A couple of weeks ago, I talked about how not every runner should be a coach, even with the easily-available and quick online certification options. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t or shouldn’t become a coach.
If you’ve done a self-evaluation and decided that you have the knowledge, experience, and gumption, there are many paths to becoming a running coach. Personal training certifications are all similarly formatted or in an online format and similarly priced. University degrees obviously take a little foresight, but many of those degrees aren’t focused singularly on coaching. Finally, some great coaches don’t have a certification at all, and that’s an option worth considering, too. Let’s break down the options.