I’m a coach myself so I can do all the things a coach does. I can create a training plan, a race plan, a fueling strategy, prescribe strength exercises or stretching or more rest. So why do I have a coach?
My coach is an objective observer. It’s hard for me to step back and see the big picture for myself. I get lost in the daily grind. I do a run, it feels good, I do another, maybe it doesn’t feel good, but I’ve already mostly forgotten about that previous run that felt good and I beat myself up about the one run that didn’t feel good. My coach reminds me that there are many years worth of runs that I’ve already stacked and one bad run isn’t going to topple that tower.
My coach is a source of fresh ideas. Improving as a runner is about embarrassing the body enough to adapt over time. Sometimes your body gets used to the same old routine and stops improving. That’s when it’s time to introduce a new stimulus that your body hasn’t seen before. Maybe that’s longer intervals, cross-training, more vert, or heat training. My coach knows me (sometimes better than I know myself) and can find that new special way to challenge my body to adapt.
My coach helps me be patient. It takes time to be a good runner. Improvement happens over months and years, not days. My coach reminds me that pushing for results won’t make them come faster. My coach also holds me back when I’m injured. I tend to want to push through pain, but my coach is there every day filling that void of insecurity with hope and confidence that I’ll come back stronger than before.
My coach believes in me. Sometimes self-belief isn’t enough and I need someone in my life that holds belief in me no matter what. There are tough times when races don’t go well or I’m injured or life just sucks. It’s in times like these that my coach is there to lift me up out of those dark places and remind me of who I am and why I do what I do and that I’m amazing.
I’ve been with my current coach for over 3 years now and I couldn’t ask for a better one. Thank you Chris.