Could I Benefit From a Running Coach?

By: Tyler Woodard
Read Time: ~10 mins

The short answer is yes. Yes, you can benefit from a running coach.

The long answer? Well, it’s a little more involved. I’m not saying you can’t benefit without a running coach. What I am saying is that with the help of a running coach you can reach goals that you may have thought were never possible. In fact, there are a number of successful runners out there without a coach. Take Jim Wamsley for example, an American Elite Ultra-marathoner and Olympic trials qualifier. He has no coach and is one of the nation’s best distance runners. On the other hand is Eliud Kipchoge, the sub-2-hour marathoner and current world record marathon holder. He is coached and the benefit of having one shows in his results.

What Are Your Limits?
This is often hard to discover on your own. We think there is no way I can run faster, push harder, go longer than what I have already achieved with my running. With coaching, you can expect to be pushed to your limits and beyond. You’ll get there with commitment, motivation, and accountability. To reach these limits you'll need to put in the work; and, these limits are reached with the help of effort days, such as hill repeats, and a personalized training plan. Often times we push ourselves when we have someone to help get us there.

Accountability
Perhaps the number one reason to have a coach is accountability. It’s easy to take the morning off when it’s cold, wet, and/or rainy. It’s easy to hit snooze on the alarm clock and say you’ll get it in later. Coaches are great for telling you when to take a day off. Rest is very important and having your coach tell you that is a good thing! A coach, even a good running partner, can help you overcome these tendencies. After all, this is one thing I love about a good coach, they are willing to help you develop good habits that you can take with you once they are done coaching you. Habits that can and will last a lifetime.

Personal Records
A personal record aka PR is when you, the runner, set your new best time for whatever distance it is you are racing. Whether it be a mile, 5K, 10K, 15K, 13.1(half marathon), and/or 26.2(full marathon). The great thing about a PR…it’s yours! It is your very own best time and no one can take that from you.

We have coached a number of individuals to new personal records. What is great about these runner’s achievements is that almost all of them did not believe they had a PR in them. Many of them thought they had already run their fastest times.

Here are just a few examples of some of our athletes that have PR’ed.

Amanda Haley - 23:01 5K PR
Amber Nixon - 48:25 10K PR
Anna Bartlett - 20:38 5K PR
Angie Pham - 1:37:28 13.1 PR
Ben Clarke - 5:28 Mile PR, 18:42 5K PR, 43:41 10K PR, 1:36:30 13.1 PR
Daniel Niell - 4:58 Mile PR
Erin Goode - 22:58 5K PR, 50:09 10K PR
Jim Speer - 2:57:27 13.1 PR, 6:32:43 26.2 PR
Joanna Isbell - 30:13 5K PR
Jonathan Horsely - 1:38:02 13.1 PR
Michele Parsons - 28:10 5K PR
Parker Ferguson - 19:20 5K PR
Parks Turner - 4:58 Mile PR

Living Proof
Here is what some of our athletes have learned through the benefits of having a coach.

Ben Clarke says this of the benefits of having a coach. "Coaching with Tyler has been an integral piece of breaking past the mental limitations that I had placed on myself in order to see what I was capable of. Even the very simple instructions like not looking at my watch during track intervals in order to really learn how paces feel have been tremendously beneficial and I'm not done speeding up yet! I learned how to lead with speed instead of just drafting off the shoulders of someone else and the mental grit and fortitude that builds will serve so well in future racing."

Amber Nixon on her most recent 10K PR “They pushed me hard. They pushed me within the limits they’d learned I could handle. They do that... they care that much. They learn YOU. They give little pieces of their selves in each run. Little nuggets of wisdom, faith, and build a friendship along the way.”

Erin Goode had this to say, “When I pursued being coached by the Woodards I anticipated learning about running form and being introduced to speed work. While both of those things occurred, I gained more from training than I realized existed! I gained the challenge of being pushed/encouraged, invaluable perspective for life on and off the track, and authentic friendships.”

"I just want to say how I have benefited from having a personal coach, it’s more than just being given the basic rules for running and training. It’s a new understanding and appreciation of the sport, the lifestyle, and friendship that you build through the coaching and training process. It continues even when you are out running or training for your next PR or a new distance or in my case when you are setting new goals. The voice of encouragement, the smiles, the laughter will never be forgotten.” He continues, “As a senior runner I will say it took all my coach’s encouragement, their ability to adjust my training to fit my needs. This includes training on hydration, fueling, core strength, even on proper rest. Without this, my dream of running a full marathon would probably still be a dream. When I was on the final leg of the marathon to look and see Tyler and Christin cheering me on as I crossed the finish line, and not forgetting the cheers of my wife as we celebrated my dream coming true. This still brings such a wonderful smile and glow that I will always remember. I will never forget the miles we ran and the miles we will run again.” - Jim Speer on his marathon training and marathon race.

Cost
One question we often get is, “Is it worth it?” YES! It’s both a great financial investment and physical investment! You will learn there are no shortcuts to hard work and endurance running is a process that we coach our runners to trust. “Trust the Process.” This is vital to understand that what you are trying to achieve will not happen overnight!

Christin and I are both RRCA L1 certified running coaches and have extensive knowledge of what it takes to run your best on race day. We work with almost any age from middle school aged and older!

We would love to help you accomplish your goals and the best thing is we keep it affordable! Feel free to contact us for a runner assessment! In this assessment, we’ll cover form basics, proper warm-up, proper stretching, and mechanics.

If you have more questions feel free to email us at, info@solerootsracing.com. We look forward to your next run!