Building Trust.

One major problem many athletes face is trusting a coach – one who they are willing to grow a relationship with, in order to then, in turn, get even better individual coaching.  There are many examples for why athletes don’t trust their coaches – and by trust I mean opening up, sharing, providing the insight needed in order for the coach to have a real opportunity to effectively….coach.  As many of my athletes have heard me say:  A good coach ‘coaches’ the person, and only ‘trains’ them for their event.  There is a big difference between coaching and training.

There is a persistent image out there that having a coach will lead to instant success (gratification).  This is simply not true.  In order to effectively reach your potential, it takes time.  Any coach that promises quick success or that has quick results (making it look easy) eventually fades away.  Since we all know that coaching is about your ability to train effectively enough to stimulate the appropriate adaptation.  The appropriate adaptation takes time in learning who you are, what is the appropriate adaptation for you…and through time and training – seeing if the adaptation is taking place.

There are plenty of success stories in coaching, all sports, where one would quickly point to great coaching for the athlete to have such quick success.  Well, again, the change in approach and coaches might have stimulated the appropriate short term adaptation.  But unless that coach can repeat success with you for many seasons (progress), then it was just that: ” a change in scenery”.

Here are some questions to ask yourself about how to better trust your coach in order to build that successful relationship as well as provide your coach with the ‘color’ and insight needed to bring forth the appropriate adaptation via your training plan.  How to analyze them in order for you to extend that trust?

1) What would their motivation be to not have a good result with coaching me?

If you can think of any reason why your coach would not want the best possible result from you, to help you achieve all your goals, then that is a big red flag.  Other athletes more important?  Not on board with your goals?  Plans?  Understand why.  Then communicate that without this trust, it’s hard to provide the insight that he/she needs for your successful training plan and coaching.

2) What risks are you taking in trusting your coach?

Extending trust makes you vulnerable.  Vulnerability is not a bad thing however.  In most coaching cases, vulnerability is necessary in order to achieve what you want or need to succeed.  Having your coach understand you, what makes you tick, what you care about, and how much your goals mean to you is a good thing.  Now it is on your coach to help you achieve them – with you.

3) What are the possible outcomes from this coaching relationship?

Your trust is a valuable thing, so treat it like that.  If you are completely trusting in your coaching relationship and not getting the individualized return, then you may want to reconsider the relationship.  Your coaching relationship, along with your trust, should yield a return called success.

4) How credible is the Coach I am trusting?

Credibility is key in any coaching relationship.  Know your coach, their story, their approach.  If you don’t, ask…since you want to be cautious with that trust you are extending.  It also takes energy switching coaches, re-starting, and rebuilding a good coaching relationship, so do the necessary prep work prior to diving in too far.

5) How accountable is your coach?

Accountable people always follow through on their commitments.  If problems arise – they figure out a new path – approach.  It is really that simple.  Accountable coaches are also quite busy with athletes: they are in demand – since accountable people are easy to work with.  Be certain your coach carries accountability and takes ownership of YOUR results.  *Disclaimer* – if you are not following the plan that the coach is giving you – then this point is mute.

Building a trusting relationship with your coach is a key ingredient in your success.  You put a lot of time and energy into your training, racing and gear.  All of this can be tempered by a coaching relationship that is not really ‘coaching’, instead only training for events….

Another good week of input and observations. As some of you have been doing, send me questions or topics you might want to see addressed in the Word.

This week a topic that is a constant in the coaching profession, but my communicating this to you, the athlete, hopefully makes a difference for some of you.

Coaching has become lost in all the technology from today. With all the gadgets out there – from Garmin to Powermeters, to swimming watches, the ability to LOG information is easy, but that is not very important for coaching. As a coach, I don’t care that you ran a certain pace, averaged a certain mph or even swam on a certain interval. As any good coach will tell you – THAT is all noise. Tell me how it felt, what you observed, what you learned, how it went relative to last time you did this set. Tell me abut your breathing, your mechanics, your form & feel, your technique. Tell me how hard that running pace felt vs. what the running pace was. Tell me what cadence you rode up that hill, and how confortable you were on your bike vs. how quickly you did it. Tell me that your distance per stroke feels better or that you had a great feel for the water today while holding a certain sendoff – tell me it felt light, fast, effortless. Don’t tell that you rode today’s ride 3 minutes faster than 2 weeks ago, or that your run turnaround was 100 ft further, or that you got the swim workout completed in 1:15 instead of 1:20.

Being coached is not an excuse to be lazy. Sure, its nice not thinking about what the training is, but you DO need to pay attention once you ARE doing the workout. Being coached is a responsibility to communicate effectively with your coach. If you can’t explain your sensations, then you are ‘uncoachable’. It doesn’t mean you can’t still have a great result, but it is not truly being coached: its being told what to do and I am willing to argue that you can’t reach your full potential…No Garmin or Powermeter or swimwatch will help you with that. Strava, TrainingPeaks, heck, a training binder…All won’t help if you reach that potential if you are just recording data vs. observations.

Coaching is already difficult enough. Many of you might roll your eyes – but it is a profession that is a lose/lose equation. If you, the athlete does well, it was your hard work, tenacity and grit. If the athlete does not perform, it is the coach’s fault.

I go through athletes every month, throughout the year, that quit coaching because they upload huge amounts of data into the logs, whether TrainingPeaks, Workoutlog or even Strava – but yet do not write more than 3 words when describing the workout. As soon as I hold them accountable, ask them for more color to their data, they balk. “But I uploaded all the data and interval times and and and”…..Dont tell me WHAT you did – tell me how it felt!

I wrote the workout – I don’t really need to know THAT you did it (its your finish line, you ought to be doing the training…otherwise you are overpaying for coaching) or how fast you did it (usually not a good thing that you did it faster) or what you did for the intervals (again – I wrote the workout)…tell me how it FELT, what you observed, why you think you felt good, what felt different week over week…

Don’t get me wrong: there is a need for data. There is a time for data. But those field tests, race simulations or key workouts all mean very little without the continuous color the athlete provides along the way OR during/after that key workout. Great, your field test shows you held higher watts on the bike: but if that was at a 53 cadence, and a ridiculous cost, is it really an improvement? Was that mile repeat faster but with flailing form and smoked legs for the next 3-5 days? Everything is relative, but your color paints a better picture of what is going.

Athletes seem to think Coaches can just read minds on how the athlete is feeling. The coaching profession is based upon false expectations that we are sitting on a sideline, pool deck or riding alongside your activity. That is what we all know from watching TV or how we grew up with a coaching understanding. But the rates for that are a wee bit higher…

I know this sounds like a rant in what I need as the coach. “Make it work coach, that is what we pay you for”. But that is not coaching: that is called giving you a plan that a coach feels MIGHT work well for you and hoping for the best. Sure – you can validate this with testing and races along the way – but then how does the plan progress? Or – how does this plan work if the athlete cannot fulfill the plan as written? Or, more importantly, would you not like to hold your coach accountable for the information provided? If you have not only provided data AND color, then what can a coach do with your potential?

Have a great week logging workouts!

Re-engaging.

Often we overlook a very valuable training method called re-engaging. What is re-engaging? It is puling back from the current effort, speed, pace in order to re-engage with the body in a clean, efficient, effective motion focused on good technique. Once we feel the proper technique and form, we gradually dial up the speed, pace, cadence again in order to return to the effort we were previously holding. The key though is that we are now doing it more efficiently, relaxed and usually faster!

Re-engaging take practice and patience. The ability to smoothly correct your form or technique, or to activate a certain muscle groups is not easily done. Therefore it takes practice in order to transition gradually from pace to form back to pace. It also requires a lot of patience. Why? Because you are giving up speed, pace, momentum now in order for you to have more of it later in your workout. You are giving up speed & pace now in order to swim, ride or run more effectively later on down the road (pool). This takes patience and practice.

Lastly, know that this is extremely effective for racing. In racing we often need to re-engage in different ways, but also with technique, form and efficiency. Investing in a slow down at mile 5 on the run in order to run the remainder of the race faster, cleaner and more efficiently is worth practicing and understanding re-engaging. Slowing down in order to drink or eat something more effectively (absorbing) and then re-engaging to the pace/effort carries obvious enormous benefits. Backing off the power on the bike to ensure you are in a relaxed, efficient and maintainable aero position is vital to having not only a good bike split, but being prepared for a solid run.

Re-engaging. It’s a choice you make to invest in your finish line, not your current speed, effort or placing. Practice it and realize you actually give up nothing in speed or pace come the end of your workout or the finish line.

Wow – I received a lot of topics this last week from all of you – good ones. Let’s not waste words or time. This week in the Word:

1) Work Travel and how to adjust training
2) Running after swimming
3) Fast vs. Hard

Many of us travel for work. Whether weekly or the occasional bigger trip, it always disrupts training plans as well as routines. And, as a dad, lets not overlook those days where life, kids or responsibilities just got in the way. It feels awful – but these days happen. We all have it in our mind how we want the travel days to go, but then things go completely sideways. Meetings take longer, meals are not ideal for training, or even the travel itself left us with no opportunity to train. Bottom line is that it is stressful, we get frustrated and short tempered. I know, been there, lived it and still do. What to do?
1) We go back to the first rule of training: a little something every day. If that is 30 minutes – great. If that is 20 minutes, ok. The point is to get something in to exhale – to let the legs stretch themselves. 20 minutes is enough to stimulate enough, fire all the neuromuscular signals and loosen up the joints & more. This does not mean hard, it means a ‘go on feel’, relaxing, exhale window of exercise.
2) That 20 minutes has also passed? Relax – nothing to do. Can’t get back past time: instead – drink some water – eat well, go to bed earlier – get a good nights sleep and train the next day. NOT making up what was on the plan the previous day: jump right back into the proper schedule. I tell many of my clients: When on the road it is a great time to catch up on sleep, relax, not overthink the training. We do THAT plenty at home in the routine. Sleep and good nutrition on the road can make a huge difference. Again – what am I doing today to help prepare me for the best possible string of upcoming workouts? In this case it might just be rest, sleep and good nutrition.
3) Overworked AND on a trip AND no training? If you can’t do anything and you are working crazy hours (or your child is sick and at home all day with you…) please relax. THIS is why we train year round. THIS is why we are fit and focused year round. THIS is why I push you to remain with the training when life is more flexible. We can always catch up to the fitness. Now just focus on getting though this stretch. You have all heard me say: the training and sport should not be an additional stressor in our already busy lives. Instead, push through this time, know that we’ll get fit and focused soon again, and relax to a point where you can focus on the work or challenges in the NOW, vs. also stressing about the missed training. AIMP has always meant outstanding fitness. With outstanding fitness comes the ability to withstand these curveballs that life’s schedule throws at you.
Bottom line here is to choose your battles with life’s schedule carefully: we all have gone pro in something other than triathlon. So, choose your windows of opportunity well. Send me an email when things are too tight, but ALSO send me that email when things open up a bit to add some training load….stress-free, relaxed and in focused, good spirits! Then you’ll really absorb the training….as well as be ready for another trip!

Many wonder why I am such a fan of runs post swimming. Swimming is a full body exercise that requires not only muscular power throughout, but hypoxic power (limited, timed breathing). Combining these two makes swimming one of the best workouts there is. Even better is that swimming is in water which has limited wear and tear on the legs (unless you are doing something totally crazy) and also most of the body. The principle here is that 3-4k into your swimming, 1-1.5 hrs into your training, you have spared you legs but are still equally fatigued, maybe even more. So add a 60-90 min run post a swim (5-10 minutes after) and you have a similar effect on the energy systems of your body like a 2-3+ hr workout without the pounding on pavement for all of it. For ex. a 1:15 swim and then a 90 min run with some speed built in, translates closely to 2.5 hr-3 hr run but without losing form and focus that last hour where we are often just slugging away to get in ‘volume’ or the distance. The goal? further into your training adaptation with less wear & tear on your body. You can remain focused on technique and footwork but feel equally tired. Bingo.

Finally – there is always some confusion with my terms FAST vs. HARD. When we increase our pace or effort, too often we lose technique, tighten up and force it. Going fast means we are relaxed, powerful, on top of our technique and in complete control of the effort we are putting forth. Hard means forced effort, no rhythm, bad form, and also not absorbing the work! The challenge of interval training is the gradual yet intentional movement in and out of the designated effort…Forcing ourselves into a number, pace or speed no only limits potential, it’s also a waste of time. Next time – when you are doing an interval – observe how relaxed you are, how ‘in control’ your motions are, how well you are breathing, how in-synch you are with your bodies signals and movements…THAT is fast…not hard…Let’s take the word hard (negative) out of the vocabulary for training. Fast = positive.

Have a great week!

Weekly Word – 3/1

I read a really good quote this week:….”it’s not the daily increase but the daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential”…. Bruce Lee.

I really think this applies really well to our training. Many of you like to add training time, or insert some extra disciplines (TRX, Core, Pilates, Yoga, etc.) and while it looks good on paper, are we sure this is the best use of your limited time? Smarter training is all about doing the training to the best of your ability, and then allowing your body and mind to recover properly for the next workout. Adding other activities surely limit your recovery, most often sleep, and other stresses come up (workload, family, social life, personal life). So we need to make real smart choices: what is the best use of my limited training time? And – often more importantly: is this extra activity necessary for maintaining a good balance with my training and the rest of my daily life? For me? I know Yoga and more strength training would be helpful – actually beneficial, but given my time and my daily commitments to other things in my life, I can’t make it work. Sure – could I run around constantly trying to fit something in? Yes. But then my stress levels and anxiety increase elsewhere: my time with family, coaching and social life becomes compromised with mediocracy. “Its not the daily increase, but the daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential”.

Why am I bringing up a ‘deep’ topic like this? Because many of you voice your concerns on how to get it all in. Yet I read in your logs and hear in other ways how much other stuff you are adding into your training life. Part of being a serious athlete is knowing how to tune out the noise and distractions and focus on a given task (the workouts) really well. If you do all the training – and only the training, as prescribed – you will be fit and prepared for your best performance. Start adding to the mix – and not only will I not know how to balance your training load effectively, but your training performance will begin to suffer. If you think you are on of those people that CAN fit it ALL in, then it is usually too late: something is being compromised, you just don’t know it yet.

Train smarter – not more. Many of you know the big training weeks still lie ahead, so your additions and extras now burn into valuable family, work, and social goodwill balances. Invest now, in order to ask for the extra time when we need it. It’s coming, don’t burn through that balance in March!

“It’s not the daily increase but the daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential” – the best part I hear at training camps – and I heard again in Tucson a few weeks ago – is that athletes love the training without any distractions and just the single focus of training during the camp. This CAN be replicated at home – mainly because we don’t train those hours at home like at a training camp – but also by planning and thinking through how we want to execute the workouts. Come into the workouts prepared, with a good, positive mindset, and nail ’em. Then – quickly take care of your post training routine and re-integrate into your daily life. Embrace the training/life balance. But then also be fair to yourself to not fill it with too much extra ‘noise’ and ‘stuff’.

If you are just too busy to make it work, then we need to re-position, realign your goals. As you have heard me say before – that is totally fine, let’s have realistic goals and ones that are achievable in your current life scenario. One thing I am looking to avoid with ALL of you: pro, elite, beginner, runner only, swimmers, ultra runners…it is slogging through training to just get to the start line, and then, even worse, finish feeling awful, flat, depleted and unhappy. This is a choice, a lifestyle and it should excite you and keep you motivated. You ALL sacrifice too much to not get the enjoyment from this that you deserve!

Have a great week!

FYI- testing – if its been 3 months since your last test, then it’s time to schedule again.