For this month’s featured sponsor spotlight, we are trying something a little different. In order to give our club members a little more interactivity with our featured sponsor, we have arranged for an AMA (Ask Me Anything) with Samantha Murphy, head coach of Evolve Coaching Systems. Samantha will be live and online starting at 7:45pm (until approx. 8:45pm) this coming Thursday, April 2nd, to answer all of your questions. For those who are unfamiliar with AMA’s from various online sites like Slowtwitch forums and most famously, Reddit, it’s quite simple to explain, you ask a question and our guest will answer it.
Leave your question down below in the comments. If you plan on participating live, wait and post your question then. If you cannot attend on Thursday, you can leave your questions at anytime below and come back after Thursday evening to see her answer. Questions can be topical and serious or fun and wacky. Completely up to you, but Samantha will be the final arbiter of the questions she gives answers to. Remember that while all comments remain public to view, you will have to be logged in to post your questions. That’s it for the ground rules. Have fun with it and we hope you enjoy the opportunity to get to know Evolve Coaching Systems. Follow Evolve Coaching Systems on Twitter: @evolvetriathlon and on Facebook, http://facebook.com/evolvecoachingsystems
Samantha Murphy is the head coach of Evolve Coaching Systems and a USAT certified Level 1 Triathlon Coach. She started racing triathlons in 2000 and has multiple Ironman finishes under her racing belt. She has competed in over 100 races of all distances including a 70.3 World Championship finish in 2013. Before becoming a coach, she was a teacher for 12 years in secondary education. She is also mom to a 3 yr old daughter and wife of a speedy triathlete.
NFL’s Seahawks, MLB’s Mariners, or MLS’ Sounders, which pro sports team is the most responsible for inspiring Team Evolve’s colors?
Seahawks all the way baby!
On a scale of 1 to 10, how nervous are you before a race you are racing? Using the same scale, how nervous are you during a race that your athletes are racing?
I used to be very nervous when I raced, but with the help of my coach, I worked through that and while I still have pre-race jitters, it is so much better. I just work to control the moment. So I would say around a 4 for me.
I am getting better about being less nervous for my athletes, but that does not mean that I am not all over the course when they race. I will say that it is easier for me to be at the race then it is for me to be at home on the computer. They do the work and follow the plan, but I want them to all have the race they deserve. So I would say 7.
If you could make one rule change to triathlon, what would it be?
Not so much a rule change, but more officials on the course to prevent drafting.
Did you learn any lessons from your first year of coaching that make you a better coach today?
I actually coached a ton in NY, so I learned a lot from that, and of course teaching is directly related. Both of those experiences helped me to have the confidence to start my own business. One of the biggest lessons that I learned this year was how important it is to build a team of people who can assist you. I cannot do it all and I never pretend to be a pro at every aspect of the sport. I never operate outside of my scope of practice. We are really lucky at Evolve to have a huge network of professionals who can help to give our clients the most.
Daily motivational and inspirational quotes are a common sight on Evolve’s social media. What are your favorite quotes and what motivates you and inspires you on a daily basis?
I think that having a mantra is super important. I try to work with my team to stay focused and use the mantra as a way to embrace the pain rather than to disassociate and disconnect. My personal mantra is slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Coach Nicole is a fan of embrace the suck.
I am motivated by my athletes, their logs and how hard they work, and of course by setting an example for my daughter. Movement is what makes me tick.
In your opinion or experience, what do age-group athletes get wrong the most often (nutrition, training, technique, equipment, etc.)?
Lori-
It is hard to just list off a bunch of drills without seeing the person swim. However, there are a few common things that we see when we do swim analysis. The biggest issue is usually body position, this can come in the form or dragging legs – kicking drills would help with this, or in the form of no rotation, banded legs swimming with a pull buoy can help this if you are advanced, or just simple things like thinking about showing your belly button to each wall. Another issue is head position, as triathletes we all tend to hold our heads a little too high, or look forward when we breathe. For this a snorkel is great, but again there is a learning curve there, so another thing to think about is not having any wrinkles in your neck. There are a ton more drills, but again seeing the swimmer in action is the best way to make the appropriate changes. All of the coaches who sponsor the tri club do swim analysis.
I would say that the number one thing is nutrition both on the course and off the course. The longer the race the more important nutrition becomes. This can make or break a race. You need to train for the swim, bike , run, transitions and nutrition.
Ok – it’s go time. Send me your comments and for the next hour, I will do my best to answer them.
I have a friend (ahem) who has almost no swimming experience and is trying to not flail around in the pool. Suggestions for drills to make things move more smoothly?
Lori-
It is hard to just list off a bunch of drills without seeing the person swim. However, there are a few common things that we see when we do swim analysis. The biggest issue is usually body position, this can come in the form or dragging legs – kicking drills would help with this, or in the form of no rotation, banded legs swimming with a pull buoy can help this if you are advanced, or just simple things like thinking about showing your belly button to each wall. Another issue is head position, as triathletes we all tend to hold our heads a little too high, or look forward when we breathe. For this a snorkel is great, but again there is a learning curve there, so another thing to think about is not having any wrinkles in your neck. There are a ton more drills, but again seeing the swimmer in action is the best way to make the appropriate changes. All of the coaches who sponsor the tri club do swim analysis.
What was the most surprising or unexpected part of becoming a coach?
Irwin –
I think the most surprising part was how Team Evolve would change my entire life. As many of you know, I am a native New Yorker and my husband is from the North West. We never saw ourselves staying in the Midwest for too long as we long for the mountains and water, but Evolve has changed that. I now see this as where I am meant to be and we are actually building a new home that we plan to stay in for the long haul. Evolve is like an extended family for me and for that I cannot be more thankful.
What are your favorite things about coaching? What is your proudest moment? What is your hardest thing you had to overcome in triathlon? And of course funniest or most embarrassing?
Scott –
You are keeping me busy here 😉
I could take all night to list the things that I love about coaching, but here are some highlights. The foremost thing is the bonds that are created between me and my athletes. I am privy to many amazing accomplishments. I see the good, the bad and the ugly training days, I see the highs and the lows and together we work through all of that.
Secondly, while I have crossed many finish lines on my own, there is nothing like seeing a client cross a line. This is such an awesome feeling and I will have the chance to see many athletes do it again this year.
A huge highlight from last year was watching G bloom as an athlete. He was my first client at Evolve and it was so cool to see him have a fabulous season. I was in Louisville coaching when he raced MiTi 140.6 , but his wife, Angie had me on speakerphone when he ran into the shoot. He knocked over 2 hours off of his previous time and had the race of his life. I stood on the corner in Louisville and cried like a baby.
My proudest moment as a coach are seeing how Evolve has formed such a strong team in the course of the last year. While we all came together due to triathlon, we are much more than that. It is so cool to see people reach out to one another and help at whatever is needed from a running partner to painting a house. I have two moments personally as an athlete that I am tied with for my proudest moment. The first one was in 2012 at the Gateway. It was my second triathlon after having my daughter – she was 7 months old at the time and I won the sprint. I was so happy to cross the line in first place and see her tiny little self there waiting for me. The other one was in 2013 when I returned to NY to race the first race I ever did. I was so nervous the first time. This time around I had a great race and more importantly beat my brother!
Personally, the hardest thing for me as an athlete was making the leap to believe in myself as an athlete in the way that my coach believed in me. We are our worst critics and I had to learn that I was capable of much more than I ever imagined. Both my coach and my dear friend and partner at Evolve, Nicole Kretzer played a huge roll in this.
I wish that I had a better response for #4 – but I am wracking my brain and I cannot think of a good story. I am sure now I will do something really silly whenever I race again.