Why a coach?

I was reminded of one of the benefits of having a coach last night.

Last night training didn't quite got to plan, in so much that it didn't happen at all. I wasn't to bothered about that, but then I got to bed late and so I didn't think I would be much good for training this morning either. I was pretty annoyed with myself. A couple of wasted sessions is what I felt. Really annoying.

However, as I was getting frustrated my wife suggested that I go for a run this morning instead of the training I had planned. Running is very time efficient so it would allow me to get in a good session while also getting a bit more sleep. Wow, what a solution, easy. Frustration dissipated instantly and I felt at ease. Running this morning is exactly what I did.

The link to coaching that I mentioned before was the benefit that came from somebody else making a sensible solution. Rightly or wrongly athletes will often make poor decisions and then beat themselves up over them. They second guess, they doubt and then they get anxious about those second guesses and doubts. We all know that we shouldn't and we all just go ahead and do it anyway. I knew I shouldn't get frustrated about missing training, after all I am not really training for anything anyway, but I couldn't help it. I am kind of wired that way and I suspect many athletes are.

Making that decision making process external was all it took for me to find peace. Once I had somebody else suggestion what I should do I was all good, I could see the sense in it and I relaxed. Now, my wife isn't my coach, but removing anxiety like she did is one of the greatest things a coach can do for an athlete. Sure they are full of knowledge and will direct an athlete in the best way to achieve their goals etc, but they will also help keep that athlete calm and centered and focused. When the athlete has doubts, or second guesses themselves etc the coach is there with firm certainty, "do this now", "do this then", "stop over thinking and just do", "follow the plan". As an athlete I always found that calm purpose very soothing, knowing exactly what I needed to do and when I needed to do it. Simple. No stress, no concerns, no guessing, just follow the program. Easy. It is one of those reasons that I think most athletes chasing a goal will benefit from a coach.

The run went really well by the way. 12km at a steady 4:40min/km. Longest run I have done for a while. Burnt the legs a bit, but very satisfied with it.