Back in December when I somehow couldn’t improve upon a 365-day-old 5K PR, I knew it was time for a change in my personal running. My clients were excelling, but somehow, I felt like I had hit a plateau. The change I needed would come in the form of having a running coach for me. In early January, I met with my new coach—then a few days later, I had a max HR test planned, with said coach. As luck would have it, that max HR test came on an awful, awful morning. It was raining, the children had slept terribly, & my lovely monthly “friend” arrived just minutes before I headed out the door to the local running store. Fabulous. I really wanted to call my new coach & just cancel the whole thing all together. But then I had a revelation: what I expected of my athletes would now be expected of me. Quitting or “dipping out” on the workout was simply not an option. I had someone to “report” to now. My thought then became, “hmm, was this a good idea after all?!” Now, after nearly 8 weeks of training, I can without a doubt say YES—this is a GREAT idea! I then began pondering what qualities I expect of my running clients, which in turn, I would need to provide to my new running coach.
1 – HARD WORK: This one seems easy enough, right? As Nike would say, Just Do It! If you are hiring someone as your running coach, why in the world would you do any less than your best? I’m guessing that if you are hiring a coach, you have some sort of running goal in mind—whether it is to just simply complete the race & “survive the finish line” or you may have a specific time goal in mind. Regardless, do your best to complete the running activities as they are prescribed by your training plan & coach. Because quite frankly, who does it hurt if you choose to drop your 6 miles run to only 4 miles? A hint: NOT your coach—but YOU, the athlete. Of course, there are exceptions! A realistic coach understands that life happens. Maybe your body just quits on you that particular day {but this excuse won’t fly every week, ha!}. Or maybe you are called home due to an injured child. I personally am not a heartless coach, but I DO NOT have much sympathy for repetitive & unnecessary excuses. Do the work & you will certainly reap the benefits!
2 – COMMUNICATION: As my clients will tell you, I expect a “weekly recap” each Sunday. I plan my athletes training weeks from Monday to Sunday; so by Sunday evening, their running for the week should be complete. If you choose not to provide your coach with info on your prior runs, how do you expect him or her to coach your future running? Any ‘ole shmuck can pat your back & say “good job!” for a mediocre run. But a reputable running coach will critique & provide appropriate feedback on fantastic performances {fantastic meaning—ANY run where you gave it your all; regardless of the time or outcome!}.
3 – RESPECT: See a workout on your plan that you don’t agree with? Ask your coach about it. Maybe you have some insight on your running that hasn’t been relayed to your coach yet. Don’t just disrespect your coach & ignore the activity. He or she {likely} has the knowledge and credentials to back-up their reasoning for even including the run into your plan. Along those same lines, don’t “bad mouth” your coach amongst your local running community. If you don’t like them or their training philosophy any longer, simply break off the relationship in a professional manner. Chances are, it might be mutually felt.
4 – TRANSPARENCY/HONESTY: It’s snowing outside so you decide to tackle your 7 mile tempo run on the treadmill. Good for you—way to get the workout done! At the end of the week, you report back to your coach that you killed the workout… when in actuality you could barely keep an easy pace during the tempo-paced miles. We ALL have bad days {feel free to refer to my recent post on a tough tempo run I experienced}. BUT, be honest! You reporting back “false” data could result in your coach pushing you harder next week; when in reality, maybe your tempo pace needs to be backed off. Being transparent with all of your running woos & joys will definitely benefit YOU as the runner in the long run {pun intended}!
5 – TRUST: Chances are you have hired a coach based on someone else’s positive recommendation. Go with it! Try not to question everything they tell you to do. I do understand though that this is hard for skeptics, such as myself. BUT, try to go “all in” with their training plan. If you need to, give yourself an “assess date”, a date in which you will evaluate whether this coach/client relationship is actually working. Along the same lines as trusting your coach, is the need to trust YOUR body. Believe me—the human body is capable of WAY more than we ever give it credit for! Push your running to the limits & you will likely be rewarded with a few PRs & improved overall fitness.
6 – LOYALTY: Thinking of going “coach shopping”? Okay, no problem! We all have different personalities & not everyone will mesh with each other. This is true in both life & running. Just as a courtesy, let your coach know when the training is no longer working for you {this sort of ties in with #3}. You may or may not realize just how much work goes into being a running coach. Your RRCA-certified coach is required to keep their CPR-instruction current, as well as First-Aid training. They are likely staying up-to-date with current magazines/books & trends in running, frequently preparing & altering your personalized training plan, continually trying to improve their knowledge-base on injuries & injury prevention, & constantly checking up on your workouts! Not to mention that they may have numerous clients for which they do this. And chances are, they’re likely a runner themselves trying to fit in their workouts. Whew, it is hard work… BUT OH SO REWARDING!
7 – RELIABILITY: Remember reading up above about the premise for this whole blog post—me wanting to “dip out” on my max HR test. Yeah, that would have been quite unreliable of me, not to mention very rude. My coach’s time is valuable. His knowledge is something I wish to gleam upon. I knew he would be waiting for me to arrive & that he had planned his morning around helping to determine just how fast my ticker, can tick. Was it tough to get there? Sure thing. Am I glad I got it done? Absolutely. We all juggle multiple figurative balls in the air—just try to organize/prioritize your life & resolve to never be a quitter! If now is not a good time for you to take up a training plan, then don’t. Run recreationally & consider hiring a running coach in the future—when the timing works better in your life.
When it is all said & done, work hard & treat others as you wish to be treated!!
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