Train Smart, Race Happy!

🍊 About

Introducing Coach Simon

A Level 3 England Athletics Endurance Coach. I create bespoke training plans to help you train smart & achieve your goals, with feedback on every session you complete.

I’m an online running coach based in Hastings, East Sussex. Often when you land on these running websites the coach will impress you with their amazing achievements — how they won their cross-country championships and went on to pull on a GB vest. You won’t get any bold claims like that here. I was terrible at cross-country. I didn’t even start running until I was 35, and two years later I nearly gave up because I was getting slower.

I don’t know what it’s like to run a sub-15-minute 5k. But I know what it feels like to struggle at the back of a group and finish second-last in a race. I dusted myself off and started again — reducing my 5k from 33 minutes to 19:28, my 10K from 1:04:00 to 40:52, and my marathon from 4:44 to 3:29. I’ve coached with Hastings Runners for over five years and hold LIRF, CIRF and Level 3 Endurance qualifications through England Athletics.

My aim is to help as many runners as possible enjoy the journey I’ve been on — one which has seen my fitness and mental health improve significantly.

My Coaching Philosophy

All of the training plans I create are centred around your individual circumstances. We are all different in terms of age, gender and ability, but also in the time we can commit to our training. We can only work with the availability we have, and unlike elite athletes, those of you with full-time jobs and families have to make use of what limited time you have.

I really believe in a quality over quantity approach. Hammering big weekly mileage is not going to help if you don’t have the time to recover and relax. Whilst it’s nice to see such improvements, I’ve found during my coaching journey that consistency over a sustained period of time is what delivers the best results.

It also reduces the risk of injury if you give your body more time to recover. I have helped runners achieve sub-3 marathons despite running no more than 4 times per week. I’m a big advocate of strength and conditioning — even more important as we get older. Doing your strength exercises can be far more beneficial than heading out for yet another easy run.

I have devised my own system called Training Points. Each and every run, workout, yoga class, stretching routine, swim and cycle will contribute to your weekly total. The priority will always be running, and the more specific the session, the more points it will earn you.

As you train, you will earn points towards your weekly target. Hit those goals, and you’ll win a place in the 100% Club. Nail 5 weeks on the spin, and you’ll even get yourself a star. Our top member to date has achieved 8 stars, which equates to 40 consecutive weeks (not including rest weeks in between plans) hitting their training target.

So if you need motivation, accountability and feedback on every session you do, get in touch, join Team Orange, and work with Coach Simon to become a stronger all-round athlete, as well as a faster, more efficient runner.