In my last post I described how I am designing my own Ironman training plan based on the principles put forth in Joe Friel's book, Fast After 50. I am ten weeks along, and very pleased with the result. It is still very much a work in progress. I have not polished up the final few weeks -- what Friel calls the peak and race periods -- and am just getting started turning place-holder swim workouts into something more specific.
The most significant improvement has been fatigue. The number one takeaway from Friel's book is that senior athletes need more time to recover from hard workouts. The corollary is, the older you are, the more this will be true. Since I am twenty years older than the age targeted in the book's title we can assume that recovery is an issue for me, and it is. I find that by following Friel's advice I do not struggle to get through the day, or feel the need to take a day off. This is important because consistency pays. Working too hard and taking time off due to fatigue and breakdowns produces less improvement and a greater risk of overuse injury than sticking with a well designed plan.
Which brings me to the title of this post. I have decided to try my hand at coaching. Naturally this has unleashed a host of daemons. Am I qualified? Do I have enough experience? What if nobody signs up? You know the ones. Would it have been easier if someone asked me to coach them first? Perhaps. But then I would have stumbled into a new role without giving it much thought, and that would not be fair to the client. Even now I must stress that I will be learning as we go, but when is that never true?
When I started to take this idea seriously I saw it as a way to supplement my retirement income, when I ever get around to retiring. As the plan came into focus I realized that I am a long way from making significant money as a coach. So, as it turns out, the timing is good. I still have a full time job and can focus on improving my coaching skills without relying on financial success.
One piece of good news on the financial front, I managed to reach this point without spending any money. Many years ago I had a project aimed at implementing computers in education. Many, many years ago, when laptops weighed ten pounds, cost thousands of dollars, and had a battery life of maybe an hour. Long before there was Google Docs or anything like it. When I began, my ideas were so revolutionary people thought I was a dreamer. If they were being polite. As time passed the world caught up and passed me by. I still had my old website, so I tore it down and repurposed it in support of my new coaching endeavor. I already had a social media presence, began when I took on the challenge of racing Ironman 70.3 Hawaii, a.k.a. Honu, and I decided to stick with it. Let's face it, Dunn Coaching does not send a good message, right? So, Winds of Hawi it is. Please give the website a look. And please keep in mind that I am just getting started. The foundation is there, most of the framing is done, the roof is on, but there is still much to be done.
At this time I have no plans to do what the established triathlon training programs around town do. No group training. No brick-and-mortar storefront. There is a place for that. It is my belief that there are other athletes like me, who prefer to train alone but could do better with a little help. I also intend to minimize in-person sessions. This makes good sense given the COVID-19 situation, but even after things get back to normal I believe an on-line relationship can be effective and less expensive. One advantage I have is that I live, train, and race in Hawaii. This should be an advantage to local athletes.
In a future post I want to share what I have been doing with regards to swimming. With pools closed the only option has been the ocean, and I in the process of adapting Total Immersion training to open water.
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