I would like to find a private coach as I feel like I'm not getting to my complete potential. I know things about running but I don't feel confident enough to try and coach myself. I'm a junior in HS and I ran a 9:50 3200, a 2:04 800, and a 4:34 1600 off of 20-25 miles per week because my coach is an idiot. Going into senior year I want to make it the best year possible for me. Should I just ask other schools' coaches or try to find one online or what?
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Here is a serious answer:
You are in HS. You have mediocre times. Getting a private coach seems a bit absurd. If you like running enough, research colleges and their running programs. You don't need to go to a big time D1 school to find a good running program.
Mediocre times are 10:30 and 5:00. Anyways, considering the times and mpw, you must have a good amount of talent. Private coaching does sound weird in high school. My best advice to you is to join a track club that works year round. Good coaching will be found there.
Daniels Formula, RTFM
I would venture you've spoken more on this thread to strangers than you have to your coach. Unless you and coach simply can't communicate, I would site down with him and be honest with what your expectations are and where you think your training hasn't given you what you need to progress in your mind. Most coaches will be open about why their training plan is what it is, and possibly he could give you a more intense plan after seeing your desires to improve and run D1.
Hey I coach a few high school athletes in a similar issue as yourself and would not mind helping you out with a training schedule. Just send a email.
definitely find a private coach, op.
young, talented athletes in other sports figured this out a long time ago. for some reason running has this huge hang up about private coaches which is just absurd.
find a coach you trust to have a long-term interest in you and puts your health and enjoyment above immediate results and you can potentially improve a ton.
I did this in another sport and went from a mediocre local guy with no direction to a nationally ranked contender in just a couple of years.
and you're still at an age where coaches will understand the financial situation and help you more for the development aspects with possibly just a nominal fee. once you're an adult you'll be paying out your rear for a good coach (still worth it, though).
I79 wrote:
I would like to find a private coach as I feel like I'm not getting to my complete potential. I know things about running but I don't feel confident enough to try and coach myself. I'm a junior in HS and I ran a 9:50 3200, a 2:04 800, and a 4:34 1600 off of 20-25 miles per week because my coach is an idiot. Going into senior year I want to make it the best year possible for me. Should I just ask other schools' coaches or try to find one online or what?
I was slightly faster at the 1600 but basically the same times as you as a junior off approx the same mileage. Find a coach or read some good books and self coach, especially over the summer.
I did not do more as a senior and I ended up at 2:02/4:23/9:48. I felt like it was no longer possible to get faster on that low of mileage (I do think in ideal races - paced properly - I could have gone 2:00/4:18/9:30). That's as fast as you should expect to go without working more on the aerobic endurance. My teammate (with very similar jr yr times), who was focused on the 3200m, ran about 40-45 mpw and ran 9:09 for 3200m as a senior...
If you hope to run faster, don't waste any time getting started. More mileage might do nothing for you, but if it works there is no reason you couldn't be running 4:15 or faster for 1600m.
Good luck.
you clearly aren't doing much on your own to resolve the issue. 25 mpw? that's like 2-3 days. what are you doing those other 4-5 days? jerking it?
my point: run on your own. run at night, before school, whenever. and if your coach gets mad, so what. you'll get better and he'll be blabbing to the rest of your team about how bad of an example you are.
worst case scenario is that your coach doesn't let you race. if he throws you out, you sue the school district (or just make threats, they give in quickly). start winning road races and shove it in his face.
now of course you must realize that everything i've said is just stupid. talk to your coach. if you let your coach win the argument, then join a running club and find a meet where you can race your teammates and win.
reed wrote:
worst case scenario is that your coach doesn't let you race. if he throws you out, you sue the school district (or just make threats, they give in quickly). start winning road races and shove it in his face.
Yeah! Or grow a beard and sneak into the big meet!
Actually, unless he's thrashing you with too many workouts and races, I don't see what the big deal is. Get the extra miles in on your own. In a lot of programs, coaches are only really involved with the workouts, and athletes are responsible for getting the rest of their miles in on their own.
And buy the running books (Daniels' for sure), read the epic threads on Letsrun, and keep a good running log. Regardless of whether you end up getting a private coach, as a serious runner, you should be a student of the sport.
Mark Hadley
Sorry, website is actually: http://www.mprunning.com/
What state are you in? What are your basic goals for next year?
@steve I live in PA so I'm trying to stand out more as there's a lot of good runners around me. I would like to get down to 4:20 or better and 9:30 or better...and maybe 2:00...in the 5k I would like to get down to 15:40s
Post your email. What is your 400 (relay or open) PR? What is your best 5K from cross country?
My E-Mail is runnerxc@yahoo.com. Ran a 53 high split in the 4x4 mid-season and haven't run it since. 5K PR is 16:32 on a moderately hilly course.
I just posted the above message on my computer, originally posted on my iPhone.
As others have mentioned, you should start with talking to your coach. The worst thing you could do is start doing two different training programs at the same time. That will just lead to over training and injury. If your coach is okay with getting a private coach or is one of those coaches who just does it for a stipend during his other sports off season, he probably won't even care. Just be open with him. Also, when looking for a coach, you should look for a coach who understands the training in your area. Especially in the south, you can't just throw out any summer training plan in the heat. Also, make sure you have a coach that gives you reasonable goals to work towards and isn't just a yes man.
go speak with your coach tell him you want to train harder and you feel that you feel that you need a higher mileage training program to achieve your goals... if he is open to it, find a training program that you can follow. Daniels would be best if your coach doesn't know what he's doing... the book has sample weeks of training for distances from 800-5000 which is the distance your training for... if your coach says no and won't go for this you could always try to transfer schools... hope that helps