $125 a month, so anyone over that was out of the running. I also knew that I didn't want to sign up with some coach who was going to monitor how many calls I made, how many emails we exchanged, etc. While I didn't contact my coaches a lot, I didn't want to be limited. Just seems silly to me. As a coach, I would want a client to send me an email (or text) with any question they may have, at any time. If you limit contact, the client may think twice before sending an email about being injured or asking advice on how to switch up some training, because they fear getting charged for it. That to me isn't coaching. Having open contact with my clients hasn't been an issue at all. They don't abuse it. Once I found someone at my price point, I spoke with them, and signed up. What I have found, now being a coach, is that people tend to pick a coach rationally and emotionally. And rightfully so. If you feel like you can't talk to your coach and if you don't trust what your coach is saying, then the relationship won't work. Why not ask some friends or local tri people who they use? I will say this though, I had a coach locally and one who was not local. And honestly it didn't make a bit of difference. I got the workout plans, I did them. I reported back electronically. When I had a coach locally, I saw him twice over 8 months for my IM training. And I was fine with that. Currently I coach 2 people who do not live in my state, and 2 people who live in my town and are in the tri club I work with. All of the clients get the same level of service. Yes, the local ones actually see me and interact with me at workouts, but that's about it. I have offered some free swim coaching to one client, but he has yet to meet with me and take me up on it. Yes, picking a coach can be overwhelming. There are a lot of coaches out there. Just ask around and pick one you trust, who has the skill set needed, who can get along with, and is at the price point you can do. Good luck! And good luck on your upcoming IM training! Very exciting stuff! |
| 2011-09-15 8:55 AM in reply to: #3687391 |
Champion 10471 Dallas, TX | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. audiojan - 2011-09-15 6:33 AM Talk to some of the local athletes and find out whom they are using. I would highly recommend using a local coach. Both me and my wife used to be coached from a very long distance (we elected to use a US coach while living in Europe) and although you can make the best out of it, you will miss the interaction, possibility to meet up to discuss things, look at your swimming/running technique, etc. Once you have a few local coaches, make sure you meet with them (or over the phone) to discuss their training philosophy, their strengths and weaknesses, etc. You are going to rely on someone to get you to where you want to be, so you are going to put lots of trust in this person. It's important that you feel comfortable that this person has similar ideas as you, and that this person can help you with your weaknesses and continue developing your strengths. This made me think of the fact that coaching athletes is like being a cook. You can tell a cook to make a salad. One cook might make it with chicken, another with shrimp, another with beef.... each salad might have different ingredients. While they are all salads, and they all taste great, the way the salad was put together was different, but the outcome was still successful. You have to believe in what the coach's philosophy and how they coach. For example, I tried to work with a coach recently. I wanted to get faster. But I also didn't have a running base and I was coming off a 6 month running injury. His philosophy was that I needed to run fast, and he had me doing a lot speed work in tempo and interval HR zones. I saw this as flawed, because I thought I needed to build a base in steady state zone before doing speed work so I could avoid getting injured. As a coach, that's my philosophy (yes, it's going to be hard for someone else to coach me!). What he had me doing was going against everything I believe to be true. So I was questionning the workouts and ultimately wasn't doing them. So I decided to go back to self coaching. What's great about someone who is relatively new to coaching, is that you don't have any preconceived notions on what is "right and wrong" when it comes to building a training plan and training. So you are more coachable... than say... myself.  But do keep in mind that each coach does things a little bit different. Find one that cooks the kind of food you like.  |
| 2011-09-15 9:24 PM in reply to: #3687375 |
Master 1883 San Antone, Texas | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. If you don't mind an online coach, try Coach Brett (ZenTri). |
| 2011-09-16 2:10 PM in reply to: #3687375 |
Master 2638 | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. It is worthwhile to review the results of individuals who have been coached by the outfits you are considering to see if (1) they focus on the stuff you want to focus on (increasing distance, getting faster, certain time goal, etc.) and (2) whether they are successful in achieving their goal(s). That said, this really makes me like the Endurance Nation guys. They are not right for me because of the emphasis on speedwork (which tends to injure me) and because my DH does my plans (with benefits!), but I like this overall philosophy for Ironman training regardless of who you choose for your coach. |
| 2011-09-16 2:17 PM in reply to: #3687375 |
| Expert 821 Golden, CO | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. My coach (Suzanne at Steel City Endurance) and I also have a long distance relationship which works. I'll just reiterate what the others have said..Find someone who has the same philosophy as you as far as how to train. Also important to me was the coaches willingness to change up my plan mid week if I had an injury or missed a few workouts. I also like the fact that my coach seems to have a vested interest in my performance and well being. Just my thoughts. |
| 2011-09-16 2:26 PM in reply to: #3687375 |
Master 1927 Guilford, CT | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. Just to add to the considerations mentioned. Make sure you talk in depth about their philosophy of training. Maybe read a couple of $15 books like all the popular tri training/running books to get some base knowledge and an understanding of what your trying to accomplish. Think about if you will be training with power on the bike or by HR or by RPE and which one you like better (if you happen to know that)....at the end of the day, you really need to buy into it. There is a big mental part of it. also, there are a ton of coaches who have no idea what they are talking about so do your best to be thorough. It doesn't take much to call yourself a coach.... |
| 2011-09-16 2:31 PM in reply to: #3687375 |
Champion 8766 Evergreen, Colorado | Subject: RE: Looking for a coach for iron distance but overwhelmed. I basically put together a document with my goals and background and sent it out to the coaches I had found online (based on location, price, services, qualifications, etc. you could also use local recommendations). I then asked them to look it over, decide if they thought they could maybe work with me and either did some e-mail or phone chatting to see if it would work...talking about philosophy and how they workouts got sent out, etc. etc. Based on those conversations and answers to questions I chose one of them. I personally don't put too much stock into needing a local coach. Unless you need a lot of stroke or gait analysis I've never had a problem living far away from my coaches. Now, I did make it a point to eventually meet my coach in person (and we did a slew of gait analysis, bike fit, etc. etc.) the week I went out there. But I really don't feel like I miss out on much not living locally. My experiences, yours may vary. |
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