People are funny. One of the most interesting areas to examine in triathlon  (sociologically / psychologically speaking) involves the insecurities of coaches. Coaches espouse this system or that system, or this approach or that approach, in order to explain their own personal way of doing things. In contrast, others are less constructive, and prefer to take thinly-veiled shots at other coaches on the Internet, in the hopes you will view their criticism as evidence that they have something better to offer. Some coaches pluck the low hanging fruit of young athletes on a meteoric rise, offer them a major discount, and then claim their continued successes as their own. Or perhaps they don’t claim it directly, they simply report the success of clients and hope potential future clients will put the pieces together and think it reflects positively on the coach. Then, they pretend that their false modesty represents some sort of virtue. They are the real expert, because they don’t flaunt success. I guess it takes all kinds to make the world go ’round, as my mom likes to say.

Make no mistake, I am a strange and unique bird in the realm of coaching, because I’m also a sports medicine doctor with a strong research interest. Interestingly, all of these vocations are related. The communication skills I first learned as a coach 15 years ago make me a better doctor today. Being a sports doctor allows me to see the coaching practices that result in injury and learn what you should and should not do. Researching and developing scientific concepts gives me new tools to apply to both athletes and patients. It’s a lot of fun, and very rewarding. I’m fortunate. I’m excited to get up every day and do the things I do. There aren’t a lot of people in the world who can say that.

Over time, I’ve learned that I apparently represent a threat to the egos of some rather insecure coaches. Maybe they are coaches who are afraid of my taking business from them. Perhaps they are unable to compete with my education and background, and are frightened by that. Personally, I think it is simpler still. I think they believe their candle shines brighter when they try to blow out someone else’s. They are small people who need to act that way to try to feel good about themselves. I think that is rather sad.

I really don’t know, of course. I can’t be, nor do I want to be, in their heads.

It is all really silly, because while my professional background and qualifications make me a unique type of coach, I’ve never intimated that those qualifications are prerequisites for being a good coach. When I identify myself clearly as a doctor, it is because I want people to be clear about who I am, and what sort of background I come from, not because I am trying to one-up anyone. I know lots of incredible coaches who have very little formal education. If I am critical of a particular method or concept someone espouses, it is because I believe there is a scientific basis for criticism that needs to be illuminated for those who might not have the benefit of a long background in physiology and would otherwise led astray. I’m not being critical of the person. I’m being critical of the idea in an academic sense. As noted physiologist Dr. Andrew Coggan has so eloquently put it, "Coaching is not scientific, but all coaching should be based on scientific principles."

So all this all begs the question: what makes a good coach? That is easy…an ability to communicate, a good knowledge base coupled with a hunger to learn more, and a passion to help people get better. Good coaches are able to justify how they do things with real evidence. They do not hide behind sarcasm in an effort to seem smarter than they are. They do not make fun of others to shore up their own insecurities and egos.

How do you spot a good coach? That is also easy. The test of the coach is not in the placing of the athletes. It isn’t about winning. Rather, are their athletes getting faster? Are they making more watts? Did they PR? Every athlete case is a study with 1 research subject…either they got better or they didn’t.  When you are looking at the coach, then, you should be looking at the aggregate of their athletes and asking if those results are indicative of something good or different going on. You don’t want to know just about their superstars. You want to know about the lady with 3 kids, who works full time, and only has 6 hours a week to train. Is she any faster? You want to know about the guy who works long hours and needs to cram most training in on the weekends. Is he doing better?

Yet, it can be more complicated than this. Some athletes aren’t 29 year old studs, but are 79 years young and are hanging in like Gunga Dinh, unwilling to yield an inch to their advancing age. Some aren’t AG contenders, but are rank beginners who are in over their heads and need direction. If any of these hypotheticals describe your personal situation, you are looking for a coach with a different kind of experience and who should be judged by slightly different criteria.

People have asked me where I fit. That’s easy: I’m the A-Team. (Side note: the A-Team is tied with Knight Rider as the best cheesy 80’s series EVER).  If you’ve got a problem no one else can solve, I’m your guy. I take great pride in working with an older pro and helping him achieve PR’s when other, long-established coaches (and even some noted scientists) told him such performances were impossible given his physiology and age. I was never more excited than when I helped a breast cancer survivor over the finish line in Kona at 20 minutes to midnight, achieving a long-time dream her doctors and family thought very risky. Currently, I’m stoked to be helping a World Champion go even faster…not an easy job because she is already fast as hell! These cases tell you something about me: I’m looking for a challenge.   I’m looking to break new ground.

Does that mean I am the guy for every job? No, because no one can be. The difference between me and lots of other guys is that I’ll tell you that up front. Need someone who is going to be on your case 24/7 to communicate and be honest with both yourself and him? That would be Jason Digman. You can find him on my website. Do you want someone who will go to the track with you and be by your side until you hit the splits you want to hit? That is Jason Kilderry. I’ll give you his  phone number. Want someone steeped in biomechanics who has coached triathletes to the Commonwealth games? David Tilbury-Davis is just a few clicks away.

At the end of the day, every coach offers something different. It’s up to you to evaluate them on their strengths and weaknesses. Don’t be fooled by advertising, attitude problems or posturing. It isn’t about  their insecurities or their sarcasm. Will your prospective coach help guide you, help motivate you, and take you someplace you have not been before? Alternatively, will they pontificate about the shortcomings of other coaches, or make fun of athletes on industry web sites and say things they could never get away with if they were face to face with the other person? Do smart-alec antics say something positive about them as a person, or speak to their need to bring other people down because they have nothing innovative or different to bring to the table? In my opinion, such coaches would do well to understand that it’s not about them, it is about you. You should remember that, too.