I love coaching.
It’s my favorite job ever. I got into coaching after my first long distance Triathlon season, with some gentle prodding from my own coach at the time. I loved that I had a Coach that believed in my abilities beyond what I thought I was capable of – and I knew that I wanted to do the same for others.
It started small – I took on a few of my co-workers to train for various distances – 5Ks to Olympic Distance Triathlons to Marathons. Then I started to coach small triathlon and running groups, and that eventually morphed into larger groups like Nike+ Run Club and the EDGE Group Endurance Training Program.
My coaching philosophy parallels the EDGE Vision Statement:
We Make Athletes that tear down walls and achieve personal bests in all aspects of life
Because at the end of the day – I believe that if we become stronger Athletes, we become better People.
^^ And THAT is why I do what I do.
Why Coaching ?
The idea for our gym, EDGE Athlete Lounge, was created from our own personal experiences with racing. As we delved into longer distances, we came to realize how important it was to train smarter, and started to include cutting edge recovery as part of that. We created all of this under one roof with EDGE – Woodway treadmills, Wahoo Kickrs, and a weight room for training, alongside hot/cold tubs and of course the Recovery Pump compression lounge for post-workout recovery.
One of the best things is the amazing sense of community that has evolved over the past several years. We ascribe to be “Cheers for Athletes” – where everybody knows your name.
Building a Great Community
Get a Team
“Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much” – Helen Keller. We learned early on that we needed teamwork, and everything EDGE is today is a direct result of our collective efforts. Everyone from our EDGE Techs that are often the first point of contact, to our EDGE Coaches, to our Manager, Sports Chiropractor, Dietitian – you can only build a community by having passionate people on board with a common vision!
Encourage Connections
It wasn’t long before we started to see the EDGE Community take on a life of it’s own – it grew legs, and started to support itself pretty quickly from athlete to athlete. On the weekend of our 3rd EDGE Anniversary, we were tagged in posts of Athletes doing extraordinary things – pacing each other on a 100+ mile running race, cheering on friends at a local bike race, tackling long, hot miles….in every photo, there was the EDGE logo. I remember standing back as these came in and thinking “this isn’t our logo anymore, it’s theirs – it’s their family crest.” All made possible by Athletes serving Athletes.
Community will Grow and Change – Embrace it!
Community is not stagnant. It will always grow, change and morph – by accepting this as part of the process, and listening to your community, you can really have a say in how you grow. For example, when we saw several members upping their volunteer hours, we realized we needed to offer more formal and consistent volunteering opportunities – now we provide 2-3 per month to raise awareness and encourage civic engagement.
Building and watching the EDGE Community grow has been the most rewarding part of Coaching and owning a small business. And yet we know that the best is yet to come!
ABOUT ROBYN
Robyn LaLonde is a USAT Level-1 Coach, Certified Level II Metabolic Efficiency Training Specialist and Head Coach for Nike+ Run Club. After completing her first Ironman she knew that she wanted to help athletes listen to that little voice inside of their head, however crazy the goal. Since then she has helped athletes of all levels find their fastest and farthest miles, from 5Ks to marathons, ultramarathons and Ironmans. As an avid triathlete and runner, she’s a multiple time USAT Nationals, Boston Marathon and Western States Qualifier.
Instagram: @coach.robyn
Twitter: @EdgeAthLounge
