Why you need a running coach and how do you know when the right time is to invest in one?
I absolutely believe that you don’t have to be a professional runner to hire a personal running coach and for many of the women I work with, it’s the first time they have made that commitment.
It doesn’t matter what step or stage you are at in your ultra-running journey. How beginner or experienced you think you are. If you have big goals you want to achieve, you should know that they are valid, and you deserve to be supported. Period.
But you don’t have to have one all the time. There might be times in your life when having that level of 1:1 support doesn’t make sense. And for those times, there are some perfectly good online training plans out there.
I see you; you’re thinking but Hannah, working with an online running coach seems like a privilege reserved for elite runners and a luxury for us ‘real’ runners who consider running as ‘just’ a hobby. Am I right?!
Wrong. Running is a part of who are you. I know first-hand fundamentally how important it is for you to have the head space and remind yourself how far you’ve come so you can be a better wife, mother, friend when you walk back through the door after your run.
Did you ever watch ‘Stars in Their Eyes’? ‘Tonight, Matthew I’m going to be…’? If you don’t know what I’m talking about it was a British television series, where an ordinary member of the public would walk out a set of doors and return moments later only to be transformed into their favourite showbiz star to sing their favourite song.
Who are you going to be when you walk back through your front door after a run?
You absolutely can still achieve your ultra-running goals without a personal running coach but having the support of someone who has been exactly where you are right now is invaluable. If you want to avoid making some of the common pitfalls and fast track your chances of success.
Because I was once exactly where you are right now.
Let me tell you a story.
In 2014 I stood on the start line of my first ultra-marathon, Race to the Stones. A 100km iconic route across the famed Ridgeway, one of the oldest footpaths in Great Britain.
I was part of a women’s only ultra-team. We were a group of 10 ordinary women, who were collectively taking on something bigger than anything we’d ever done before. We were becoming a part of something extraordinary.
2014 was going to be my year.
The truth is, back then, I felt like I had no business standing on that start line. I made a boatload of mistakes (cue the broken wrist weeks out from my race) getting there and I certainly didn’t feel very much like a runner. It will come as no surprise to tell you I didn’t have a running coach. I’m not even sure I knew what a running coach was or how I should find one.
I remember spending hours online wading through blog posts, trying to make sense of what it is I ‘should’ be doing and instead came away feeling so overwhelmed with the information out there, that I was ‘paralysed’.
Sure, I crossed the finished line, but it really wasn’t the race I was hoping for.
The following year I found myself at the start line of my first 100-mile event with Centurion Running – Thames Path 100. Chosen for its flattish course, good reputation and easy starting point which was just a couple of miles from my front door. What could go wrong?
I needed help; I couldn’t keep trying to figure this out on my own. But I didn’t have the ‘spare’ cash to invest in a personal running coach. I was working a graduate Buying job in the running industry on an entry level salary and paying a London rent.
And so, I enlisted to support of a friend who agreed to mentor me on my journey to my first 100 miler. The year prior I had spent a weekend getting lost on Snowdon and crewing for his double Ironman distance triathlon. One of the many reasons why I love the ultra-running community. I crossed the finish line of Thames Path 100 in 22:33:43 and came away with 5th lady.
Having this level support on the journey to my first 100 miler was a game changer, even if it wasn’t personalised 1:1 run coaching.
Each year that passed brought around new and exciting challenges but the turning point for me was in 2017 when I found myself at the top of a 3,000m mountain pass on the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa course. I took a fall in a mountain race coming off the summit. The outcome; a ruptured ligament, some broken bone, and a bruised ego.
I was reaching crunch point; I had my sights set on these incredible races, but I needed some serious help. It was destroying my own confidence and physically my body couldn’t take it anymore
The following year, I hired my first running coach to help me on my journey to one of the driest nonpolar regions on earth, The Atacama Desert. It was my first multi-stage event (RacingThePlanet Atacama Crossing) and I had 250km ahead of me with everything I needed to survive for the next 7 days on my back.
This event completely changed my life and gave me so much belief in what my mind and body were truly capable of.
As a running coach myself, I’ve had my fair share of coaches and it’s taken me a long time before I’ve finally found someone who understands me and my goals.
I’ve been working with Stefanie for 12 months now through Lift, Run, Perform and I’m excited to step foot on the start line of Lakeland 100 in the summer yet again knowing that Stefanie will be rooting for me from across the pond every step of the way.
So how do you know when the right time is to invest in a running coach?
You have a goal but don’t know how to get from A to B
So, you’ve finally hit ‘enter’ on that ultra, that’s awesome but now what. Setting yourself a big crazy goal can be incredibly motivating but if it’s so far away it can feel daunting to make the transition to where you are right now to where you want to be.
We’ll work together to break down your big goal into smaller chunks (or checkpoints) that are realistic and set you some lovely milestones along the way to keep you feeling motivated and encouraged to keep taking those tiny steps forward each day.
You keep getting injured
Constant injuries or niggles is a sign that something isn’t quite right with your current training schedule, this was a big one for me. Maybe you’ve gotten into the habit of running your easy runs too hard and hard runs too easy? Or guilty of skipping that strength training session you know you really need to be doing right now.
We’ll drill down on what exercises you should be focusing on to make it specific for your event, where you should be including it in your training schedule and most importantly how to make it a routine.
Your training feels like its plateaued
You’re putting in the hours, but you don’t feel like you are making the progress you know you deserve to do. One of the big mistakes I see runners make here is running every run at the same pace, it’s likely that you just need to change things up a bit.
We’ll work together on helping you feel unstuck and give you some structure to your training so you can maximise the time you have available and set you up for ultra-success.
You’re struggling to stay consistent
There are weeks when you hit every training session without fail and then there are weeks when your Garmin starts gathering dust because you’ve fallen off the waggon and don’t know how to pick things back up again.
We’ll make sure your training always has the ‘Goldilocks effect’, it’s hard enough feel a little bit stretchy and bring you outside your comfort zone but easy enough to juggle around work, family commitments and feels manageable.
I’d love to know are you currently working with a running coach? If not, what’s holding you back from making the leap? Let me know in the comments or drop me a message on social media.
1:1 Run Coaching
Hi, I'm Hannah! The women's ultra running coach, helping you cross the finish line of your first ultra, find your confidence & balance training around the daily juggle.
I get huge joy out of helping you see past your own limitations and making the impossible possible.
Coaching with me is so much more than just a training plan and if you’ve got a big crazy goal lined up I would love to chat with you about making this your reality.