Eye-opening challenges I encounter with my online coaching clients 

Online coaching comes with its own set of challenges as one seeks to foster strong relationships, keep clients engaged, and ensure their success in a virtual setting. Key aspects of these challenges include building rapport, assessing techniques, giving personalized feedback, and maintaining client engagement. Additionally, technical difficulties, managing time zones, and ensuring accountability from clients are the other obstacles that online coaches navigate through.

From my own experience as an online running coach for almost ten years, below are some of the challenges I have encountered.

Clients going the extra mile

At times, for different, unique reasons, I find some of my clients going an extra mile from the recommendations I gave them in my weekly programs.

I understand their need to push harder to achieve their running goals. However, over time, as a runner and a coach, I have realised that there is a sweet spot that a runner needs to maintain to progress well and even avoid injuries.

Training smart is more important than merely training hard. That is why I rely on the running history, data, and relevant information from my clients before I begin working with them. I adjust the mileage and tasks to follow the previous week’s workload and the feedback I get from them.

Going the extra mile has often resulted in some runners stagnating in their training, hating running, or, at worst, getting injured.

Clients not providing timely feedback

Sometimes, I could go through a client’s Strava or Garmin Connect activities, then realize they stopped before finishing a planned long run. When I inquire from them what happened, thy may mention about a lingering injury that they did not mention to me early enough, or other work-related programs that may have affected them.

To make matters worse, some clients may even struggle to try the long run again the following day if they were not able to finish it in their first attempt. My policy has always been, if a workout was too hard for any reason, then there is no point in trying to push hard to complete it the following day. The best way to deal with unfinished workouts is to just skip them and proceed with the rest of the week.

Providing timely feedback helps me adjust the programs, even mid-week, so that the client could get the best out of a training week.

Over-ambitious clients

Running and building fitness are processes that require patience. In fact, finishing a single long run requires a lot of self-control and patience.

Unfortunately, I have had a few runners come into my online coaching programs directly from their couch and hoping to run like elite runners in three weeks!

These are the same clients who are quick to share with you what other people are doing out there on internet, wonder why you are not giving them certain workouts to do yet, and keep telling you what to tell them… Well, they actually coach you how to coach them!

Building relationships with runners from different cultures

Dealing with runners from different cultural backgrounds has been quite challenging. A sentence read out in different accents may not mean the same thing, and in a few of my clients, I at times felt like what I wrote to them may have carried a slightly different meaning to what i intended.
Establishing rapport and trust in a virtual setting can be difficult without the non-verbal cues of face-to-face interaction. 

Client engagement and accountability

Keeping clients motivated and accountable without physical presence requires creative strategies and proactive communication. Some times in the middle of a meeting, a client sends a message on WhatsApp asking whether they could make some adjustments to a program because of a commitment. They can see that you have seen the message. At the same time, you would want to settle down and write a more elaborate answer to them, which could bring some confusion and perhaps some misunderstanding.

Technical issues

Unreliable power and internet connections at times interfere with smooth online coaching communications with my clients. While traveling, I at times have to issue programs that extend to more than two weeks so I won’t get in trouble if I encounter connectivity challenges.

Assessing technique and form

I have met only about 5% of the clients i coach online. Online coaches rely on videos and photos to assess a client’s form, which can be less precise than in-person assessments. While it is not an essential part of my training programs, some clients supply me with videos of their training to be able to analyze them. I have been able to help in providing advice on these, but Identifying and correcting subtle errors in technique can be challenging. 

Maintaining motivation:

In a professional camp setting, a bell rings. Then, a coach knocks on your door when you are not up on time. Clients on my online running programs enjoy the luxury of skipping workouts without anyone pushing/encouraging them to go out for their runs. Unfortunately, they may eventually lose focus without the direct encouragement of a physical coach. 

Time management and organization

Over time, the challengers of managing multiple clients of different fitness levels living in different time-zones, scheduling sessions, and responding to inquiries efficiently has thought me some strong time management skills. Enrol in my online coaching and see for yourself!