COACHING

We develop customized training plans to help runners enjoy fitness, achieve goals and gain a true appreciation of self and human possibility.

We hope that every runner touched by NRG has the goosebumpy experience of doing something they never thought they could. Something so fun and pride inspiring that it stops them in their cushy shoe tracks and makes them wonder… If I can do this, what else can I do?

NRG running programs are designed to help all types of runners reach personal milestones using proven training methods that offer fun, balanced and rewarding workout experiences.

In its most basic form, training is the cyclic process of stressing the body, allowing it to adapt and then stressing it again. Since every person is unique, each of us can tolerate different loads of stress and need different amounts of time to adapt. In order to achieve the greatest success, athletes must perform this training at the levels best suited to their individual body.

NRG programs are custom developed to be FUN and bring about the greatest training results from each athlete.

OUR GOAL IS SIMPLE:

PLANS:

An NRG PCP (Personal Coaching Plan) includes your running workouts for each week during the training period. This is entirely customized to match your goals and your lifestyle.

If you travel frequently, we'll write workouts that make it easy for you to complete them when traveling. If you have a tight schedule and limited time to workout, we'll create a plan that focuses on quality and gets you out the door. Sometimes you just need 20 minutes for a great workout! If you have trouble with motivation, we'll put together a plan that gets you moving and excited to be moving. We'll get you in the running groove! If you want to get faster or learn to love running hills or complete your first 5k or ultra marathon, we'll put together a plan that gets you there.

WHAT A PCP INCLUDES:

Goal planning
8 week customized workout plan - includes all workouts for each week
Post workout check-ins*
Gear, form, race and lifestyle counseling for the runner
Non-stop encouragement and cheerleading!

*Following workouts, you will report back about how the workout felt. This is especially valuable in keeping your program on track. There may be tweaks to your plan as we progress based on these reports.

Depending on your goals, you'll probably want to string together several PCPs.

Each eight week PCP is $170.

There is also an NRG Team which meets on Tuesday and Thursday nights on the eastside of Seattle. Space on the team is limited and the team is currently full, but occasionally spots open up. We keep a waitlist for those that might be interested.

THE COACH:

Our head coach is Nina, here's her story...

I graduated from college in 1996 with several All America honors in track and field, but none of them for distance running. I was a jumper, sometimes a sprinter. When I graduated, I had never run more than 4 miles and I had certainly never run any of them smiling. I was one of those people that huffed and puffed and just didn't like running. I was terrible at it and I figured it wasn't in my genes. I think everyone else figured that too.

After college, I took a job coaching at my alma mater and loved it. I worked with some extraordinary athletes and gained an immense amount of knowledge and experience. But my least expected reward from that job came in the form of inspiration from a brash freshman. He was cocky and arrogant and didn't want to work on things he wasn't good at. After a few weeks of back and forthing with him, I finally got him to cave at practice one day by saying:

Sometimes you have to do the thing you think you cannot do. Then, you will see it is the thing you CAN do.

I felt like Buddha as I drove home that night.

I felt like a hypocritical jerk the next day when he asked:

Coach, what are you doing that you think you cannot do?

So I started to run.

I ran my first marathon in the fall of 1997. It was amazing. I stood at the finish line (with goosebumps and tears streaming down my face) a changed person; I had just done the thing I thought I could not do. The awards I had collected for things I knew I was good at held value, but not like this. Finishing the marathon was my own personal lesson that I really could do anything.

Inspired, I continued to coach and run and in 2004, created NRG.

Education

In addition to a BA in Journalism, I have a certification in Sports Medicine and Human Performance from the University of Washington and a USATF Level I Certification.

Coaching Experience

I've been coaching for 21 years.

Before starting NRG, I spent 5 years coaching at the college level, a couple of years working with high school track teams, helped get a major running club off the ground in Minnesota and taught clinics. Since starting NRG, I've worked with hundreds of people on an individual basis. I also created the popular I Want to be a Runner class for beginning runners in the Seattle area.

Street Cred

I have experience at the front of the pack and the back of the pack in races ranging from 5k to ultra marathons. In addition to running, I like to hop in the occasional triathlon, adventure race, cycling tour or swimming event. I'm a six time NCAA All American in Track and Field and a ten time Boston Marathon Qualifier. It turns out, I really could run. So can you!