How much does a triathlon coach cost?
Might be a very good question. I mean, how much dare you willing to pay and for what services?
The coaching scene was previously one comprising a band of mysterious individuals working in the shadows as their athletes churned out performances in front of the world, and for some it still is. With the growth of the sport came the introduction of the ‘Team’ - merging the community club with the private industry with fee based coaching.
Broadly speaking, it is very difficult to compare apples with apples when it comes to coaching. You can compare the costs of training packages by all means, but comparing coaching is near enough impossible when costs because no two coaches are the same.
For example, here is a small sample of UK based triathlon training packages*:
Total Tri Training
1-2-1: £90pcm / 1-2-1 Premium: £120 - £150pcm / 1-2-1 Ultimate: £180 - £220pcm
Team Oxygen Addict
Team Oxygen Addict: £150pcm / 1:1 Bespoke: £250pcm / I:1 Ultimate: £416pcm (all prices on annual basis)
North Endurance
1-2-1 Coaching: £90 - £100pcm
With this information to hand, who are you going with? Do you choose based on budget, or named coaches? How do you value the coaching associated each package to compare?
With different coaches, packages and training plans there are also the needs of the athlete to consider. What do you want? Where do you want to go with your triathlon or sport? Have you had several different packages from different coaching groups already?
From my experience there are three consistently discussed requirements when someone is considering support for an event or race, they are:
Structure/ Structured Training Plan
Accountability
Reassurance
It is in my humble opinion that you should be guaranteed all of the above from a coach whatever the price. It is also my opinion that you will struggle to get all three from a training plan or team community.
This is where there is, for me, a key difference between coaching and training. This does, admittedly, become quite blurred when you discuss coaching in a sporting context because there clearly are physiological and biomechanics to take into consideration (to set the optimum training for an athlete), but the coaching adds another layer to this which can be much harder to value.
I am a coach first and foremost, not a mentor and not a teacher. I want people to be pulled (metaphorically speaking) so that they can push themselves to achieve their desired successes. This is why I struggle with the concept of packaged services spanning a scale of monthly/ annual cost. Allow me to explain.
Having coaching skill is not something I attribute a value to based on length of phone call or whether an athlete has access to a premium Training Peaks package. Whilst these things can be purchased, I believe they should only be acquired if through the coaching the athlete then decides that it is what is going to add-value to help them overcome the hurdles in front of them. If not, then why spend time and money acquiring things.
The second point here relates to the packaging of a list of items that typically work off the equation time = money. For example, a weekly email vs a daily email = more £. From my experience, athletes are highly capable of following structured periodised training plans for single (or multi) discipline sports, and can interpret data sets to train effectively and efficiently. What can trump the successful completion of sessions is quality and focused coaching dialogue.
To thrive, there are few things more powerful than overcoming a problem yourself.
It is because of this that I believe the value in coaching stems from a strong and compatible coach - athlete relationship built around athlete-led objectives. Sometimes these objectives need developing or refining with a coach, but it is the athlete who generates the solutions.
Finding the ‘right fit’ and relationship between a coach and athlete can help that athlete grow, and sometimes that growth will reach a natural conclusion or the athlete has little to no need for coaching and that is fine.
Working with a coach isn’t for everyone, either right now or ever. Some people will want to buy into a training plan and being directly on the receiving end of advice, and that’s absolutely fine too.
My approach is to offer coaching within a triathlon or endurance sport context. Yes, you will get a structured training plan, support, advice…all those things typically listed under services…but this is all hinged on coaching as the core focus. You, as the athlete, drive the solutions. I am, as the coach, the facilitator. This why I want to offer a flat rate no matter how many tweaks to your plan in a week!
If you would like to know more please do drop me an email: coachmatt@mattwackett.com
*This is only a small sample, please do undertake your own research before finding a coach and check out British Triathlon’s website for further support.