What to look for in a coach?

Triathlon Forum
1

Hey Slowtwitch, I’m looking for a coach for the 2010 season and am unsure exactly what to look for. For the most part I’ve been self coached throughout my triathlon career and have decided it’s time to see what working with someone can do for my fitness. After looking at different coaching packages on various websites, there are many thing that I am unsure of, for instance:

  • How important is unlimited e-mail and phone vs limited contact?
  • Do I need a ‘complete’ coach who will help me with nutrition and emotional support on top of workouts ?
  • Is it better to have a coach who lives locally that I can meet in person or can I accomplish all I need to through e-mail?

In addition to those questions, what else is important to consider?

cheers

2

go with a local coach who trains with power, and has USAC/USAT certs, and athletes with results - someone you can meet up with in person from time to time

expect to pay $300+ for a premium coach that you can call weekly

or for training plans only, $200

ask training partners who they use

ask around, is someone in your tri club a reputable coach?

3

Go local. Ask the local clubs. I don’t think paying USAT to be “certified” is a real necessity. Training with power would be high up on my list if you have the tools. As for nutritional/emotional support…that’s strictly a personal decision.

4

Hey Slowtwitch, I’m looking for a coach for the 2010 season and am unsure exactly what to look for. For the most part I’ve been self coached throughout my triathlon career and have decided it’s time to see what working with someone can do for my fitness. After looking at different coaching packages on various websites, there are many thing that I am unsure of, for instance:

  • How important is unlimited e-mail and phone vs limited contact?
  • Do I need a ‘complete’ coach who will help me with nutrition and emotional support on top of workouts ?
  • Is it better to have a coach who lives locally that I can meet in person or can I accomplish all I need to through e-mail?

In addition to those questions, what else is important to consider?

cheers

I think that the best approach to a situation like this is develop a well constructed problem statement. What problem are you trying to solve? Obviously it is your prerogative to try anything you want to try. However, I am not a big fan of trying something to try something.

Are you are middle of the pack guy who want to get to the front? Are you at the front and want to be first? Are you time constrained? Financially constrained? Do you have a fitness background? Do you already have an advanced workout methodology? How do you like to communicate? What are you goals? What are your dreams?

So… given that. I hired a coach on January 12 this year. He was the catalyst which helped me make a dramatic impact in my overall performance. My schedule is crazy, I travel and I have a family. So he has been able to help me work with all of those constraints.

There is obviously a wide range in the skills and costs of coaches… and there seems to be a model of team coaching that is rising (like Endurance Nation).

With regards to your specific questions:

Unlimited email/phone: I trade a lot of email with my coach. I like it but I dont think that it is required, The volume is more a function of my obsessive side than of any requirement. With regards to phone… we live in completely different time zones/life and as a result have only talked <10 times in 9 months. It doesnt matter to me … but I am very comfortable with email.

Complete coach w/nutrition. No - but it could be good.

Local: I dont know I never worked with a local person … but the long distance thing works well for me.

Other questions:… you need to know your goals and your constraints (time, money, fitness, …) and know what problem you are really trying to solve with a coach.

Alan

5

I coach people locally (pretty much exclusively - I tried coaching long distance, and it’s rough when you can’t put a name/face together - you can’t really build a bond with an email address or a phone number). I myself have a coach that is about 1500 miles away. The real benefit I see to a local coach, I tend to organize training sessions for those I coach, and have seen other coaches do so. If that is not an important thing for you, I see no downside to not going local.

Another thing, those I coach tend to get trickle down information and ideas from my coach, which can be beneficial for those I coach. Check for a coaches’s coach, their coaching styles and exercise regimine philosophies.

Heck, I don’t know why I am restating this stuff, others have already written a ton on this subject alone. Check out what Gordo says about getting the most from your coach:

http://coachgordo.com/mostcoach/index.html

6

I hired a coach for 2009. I interviewed the top two contenders. One was a very high energy, hands on cheer leading type. The other a very technical and laid back “if you do not do the work or something happens don’t expect the same results”. I have learned tons from both in the past. My personality is quite laid back so I chose the coach I could relate best to and honestly. I do not need any motivation to ride in the rain or run in the snow, I get out there. I met my reevaluated goals despite being sick twice. Both coaches could have gotten me where I wanted to get to. I just felt more comfortable with the one I chose. Honest feed back seemed to be the main difference in their approach, I missed a month (March) and needed to hear concern not “oh you will be fine” I also needed to reassess my goals to make them more realistic for the training time I had. They both provided sample training plans from other athletes that they have coached to show how they make progress through the year.

Good luck, best money I have spent in triathlon (other than a bike fit)
Rick

7

Honesty…

Not ST approved though, since some can actually be too honest

Peace

8

You have to ask yourself 2 questions:

  1. Is the coaches first name Brandon
  2. Is the coaches last name Marsh

DONE.

-Adam

9

Talk to his/her former or current athletes if you can.

Basically, I followed the directions and ended up injured. I could participate in the races I’d registered for but have not been able to RACE all season. 2009- gone. Several of the other people who he trained are injured or overtrained and exhausted. Two pros, and the rest of us are usually either 1-10 OA or top 3 AG most of the time. I was very very very discouraged. Thankfully, I’m back running some bigger mileage and may be able to do a marathon, but at one point this summer, I couldn’t run 100 yards w/o excruciating pain. I communicated with my coach almost every day, so…

Back on my own this year, thinking of hiring a different coach several of my friends have used that is NOT local for 2010. But maybe not.

10

Interview others who have been coached by the potential candidates. Make sure the coach has enough time for YOU. If s/he has more than 8 athletes, then you will not get the attention you deserve/pay for. Planning workouts can be done from afar but actual coaching needs to be done locally.

11

So for anybody then who has had a coach, is the money worth it?
I guess it’s a personal question, depending on how you value that money spent vs what your goals were, but answerable.

Personally, my goal was to complete my first season on my own, really not knowing what I was doing.
This year, the goal is to get competitive in my age group. Have been considering a coach, now that the offseason is here.

Local, certified, seems good, understands me & my goals. Training plans, works with power, etc…

But is this 300+/month worth it? Will it get me further than I could do on my own? I’ll need to buy a powertap too, though that was already part of my plan.

I even would have to pay extra per hour to get the swimming lessons I need.

Thoughts/advice ?

12

I looked for a new coach back in the fall and put some real thought into what specifically I wanted out of the relationship as well as what I was willing to offer. I put an ad in the Jobs section and got a surprising number of responses. From there I talked to 3 on the phone and talked to athletes of theirs when I could. I chose someone who wanted to make a multi-year commitment and not just for the season. I have some huge long term goals and it was important to me to have consistancy with my training. I’m fine with email and we are both pretty chatty so it works well for us. We get on the phone when necessary.

My ad isn’t in the job board anymore, I pulled it, but it worked great. It was very clear on what I wanted and expected.

13

I think a coach is worth it. I don’t have the time or energy necessary to read up on all the latest research, talk to a lot of people for experience and advice and plan out my workouts. I hire someone to do all of that for me. All that goes into making me a better athlete.

I take on big goals so when I decided to go for long distance events it made sense for me to look around. Short stuff I can train myself for but when talking about events that take many hours, I need help.

I found a perfect fit for me and whether he likes it or not I’ll be working with him for years to come. If he tries to fire me I will stalk him. :slight_smile:

14

Depends on what your financial situation is and what your priorities are but $300+ per month for a coach seems a bit high, but if that is the current coaching rate and the demand drives the price up that high, then so be it.

I was toying with the idea of hiring a coach. But after the past year with the recession, I decided to remain self-trained and continue to train with the local tri club. Although I can afford it (make $150K plus bonus), if you do he math $300 per month adds up over time. With $300 per month, you could invest it, buy a car, go on an international vacation, etc. Guess I would rather put that money elsewhere.

15

Hey Slowtwitch, I’m looking for a coach for the 2010 season and am unsure exactly what to look for. For the most part I’ve been self coached throughout my triathlon career and have decided it’s time to see what working with someone can do for my fitness. After looking at different coaching packages on various websites, there are many thing that I am unsure of, for instance:

  • How important is unlimited e-mail and phone vs limited contact?
  • Do I need a ‘complete’ coach who will help me with nutrition and emotional support on top of workouts ?
  • Is it better to have a coach who lives locally that I can meet in person or can I accomplish all I need to through e-mail?

In addition to those questions, what else is important to consider?

cheers
My first advice on anyone that is thinking of getting a coach, is are you at the point where you can no longer progress further towards your goals without one? What I mean is, are the plans you are following not getting you any faster, and if so, are you putting 100% into the workouts? If the answer to those two is yes, then you might need a coach. If either of the above are not true, then you don’t need to look any further than a mirror to improve. :wink:

If you need form work on swimming, running, bike fit, etc. then it is absolutely essential that you have a local coach. Even with film, photos, etc. it’s very hard to correct flaws via the internet.

Hand holding, emotional support, that all depends on you and the people around you. There are times when you need a pat on the head from the coach, and other times a kick in the ass. A good coach will know when those are.

Workouts in a box (canned plans) can be good, but I’m always reminded of the tax commercial where the guy gets stuck and his wife says “Talk to the box”, so he turns to the box and says “I’m stuck.” Cracks me up. If the plan happens to fit you well, you’ll get a lot out of it. If not, do you know how to adapt it?

Communication is absolutely essential. In a way, finding a coach is a lot like finding a girl that you like dating. A lot of the same concepts apply. I’d look for someone that listens to what you want, is willing to work with your fitness level and goals, and I would highly recommend unlimited email at the least. If you have a 10 email/month limit, and you get into a discussion on something, you can chew through that limit in a couple days. Phone contact can be good if you aren’t getting something they are trying to say.

And, not all coaches cost major bucks. I know of a couple on the forums here that are in the $150 range that are great coaches, I’m below that, and there are other ones around that are in the $100/month ballpark as well. Just look around and you can probably find a good coach, good fit for not that much $$.

John

16

You have to look at your needs and goals also…Do you have the mental strength to never see your coach and train the majority by yourself?

I used to be coached by local coaches and loved the atmosphere of training with 10 people each session but the actually training itself was halfass.

I joined up with CTS and love every minute of it. I will never see my coach but the training is top notch and the coaches’s education background isn’t matched. I love the feeling that my coach has more than a USAT background.

If you can handle solo training, go online…but if you do, reference these people, look for education. I have see a lot of online coaching programs and some are horrible!

17

I have a coach for a few reasons. The main like JenHS is that I am time constrained and do not have enough time to do research, build a short/long term plan that builds/recover/taper/builds me through the season healthy and injury free. I work 40+hr weeks, and I am a single father. So my workouts are creative and scheduled to fit me. Often times the only time I can ride is at night after my daughter falls asleep and I get to hop on the trainer for a few hours, just to wake up at 630am when she wants breakfast. I am healthy, fit, relaxed and a good father. I swim Friday nights because the Y has daycare from 5pm-7pm, and family swim from 630pm-830pm. So my daughter and I both get to swim, works out well.

I could care less about USAT certifications. All that means is they paid a bit of money and took a test or attended a single day clinic.

18

Make sure the coach has enough time for YOU. If s/he has more than 8 athletes, then you will not get the attention you deserve/pay for.

Eight? Are you coached by someone who coaches 8 athletes? Assuming a 40 hour workweek gives 5 hours/athlete/week. That is way more time than is really needed to plan, communicate and address other challenges as they arise. I coach a few people who are time constrained and sometimes unable to train for 5 hours in a week.

How much do you think this hypothetcal coach’s time is worth? 50/hour, 100/hour? Less or more? To put food on the table for a small family this coach would have to be charging at least 400-500/month/athlete, yielding a max income of 48k before taxes. Low 30’s for take home. Maybe Joe Friel can survive with an 8 athlete cap (and he doesn’t), but not too many others command that kind of coin.

I think it is important to know your limits as a coach and set a hard limit to the # you take on, but 8 seems unreasonably low. Seems like every week there is a thread about how much coaches charge or how they charge too much. Then this kind of post shows up so now people can put the two ideas together and think they should be on an elite squad of 8 athletes AND pay $99 a month. Sheesh! Cut a coach a break.

Dave Luscan
www.endorphinfitness.com

19

I have had two coaches in the past two seasons. one was good for a certain way of training, the other is good for another way of training. Both are good for a certain type of training. It is your job to figure out what type of training you want and need to meet your goals.

  1. It is nice to be able to call your coach and just shoot the poo from time to time but it is not needed if you are focused and can follow the plan. I call mine from time to time but the conversation goes like this,
    “Hello?”
    “hey Coach, Its (insert name). I had a Ques…”
    “Wait!.., Do you smell that?”
    “no, I dont smell anything.”
    “oh, wait. I know that smell. It’s you getting slower and fatter. Get your ass back on treadmill.”
    “yes Sir”
    “Good to talk to you.”
    “Yeah, you too.”

  2. In regards to nutrition and emotional support. You know what you are suppose to eat and what you are supposed to drink. You don’t need someone to tell you that a twinkies and beer are not good for you. As for emotional support, “You are not special, you are not a delicate flower.” what I mean by that is simply, “whatever you feel like someone has it worse and is dealing with more and is doing it with less.”

  3. Its nice to have a coach who has trained and raced in similar conditions but it is not required.

One thing I would consider is if the coach has the know-how to meet your goals. I had a coach who had a great grasp of theory but very little experience in the type of training I needed to meet my goals. My current coach is faster and much more experienced in the type of training I want. Sure, I pay more but quality costs, and you get what you pay for.

20

I think communication is KEY!

You both need to be open minded. Your coach may say to do something. That something may have worked with another athlete and may not work for you…coach needs to know.