Why Hire a Running Coach?

08 Dec Why Hire a Running Coach?

Running is increasingly becoming one of America’s most popular sports. From 1990-2013, the number of runners who completed races grew an amazing 300% reaching an all time high in 2013 and keeping steady with 8.3 million people finishing 5K’s in 2014. This is probably because running is one of the easiest sports to get into, and the only equipment you really need is a good pair of shoes and a flat surface.

With the growth in popularity has come a growth in the number of resources available to runners. It’s very easy to go online or the Itunes App store and download a training plan, but it’s often difficult to find one of these plans that fits your fitness level or goals. In our opinion, working with a human being is much better than working with a robot, and having a training plan tailored to your needs is much better than trying to fit yourself into those cookie cutter plans.Thus, we’ve put together a few reasons why you might want to consider hiring a running coach to help you train for your next race.

Set goals
There’s more to training than just lacing up and getting out there. There’s a lot of planning that goes into a successful training regiment. By creating a tailored training schedule suited to your individual goals and fitness level, a running coach can help you meet your goals whether you’re running your umpteenth marathon or your first 5K. A coach can take the guesswork out of training and help you set realistic goals suited to your needs. If you get stuck or can’t seem to get over a plateau, a coach can help you revise your training plan so that you start seeing results again.

Form
Have you ever given thought to how you run? Do you land on your tip toes, heels, or the midfoot? Are you pounding your feet into the ground or are you keeping your steps light? If you’re not using a proper running form then you’re not only slowing yourself down but you’re also setting yourself up for injuries. A running coach can show you what a proper running form looks like and can evaluate and correct you if you’re not aware of your own form.

Consistency
The key to running and any other physical activity is consistency. Running is a long term sport and new runners often get discouraged when they don’t see the results they want within a few weeks. A running coach can provide you with motivation for those times you feel down or frustrated with your progress and accountability for those time you just feel lazy. It happens to the best of us. They can also let you know if what you’re doing is working and can improve your confidence for races by being your biggest cheerleader. Your coach will want to see you achieve your goals just as much as you do.

Help prevent injury
Running is a high impact sport, and it’s estimated that nearly 70% of runners will become injured. For this reason, it’s very important that you incorporate injury prevention techniques into your training regiment. We’ve already mentioned that a running coach will help you improve your form, but there are a lot of other things a coach can teach to to help prevent injuries. A coach can teach you how to properly warm up and cool down with drills and other activities. A coach can also give advice on what type of shoe to buy, give nutrition guidance, help with race day prep. He/she can also help you adjust your training regiment and show you activities to help you recover from injuries if they occur.

If you’re interested in hiring a running coach, click here for more information about our coaching services or call us at 662-282-4949.