Anyone can instruct, but being a coach must be earned

The title to this post comes from a comment left by a reader on my last post. It really got me thinking. Yeah, you can decide you're going to be a "coach" and hang up your shingle The Coach is IN. But what do you have to back it up?  

You don't need years of experience to be a coach, but you're not going to graduate to "coachdom" the day after your orientation either. One must allow the time to learn, to experience, to make mistakes (and learn from them), to internalize what works and what doesn't work, and to develop your style. It might take a new instructor six months, it might take a year. If you've been in the industry awhile before teaching IDC, it might only take a month or two. But you want to earn the respect of your students on the way so they perceive you as a coach.

Being a coach requires a willingness to grow and change, and it takes a commitment; a commitment to learning and a commitment to your students. I know you're committed to learning - you're reading this blog! ;-) But you should also seek out continuing education courses (in-home, on-line or at conferences or seminars), read books on training, and read books on cycling. The Spinning website has a long list of great in-home CED. [Better yet, come see me at WSSC!]

But it's not just what you say, it's how you say it. Make sure to read books or articles on presentation and communication skills. Leading an indoor cycling class (or any fitness class) is really no different than being a presenter, so you're going to want to brush up your public speaking skills! (Tips on how to do this will be the subject of a future post).

After my last post, did you ask yourself if your students perceive you as a coach or as an instructor?

First, let's define the difference?

An instructor gives commands. She tells the students what to do as she decides to do them. Sometimes there's no rhyme or reason to the movements in class, and sometimes she's even following a profile in her head (or on an index card taped to her handlebars), but because she fails to let the students know what it is, they don't know the difference. They're just following orders. There's no greater goal to the class but to breathe hard and create a pool of sweat underneath the bike.

A coach, on the other hand, always has a plan and objectives, and explains them to her students. This shows the students that she's prepared and that she has her students' best interest at heart. A coach will begin the class with the following:

• This is what we're going to do today.
  
• This is how we're going to do it (how many, how long, how intense, via what mode, etc)
  
• This is how you should feel
• This is the benefit that this training session will provide you
  
• And this is what we're going to do next week (and next month)

It's entirely possible that the individuals described in the two scenarios above are utilizing the exact same profile, doing the same movements to the same music.  However, the students' experience will be entirely different.  In the first instance, the students aren't let in on the what, how and why. They may go too hard (and as a result, not be able to finish the desired segment), or too easy (and therefore not achieve the desired result). They work hard, and might feel good after class, but there is rarely any connection from one class to the next and they rarely feel a spark of inspiration.

In the second scenario, the students know what to expect, and are going to be inspired to work harder (or easier if the format requires - but the operative word is inspired). Their perception is that the instructor is well prepared, and that he has planned this training session out just for them. They're not in the dark about what's coming next and can plan their efforts accordingly (e.g. how hard and for how long); therefore they are much more likely to achieve results. They sense a flow in every class, and from class to class and know how this training session fits into the long-term plan.

Their opinions about the second person will be different than the first, even for the same exact ride. 

Your goal as a coach is to empower, inspire and educate your students. Do this by learning how to present your class and your goals to them in a professional way. Practice communication and presentation techniques that show your students that you want to help them reach their goals and are planning your classes with that in mind. It may be your goal, but if you don't let them know it through your communication prior to, during and after your classes, they'll just think of you as just another instructor. A good one maybe, but you want to go from Good to Great don't you? (to borrow the title of a very good book on management that applies to coaching as well).

 

Here's an example of describing the goals for an upcoming segment in a class, and what it will do for your students:

"We're going to do four 4-minute intervals on hills, to just above your threshold. For each one, I want you to focus on a different goal. The first one you'll stay seated working a harder grade at 65 rpm, focusing on powering through it with a smooth pedal stroke. The second one you'll do jumps on a hill with smooth transitions, controlling your intensity with your breathing. The third one will be a fast seated climb, maintaining the same intensity with less steepness and higher cadence of 80 rpm. And on the fourth one you'll stand up for most of it, controlling your cadence to 75-80 rpm, relaxing the upper body, and noticing how this is different from your seated climb. 

During the 2-minute breaks on the flats in between each hill, you're going to use your breathing to recover quickly and prepare yourself mentally for the next climb. Our goal is to become a better and stronger climber while improving our smooth pedal strokes and increasing muscular endurance. Are you ready to start? Great, let's go!"

Can you take this example and apply this concept to different segments of road? Here's some homework. Write a brief description of how you would coach your students through the following (give the what, when, how long, why and what they should feel):

• a 10-minute flat road at an aerobic pace, cadence 90-ish rpm
  
• a 15-min tempo pace with 2 minute high cadence seated drills to 110 rpm
  
• a 30-minute rolling hills segment
  
• a long flat with several high intensity jumping segments
  
• a 20-minute climb with switchbacks
  
• 5 high intensity short intervals to 5-8 beats above LT
  
• 3 medium length threshold intervals
  
• Three 10-minute loops of increasing intensity

The next question I want you to ask yourself is the following:

Do YOU perceive yourself as a coach?

Do you believe that you can be a coach?

We'll talk about that in the next post.

Now, go out and empower your students!