Running Coach Ireland Coaching Plans

Our coaching is built on structure, clarity, and long-term partnership. This page outlines what you can expect from each plan—and how to get the most out of the process.

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🔁 Gold vs. Platinum Coaching Plans – At a Glance

Feature	Gold Plan (€100/month)	Platinum Plan (€140/month)
Onboarding Call	30 minutes	60 minutes
Training Delivery	Weekly plan via TrainingPeaks	Weekly plan via TrainingPeaks
Workout Feedback	Weekly review (summary style)	Daily review of synced sessions
Plan Adjustments	Unlimited (on request)	Unlimited + proactive adjustments
Training Zone Management	Set at start (athlete updates)	Coach-managed as needed
WhatsApp Support	General questions welcome	Full support incl. training decisions
Zoom/Voice Calls	1x/month (on request)	1x/week (on request)
Race Planning Support	Self-guided or upon request	Taper and race strategy guidance
Response Time	Within 48 hrs (Mon–Fri)	Priority – within 24 hrs (Mon–Fri)

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📝 Gold Coaching Plan – Terms of Service

€100/month

Welcome to the Gold Plan—our structured, autonomous-friendly coaching tier for athletes who want clear plans, steady feedback, and flexibility in how they engage.

✅ What’s Included

Initial Setup

• 30-minute onboarding call
• Athlete questionnaire analysis
• TrainingPeaks setup (Basic)
• Heart rate, pace, power zone setup
• Access to our structured methodology & RABIT protocol

Ongoing Support

• Custom weekly training plan
• Unlimited plan edits on request
• Feedback on completed workouts (weekly summary)
• One 20-minute Zoom call per month (on request)
• End-of-plan review

Communication Channels

• WhatsApp for general training questions, quick updates, and clarifications
• Email & TrainingPeaks: replies within 48 hours (Mon–Fri, 10am–6pm GMT)
• WhatsApp replies within 24 hours (Mon–Fri)

💬 Guidance on Communication

We offer multiple ways to stay in touch—choose the ones that fit your rhythm. Here’s how to use each channel effectively:

Google Hangout/Voice Calls
Gold athletes: 1x/month (on request)
Platinum athletes: 1x/week (on request) These calls are best used when you’ve accumulated a few questions or need a deeper conversation—like reviewing test results, changing goals, planning for race season, or refining your training structure. Calls are optional, and not every athlete chooses to use them, but they’re available when a bigger-picture review is helpful.

TrainingPeaks Comments
Use this for feedback or questions tied to a specific workout. It’s the best place for us to review context alongside your data.

WhatsApp
Great for quick, time-sensitive questions or weekly planning tweaks. Examples include:

“Should I move tomorrow’s session?”

“I’m feeling tight—should I adjust today’s run?”

“Weather looks bad—okay to swap days?”

Email → support@runningcoachireland.zendesk.com
Best for more detailed, complex questions that aren’t urgent (e.g. testing interpretation, race schedule planning, gear questions). We aim to reply within 3 working days.

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📝 Platinum Coaching Plan – Terms of Service

€140 /month

The Platinum Plan is for athletes who want more frequent input, closer collaboration, and proactive support. Ideal if you benefit from regular oversight and evolving guidance.

✅ What’s Included (in addition to all Gold features)

Enhanced Feedback & Contact

• Daily review of synced workouts
• Feedback via TrainingPeaks within 24–48 hours
• WhatsApp for general support, training decisions, planning and adjustments
• One 20-minute Zoom or voice call per week (on request)
• Priority reply time within 24 hours (Mon–Fri)

Training Management

• Proactive plan edits when your context or metrics shift
• Threshold and zone updates managed by your coach
• Tapering, race-day strategy and pacing advice for key races

💬 Guidance on Communication

Platinum athletes are encouraged to engage frequently and naturally.

Examples of helpful WhatsApp messages:

• “I’ve a night shift Wednesday—can we move the harder session?”
• “Forecast looks stormy—should I do Thursday’s run indoors?”
• “Sunday’s long run has hills—how should I pace it?”
• “I felt flat today—ok to shorten tomorrow?”

Use TrainingPeaks comments for your post-run feedback, and we’ll connect the dots to make timely adjustments.

We focus on how your training is adapting over time—not just run-by-run—so you get the most effective coaching, not just the fastest replies.

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🗓️ Annual Holiday Policy

To maintain the sustainability of our service, we reserve the right to take up to four weeks of annual leave each calendar year. These breaks are planned in line with typical Irish working standards and ensure coaching remains effective over the long term.

Planned leave dates will be communicated in advance. During these periods, regular check-ins and plan adjustments will pause, but all plans will be fully updated in advance to carry you through and beyond the break. Urgent issues will still be monitored.

This approach allows for a healthy working rhythm while ensuring continuity in your training.

Injury Management Policy
While we aim to help you train consistently and sustainably, running injuries can occasionally occur. In cases of minor niggles or acute soreness, we typically recommend reducing or pausing training for one to two days to assess if the issue resolves on its own. If symptoms persist beyond this or interfere with your ability to train, we advise you to consult a qualified medical professional such as a physiotherapist or sports therapist. If you’re required to take more than two weeks off running, or receive a formal diagnosis, we offer the option to pause your training plan until you’re ready to resume. Please note that we do not provide injury rehabilitation services. Our role is limited to adjusting your running load based on the guidance provided by your medical practitioner.

Route-Specific Navigation and Logistics Policy
Our coaching service is focused on training and physiological preparation. This means we provide you with structured plans, session guidance, and hourly effort or duration targets aligned to your fitness and race goals. However, we do not offer support with the logistical or navigational aspects of your event preparation. This includes, but is not limited to: planning or selecting reconnaissance runs (“reccies”), advising on which sections of a course to train on, choosing specific trail routes, evaluating technical terrain, or identifying transport options to and from start/finish points. We also do not provide guidance on accommodation, travel logistics, or support crew arrangements. While we may occasionally share general strategies (e.g. gear choices for certain weather or surface types, pacing on hilly terrain), the responsibility for all course research, on-ground navigation, and logistical planning rests entirely with the athlete. Please treat this as part of your event readiness and self-reliance, especially for ultras and mountain races where autonomy is essential.

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🧭 Coaching Ethos for All Plans

Whether you’re Gold or Platinum, the aim is the same:
To guide your progress without micromanagement, support your independence, and help you become a smarter, more intuitive athlete.

You choose how you engage. We’ll meet you there—with clarity, flexibility, and a long-term lens.

🔒 What’s Not in Scope

While we strive to offer well-rounded and principled coaching, there are limits to what we can provide directly:

• Route-Specific Navigation Advice
  We don’t offer detailed route choices or terrain-specific advice for navigational events, ultra trails, or adventure races. While we can share general principles (e.g. pacing, gear, fuelling for terrain types), researching specific route conditions is the athlete’s responsibility.
• Coaching for Juniors (Under 18s)
  We do not coach athletes under 18 years of age. Our training systems are designed for adults and are not adapted to the developmental needs of youth athletes and we cannot insure these runners for our service.
• Specialist or Regulated Advice
  We do not offer:
  • Individualised nutrition plans (consult a registered dietitian or sports nutritionist)
• • Medical diagnosis or treatment plans (consult a qualified health professional)
• • Clinical gait or biomechanical assessments (seek a certified physiotherapist or biomechanist)
  We can, however, offer non-clinical guidance based on lived coaching experience, such as:
  • General principles of healthy movement
  • Suggestions for managing training loads around common injury patterns
  • Thoughts on gear, shoes, and strength routines
• Psychological Counselling or Mental Health Services
  While we coach mindset, motivation, and habit-building from a performance angle, we don’t replace professional psychological care. If you’re facing emotional or mental struggles, we encourage seeking support from qualified therapists.
• Preset Plans with No Personal Input
  We do not provide “set-and-forget” training plans with no personalisation or follow-up. Every plan we offer evolves based on your feedback and performance—so if you’re looking for a static template, our coaching might not be the right fit.
• Guarantees of Outcome
  We guide the process, but we can’t promise specific race results. Your results will always depend on your effort, consistency, recovery, and life context.