Just a quick poll on how many IM veterans used a coach to do their first IM and how many used books/mags/internet etc…
Thanks.
no coach
.
I used an on-line coach for my first IM and was mighty overtrained. For my second IM (the next year) I used Gale’s 13weeks to a 13hr IM and went 12:39. Not fast but an improvememt from the previous year. Now I have a new coach I really trust and I can’t wait to train for IM #3.
Used Slowtwitch’s own Julieanne White for the first two. Great program.
I’d have never been able to pull it off without guidance. I surely would’ve overtrained myself. Even the best coaches out there have coaches.
No coach, just magazines/books/internet, plus some wisdom from a guy who did many IMs in the 80s. I have to say that my goal was just to finish, no Kona dreams or anything.
3 IM’s, no coach. Personally, I think coaches are way over-rated.
5 Ironmans
For the first 4, I had no coach…No slot. While I could coach others to successful finishes in bike racing/triathlon, I can’t coach myself.
Last year, I hired a coach to gain greater objectivity…10:30 (in VERY hot conditions) at IMCdA and qualified for Kona in 30-34 AG.
I completely trust my coach (Marc Becker) and a believe in the objectivity a coach provides. By the way, Marc has a FEW openings for 2004. Contact me if you’d like to speak with him. His rates are VERY reasonable ($130 per month and he provides detailed answers to all your questions…No clock counting, no pre-assembled answers…Just personal attention).
Those who don’t believe in coaching might do well to interview some other coaches. There isn’t a successful Elite on the planet who doesn’t have a coach…The key is finding a coach with whom you can really open up so they can provide the right advice for your situation.
I think a coach becomes even MORE important for your first Ironman…Simply put, they will help you overcome a lot of physical and psychological barriers which will seem larger at your first Ironman than at your fifth…
0 ironmans, but signed up for Montreal Esprit.
I retained the services of a coach very inexpensively through endurance coach.com . For roughly $10.00 a week I received a weeks worth of workouts and an explanation of how to run my program. Started in February and the program has been fantastic! I was clinically obese when i started, and have dropped 35 pounds without drastic change to my diet (I know, I know … I AM working on it). My coach understood my situation and my goal (finish an ironman - time be damned).
The training has reshaped my body. Before, I worked out too intensely, and burned out quickly. My Muscles bulged. Now I understand the benefits of moderate heartrate training, and my muscles don’t stick out, but certainly can go and go and go.
For me a coach has been indepensible, but not everyone needs one. My coach implemented virtually all of the training concepts i learned about in such great books as the Triathlete’s Bible. If you can incorporate what you read and learn into a training program, and have the self confidence, skip the coach.
My program did not include weekly feedback, and i respected that policy by not emailing off a ton of questions. It did provide a sound, safe structure–something i definitely needed (hey, if I had self discipline i would not have gotten obese, right).
I am well on pace to completing the Ironman–with luck and preparation, I will see my goal of finishing in under 17:00, and perhaps even as “quickly” as 13:30 or so.
Bryce
(my first post)
0 ironmans, but signed up for Montreal Esprit. I am well on pace to completing the Ironman–with luck and preparation, I will see my goal of finishing in under 17:00, and perhaps even as “quickly” as 13:30 or so.<<
Congratulations on your progress so far. Good luck in your race!
2 IMs (and currently training for my 3rd in Florida this fall) and no coach for any. I coach high school track and cross-country so I figure I can set up my own program … I can’t think of any coach who will know me better than me 
Although I can be somewhat obsessive-compulsive about my training so having someone tell me to back off every now and then might be a good thing.
Did my first Ironman two weeks ago, a really flat bike and run course! ((Ironman aka Järnmannen Sweden)) Finished 10:22. This is my first year in tri, but second with biketraining. I joind a tri-club where I get help with my swimsplit. Really impressed that I went from not being able crawl 25meters to do 1:08 on the swim in less than a year!
Dave
No formal coaching here. When I decided in the fall of 1998 to do my first IM (another Tri-baby inspired IM-virgin), I spent a lot of time reading and asking questions on rec.sport.triathlon. One poster even email his “secret” checklist for IM races (which works for shorter distances, too). I also borrowed a Total Immersion swim video, and purchased two books: Jeff Galloway’s Marathon! and a book called Endurance Athlete’s Edge (I forget the author). I created my own training plan based on all of these sources. It was a 2-year plan that culminated in a trip to California for the first (and next to last, as it turned out) Ironman California 2000.
Now, it did take me 16 hours 53 minutes to finish, but I did beat 77-year-old Bill Bell and his Marine “escorts” by a few minutes 
My goal was just to finish. I proudly achieved that goal.
This is a great question/debate. I completed my first IM (CDA) in June. There was no way I was going to be able to create, manage, and actually train to a home built program. Training for an IM is a major league affair time wise. With a job, family, etc I needed direction. I got that from Mark Lynn here in NoCal. I learned one heck of a lot training to his program and got a ton of feedback and direction along the way.
I shopped various CBT and live coaches. While I was not particularly happy with my 12:19 TIME at CDA, the 106 degree peak temp (causing some nasty stomach cramps) and 60 miles of headwinds on the bike had a little something to do with that.
My legs had more in the tank at the end and I could have gone longer if neccessary. Also, after the race my wife and I discovered that she had forgot where the car was parked (oops). I hopped on the bike and spent 45 minutes cruising around CDA looking for the damn thing. Conclusion: My training was spot-on and I was fit as a fiddle. I’ve retained Mark’s services for the remainder of the season and will probably just carry over as I have hopes for big time PRs at the 1/2 and Olympic distances next year.
Email me if anyone wants Mark’s info: chrismaginn@hotmail.com
Hey - here it is 6 years later from my first post on SlowTwitch. Have now completed 4 IM’s and put in for the Kona lottery every year!