Three (or four) reasons I’m hiring a running coach (again)

Two weeks ago I mentioned that I had signed up for the 2018 New Jersey Marathon. It’s Sunday, April 29^th. Although that is still almost 34 weeks away, it’s not too early to start some training (and between now and then I will include in the blog a little of what I’m doing to prepare in case you want to join me in this next challenge).

I actually started preparing months ago. Most importantly, I had to be healthy. Some first steps included making sure I had core strength to support the increased effort, had developed a consistent warm-up and post run stretching routine to minimize risk of injury, and finally, was consistently running 20 miles or more a week (note the repetition of the word “consistent”).

So I’m healthy, feel fairly strong, and have developed good habits that will support my goal. I am now going to start another macrocycle to build on that with a small race goal of a fast 5k in mid December. If you need to brush up on training cycles, read this post (Fall Training) from a year ago, which also talks about post-Labor Day/Back to School being a great time to start a new cycle.

Now I have a choice. I can train myself or hire a coach. I trained myself to more than half of my 7 marathon finishes, including my 2^nd and 3^rd fastest. Did coaching make a difference in the fastest time? Probably. Although I learned a lot from my coach and I learned some from becoming a certified running coach myself since then. So yeah, I could coach myself.

I wouldn’t be much of a coach if I didn’t promote the benefits of having a coach now though, would I? Honestly, the only reason why I wouldn’t work with a coach is cost. The running coaches I researched charge a monthly fee ranging from $50 to $175. That might be cost-prohibitive for some. For me, the higher end of that scale certainly is, and the lower end will require a realignment of some small financial priorities and perhaps a few less trips to Starbucks.

In my opinion, the benefits of having a coach* far outweigh small sacrifices that might need to be made if you are serious about achieving a goal and that goal is very important and meaningful to you. These are the reasons I am hiring a running coach:

1. Training plan. A coach will put together the weekly or monthly training plan. Having this task taken care of, I have found, elevates stress and allows me to better manage everything else I have going on.
2. Reality checks and feedback. A coach will analyze my current fitness level and past performance to confirm my goal is realistic. They are also someone I can speak with and work through any issues I may experience during training.
3. Accountability. While I can usually be very disciplined and focused when I have clear goals, knowing that a coach is going to have an eye on what I’m doing, keeps me honest. Plus the monthly financial investment makes me even more accountable to myself.

So once I did my research including talking to some runners who could provide testimonials or warnings, I got together with the one I thought I was most likely to hire. I wanted to make sure we clicked. We did. He invited me to the track workouts he coaches. And that’s where I came up with the fourth reason I’m hiring a coach:

4. Motivation. I get to the track thinking that 4×800 would be a good workout and the coach announces the planned workout is 3×1600. I start out with his other runners and a plan to do 2, not 3. The coach even suggested that. But by the time I completed 2, I was pushed by the other runners. Motivated by competition. Peer pressure. Sure I could get that from a simple group workout, but a coached group more so.

This week I’m focusing on my 40^th Half Marathon scheduled for Sunday (September 10). Training has been slow and steady. 12 weeks of 20 miles or more. Three 12 milers and a bunch of 10 milers for endurance, several 5k and 10k races thrown in for speed, and I’m ready to run an evenly paced race with a goal of finishing strong and healthy. My race time will serve as a benchmark for training moving forward.

Moving forward means continuing to participate in the weekly speed session and officially begin coaching at the beginning of November; six months out.  I run 4 days a week. For me, high mileage and consecutive workouts simply don’t work. To make up for some of the mileage, I add cross-training like swimming and hiking whenever I can.  So here’s to healthy marathon training and achieving our goals. Happy September.

Glen Rock High School. Glen Rock, New Jersey. August 2017

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* The benefits of having a life/career/transitional coach are a little different. For more information, read this post: Six things I achieved by having a life coach.