What is a coach?

Triathlon Forum
1

Just about every question in this forum that relates to training inevitably is responded to by someone who says you need a coach. I’m not refuting that advice, but I am wondering what your deffinition of a “coach” is. To my knowledge there are 3 “coaching services” in my area. Which is to say that there are 3 people (or groups of people) who will design a training schedule over the phone or through the internet that will make me the “best I can be”. Before I lurch into what I am looking for–or more specifically what I am NOT looking for–I’d like to know what the rest of the triathlon world thinks.

So, to reitterate the question, what should a coach be? What should a coach do for you?

2

A motivator, an organizer, a psychiatrist, a patient mentor, a reality check

My coach (Mike Plumb) does all of these things (for cheap too!). If you want more info or details on how pleased I am with him, email me directly or leave a message in the message box here on Slowtwitch. I’d be happy to give you info.

3

I can’t put it any better than this http://www.coachgordo.com/cgonline.htm (from Gordo Byrne’s site), but in my own words: I did my first race in October of last year and started working with my Coach (Rich Nixon) in January. I can’t even tell you how much I’ve improved, and how much I’ve learned about training from Rich. Sure, I’ve learned a lot through reading the endless material available in books and online, but there are so many different theories on training that have worked for people that its difficult to know what to beleive. I discuss things I read or hear about with Rich, and whether or not they would be beneficial to add to my program. Sometimes they have been, and we’ve made slight changes here and there, but most of the time they haven’t been. So instead of wallowing around figuring out what will work best, I have a program that I beleive will allow me to reach my goals and fits into my schedule. He has also helped me find ways to continue to train through injury and become stronger, whereas I might have had to stop training or may have injured myself further if I had been on my own. I also have a great new friend, a trusted mentor, and an unbeleivable training partner.

Hope that gives you some idea. If you want any more details, or would like to get in touch with Rich just shoot me an email.

Mark

4

Someone who takes your money and yells at you.

5

Starting this thread I hoped someone would give the sort of reply Ze Gopha did. I paid a coach for most of the past year. $1000 latter the only thing I can say I gained from the experience is a stack of pappers filled with my complaints about his inability to coach.

What I was looking for was more than just the warm fuzzy feeling of the coach being a nice guy. For starters I’d like to be recognized by that person when we show up at the same event (aka not getting out of the swim leg of a triathlon, look him in the eye and hearing him say GO!! … … YOU!!) This requires that we meet in person and I realize that many coaching services do not offer that.

Perhaps another direction to take this in is to ask how you (wise forum readers) improve your form on the bike with no one there to give you advice? How do you know if you are maintaining your stroke without someone standing on the side of the pool watching? How do you know if pains in your knees are “simple aches” you should run through or more serious injuries that should be rested if no one is there giving you advice from knowledge and experience gained as a competetor and coach?

6

because a coach is going to be different things to different people. There are people like yourself and Ze Gopha who’ve obviously had bad experiences with a coach, and then there are people like me who have found a great coach who, if you read my post, is a lot more than just a nice guy. I’m on the phone with my coach at least twice a week, and can go and train with him whenever I want for no extra cost. It almost sounds like you are looking for someone to hold your hand and be there with you at every workout. For that kind of service you’re going to have to lay down A LOT more than $1000 for the year. I don’t know what your goals are, but you don’t necessarily need a coach to improve. Your cycling is bound to get better by just spending more time in the saddle, and you can ask some of the better cyclists you ride with for advice on your form. For swimming, you can find a masters group with a good instructor who will watch your form and give you workouts. For running “pains” you can ask around on the web, or talk to a sports med practitioner. There are a lot of ways to coach yourself, I just prefer to work with a coach.

Mark

7

Gollum,

Sometimes the best things in life are free. There are loads of well-written articles covering all aspects of training on the internet. For personal feedback, you can ride with/befriend your local cycling communities. Join a master’s swim team (for perhaps a nominal cost) and ask the coach there to watch your stroke. Find the local running community and head on out the door to run with your new free fountains of advice.

Dee little hobbitses

8

Smeegle (love that name),

Here is my opinion. My coach is in San Diego, so he can’t check out my swim form. But I’ll ask him about my problems, he’ll give me possible causes and some ways to fix it. Swimming is a bad example, but using his suggestions, I’ve improved in the pool. A lot. But I think for the swim, someone does need to see you.

As for the run and bike, again I ask lots of questions (I think I drive Mike nuts), but the more specific my questions, the more specific the answers. Again, personally, I think we know when we aren’t using good form…at least I do. Coaches can’t MAKE you have perfect form. You do. I also think that you know when you are injured or not. Having said that, I had shin splints, didn’t know they were shin splints, described what was bothering me, and Mike pegged it right.

Not that having someone there isn’t invaluable, because I think it is. I just don’t think it HAS to be your tri coach who does this.

I need help structuring my workouts, my training, and the training periods…because I don’t feel like putting in the necessary time, and I’m willing to have Mike’s long years of experience working for me.

Smeegle, you say you want someone who will say more than: you…go!, but you don’t want warm fuzzies. I think when you get out of the water, and Coach says, “Smeegle, good swim, you are off your time, but you’ve got plenty of miles on the bike to make it up, hammer after the first 5 miles.” that personal touch is a bit of warm fuzzy…although coach isn’t expressing it that way, and it isn’t too fuzzy, but it is personal. Make sense? Again, just my opinion on this stuff.

9

You know what I think the most important thing to have in a coach is? Trust.

If you have a coach that you trust and they plan your workouts, then you don’t have to keep second guessing yourself whether you’ve done enough or too much. That gives you confidence, in addition to solid training. If you have a coach and you still second guess, you don’t trust your coach, and you should look elsewhere.

That said, I don’t think a coach is a bike fitter or really any other type of form supervisor. A coach is a planner, a motivator, a watchdog. A coach is the person you trust to help you meet your goals. It may very well be that the coach suggests you see a bike fitter. That’s part of the wisdom a coach. They don’t have to know or be everything, but they should be the orchestrater to make sure the right things happen at the right time.

10

With regards to the comment about a coach not being a bike fitter or form critic … these are areas that I think a good coach should be able to assist the most. There are tons of “plans” out there. Every year Triathlete and Inside Tri magazine include plans for “doing your first …” fill in Olympic, sprint, ironman, etc. You can buy coaching plans online from many sources as well. The one issue that is so different about our sport is that there are 3 disciplines and they require a lot of technical knowledge. I have been involved in track and field for 26 years and have a huge array of workouts and experiences that allow me to coach kids (I coach high school track) very effective for distance running. However, if you want a discus or javelin coach, I know the basics, but an expert there watching will always get more out of the kids. The same is true for triathlon. You can get good plans (usually tailored to the masses unless you are paying a lot for personal services) but unless the coach is an expert in swimming or biking or running and there watching you, you won’t become a super efficient swimmer or cyclist. I think that is why programs like total immersion do well since the number of swimming experts that you can drop in for some quick stroke correction are few and far between. The problem with these types of sessions is that I think they have to be there continuously for you to go back and get reassessed (I remember before age-group worlds one of our national team coaches was trying to completely change my swim stroke when he watched me do a swim the day before … good luck fixing 10 years of problems/bad habits in one afternoon!)

I think that a coach is much different than a plan and a good coach has to be where you are.

11

You paid HOW MUCH??? Man, I need to move to the US… :wink:

12

I think you’d do better to identify exactly what you want and then contact coaches directly. You can then ask them if they can fill your needs/wants.

I coach athletes in cycling/multisport for Wenzel Coaching. I’m focused on non-elites who want to complete their first 1/2 Ironman races, Ironmans, and ultramarathon cycling/running events.

The services that I provide to my athletes are often different than the services I request from my coach Marc Becker (I believe almost EVERY athlete will learn more from an appropriately chosen coach due to the human need for an objective observer…Very few people can effectively coach themselves).

Coaches can provide a broad spectrum of services depending upon your needs and budget. These can include (but aren’t limited to):

  1. Training Plans–From general to highly personalized (this is often “the easy part”)

  2. Mental Preparation–A VERY valuable component of the program my coach developed with me

  3. Equipment review/recommendations

  4. Technique Advice–This can be done face-to-face, but can also be done via Email or phone…The key is finding a coach who communicates effectively…If they can’t do it via the written word, I’d honestly question whether they can make their points orally.

  5. Race Course Tactics

  6. Life Balance Advice

This is not an all-inclusive list. However, I think it points to the fact that coaching presents many challenges. Your coach will be the person with whom you can identify your goals who helps you meet them (physical, psychological, or other).

Best of luck,

Jonathan C. Puskas

www.wenzelcoaching.com

13

If you want to get a coach I would recommend getting a coach in your area of weakness that you can actually meet with once a week. You could contact cycling teams, running clubs, or swim teams in your area to get references.

I would’nt recommend a “cyber” coach.

PS: An impressive athletic resume of accomplishments does not impress me that an individual is or would be a good coach. Remeber “bald men can cut hair”.

16

What a coach isn’t: your Mommy, your babysitter, your best buddy, your personal psychologist.

What a coach is: someone who works to help you get the maximum results out of your natural ability, time, resources and desire.

My coach tells me what to do…I do it…and I have gotten faster. Training is not easier with a coach, it’s harder. He gives me workouts, encouragement and the occasional kick in the a$$. There are days when I hate his guts and days when I think he is trying to kill me.

He sees the whole picture from an unbiased perspective…my view is limited by my experiences and emotions.

I did triathlons for years with respectable results before I finally broke down and hired a coach. It was the best thing I ever did and I regret the time I wasted trying to do it on my own.

17

Lou Holtz, for example
How about John Wooden.

18

As far as making sure each and every swim stroke is good, or running step is correct, even the best coaches are just guessing. Making sure your pick up your foot on the recovery of the bike pedal stroke, on the other hand, can be done by an “Iron Coach”, namely PowerCranks. Does that mean PowerCranks are the best coach for biking? No. They are a tool. A very effective tool at what they do. But, a truly good coach does more than make sure an aspect of your technique is excellent.

A truly good coach understands recovery as well as stressing systems, encouragement as well as expressing displeasure when you aren’t training correctly. We are all individuals, and it’s really difficult to get top level results without personalized coaching, but just because you get personalized coaching doesn’t mean you get top level results…just as you said. You’re doing the right thing by moving on. Just try and find others that are satisfied with their coaches AND their results, cross your fingers and try their coach.