We coach athletes worldwide for an impressive array of events from road running, open water swimming to road or mountain bike cycling.
© 2021 Wingman Multisport Coaching. All rights reserved
About us & FAQs
Why choose us?
Why choose us as your Wingman?
From Sprint to Full Triathlon | From Beginner Runner to Ultra Running | From Trail to MTB Cycling
Wingman Multisport coaches athletes worldwide for an impressive array of events from road running, open water swimming to road or mountain bike cycling. Based in South Africa and the United States of America, we specialize in triathlon coaching, including the Ironman 70.3 and Ironman distances. Our qualified triathlon coaches:
- We've been in your shoes! Our coaches know what you are going through and have years of experience in getting you to the start line in the best shape ever. Our coaches can be Drill Sergeants, Hand holders or Cheerleaders, whatever method will work best for you.
- Our coaches can restructure your workouts and training plans when you get sick, travel or having to deal with real life stresses like sick kids, work deadlines, etc.
- Remove the guesswork. Let the experts navigate the technical stuff while you just focus on one workout at a time, saving you time and energy
What will it mean for me?
- Guidance and regular feedback to avoid “junk miles” and ineffective training which defies the purpose of working out
- Keeps you accountable
- A coach will help determine the correct types, intensity, frequency and duration of workouts that suits your lifestyle which, is super important in order to peak at the right time
- You'll have a planned season with realistic, attainable goals
- You are way more likely to reach your goals by leveraging the skills of a professional coach
- A coach will ensure there is a healthy balance between getting fitter, fatigued, adapting and being fresh for you’re a race
Frequently Asked Questions
Our plans are flexible and fit your lifestyle
You simply decide whether you want:
A. to buy a specific training program OR;
B. to have a training program designed for you by one of our experts; OR
C. be coached online by one of our professional coaches
A.
• If you want the program only option, you browse the available programs, make your selection between the different programs and click “buy program” Your program will be available immediately on your TrainingPeaks™ calendar in your free basic TrainingPeaks™ account and mobile app.
B.
• If you want a custom program crafted by one of our expert coaches, you select “design my program” and one of our coaches will be in touch to talk through your specific needs. Once the program design is ready (up to 5 business days), you will receive a link to a free basic TrainingPeaks™ account where your program will be available on your TrainingPeaks™ account and mobile app.
C.
• If you’d like to hire one of our professional coached, read more about our coaches or hire a coach today and start your training.
Once the transaction has been completed your program will automatically be loaded onto your free basic TrainingPeaks™ account. If you click on the program you can apply it to your calendar and select the start or end date to coincide with your race.
You browse the profiles of the coaches and select the coach you want to work with. The coaching is done remotely, and your selected coach will reach out to you within 3 business days for your onboarding session. Your coach will supply you with an electronic key to attach to his TrainingPeaks™ coaching account and to load your program onto your free basic TrainingPeaks™ account.
Your coach will have a conversation with you in order to gauge your age, location, current fitness level, goals, races, available training time, gear and basically how your life works in order to design your plan of attack.
For most of our programs we expect you to be able to complete a swim session of 400 yrds/meters, ride a bike for 25 minutes and run for 20 minutes across 3 separate training days.
BUT
You can start from scratch with us or start when you have some training hours behind you, or even when just coming out of isolation after the COVID-19 lockdown. We will gradually get you into the groove and to the next building phase.
We also have advanced programs for fit elite athletes who want to set a PB in their next “A” race
It depends on the plan you select. In the preparation phase some workouts are only 30 mins. From there workouts progress to around 60 minutes and the typical longer weekend rides/runs build up to 3-4 hours and >6hours for advanced Ironman distance athletes.
The programs are designed to make you “peak” on the day of your “A” race (most important race of your season) but you can do different “B” or “C” events during different phases of the program, which are shorter events of less importance in the grand scheme of your season
TrainingPeaks™ is our preferred online and mobile software platform. It can be used to access your training calendar, upload data, get feedback and see your progression on graphs. When you sign up with Wingman or purchase one of our programs you get a free basic TrainingPeaks™ account. However, some of the features and advanced metrics are only available for Premium account holders. You can upgrade your basic account to the Premium account at any time at a price of $9.92 per month if taken over 12 months. (accurate as on March 2020)
As soon as you have signed up with your coach you can link your device to your TrainingPeaks™ account and all your training data will automatically upload to TrainingPeaks™ from your smart watch (provided you are connected to the internet) for your coach to scrutinize. If you do not own a smart watch you can use apps like Strava which records and uploads to your TrainingPeaks™ account.
What gear do I need?
You certainly don’t need everything listed below to commence with training, but it will be beneficial to start finding all the gear you would need for your races sooner than later.
For races you would need:
SWIM GEAR: a quality wetsuit that fits well is a huge benefit in races (when allowed), swim cap, goggles with wide, reflective lens.
Trisuit – can be used in the swim, on the bike and on the run. Check our SHOP page for exclusive WINGMAN suits which will be available soon.
BIKE GEAR: A recently serviced dependable road bike should do it if you are just looking to do a bucket list short event, but if you are serious about your performance a TT bike with clip-in pedals and bottle cages or hydration system is the gold standard
Bike Helmet (mandatory in races)
Bike shoes – with compatible cleats for the pedals on your bike
Sports Sunglasses – the top pick would be polarized lenses and offers 100%UVA/UVB protection
RUN GEAR:
Running shoes: Best practice is to find assistance at a reputable retailer if you need a neutral shoe or a specific shoe to address possible pronation/supination issues. Replace roughly every 200 miles
Cap/visor
Sports Sunglasses – the top pick would be polarized lenses and offers 100% UVA/UVB protection
If you want to take your training and racing performance to the next level, the technical gear below will be great additions:
TECHNICAL GEAR:
The best upgrade will be a sports watch with GPS & Heart Rate Monitor and a Power meter on your bike from which you can upload your data to TrainingPeaks™. Bike power meters will assist you tremendously in gauging your progress on your bike training and to guide your effort during races.
Indoor bike trainer is a fantastic benefit to have during cold months or to stay off congested and dangerous roads. This type of training is very time efficient and there are many software solutions like Zwift and Trainer Road to keep things social and interesting.
Bike computer: Displays your heart rate, distance, speed and power (if you have a power meter fitted) and can also assist with navigation.
Coaching
There is a misconception that only elite or professional athletes need coaches. This is simply not true. The benefits of having a coach includes the following:
- A coach guides you and gives you feedback to avoid “junk miles” and ineffective training which defies the purpose of working out
- Coach keeps you accountable
- You are way more likely to reach your goals by using the help of a professional coach
- You will receive properly structured workouts and training plans for your race and goals
- A coach will assist with planning your season and realistic goal setting for the season
- Coaches remove the guesswork – let the expert navigate the technical stuff while you just focus on one workout at a time, saving you time and energy
- A coach will determine the correct types, intensity, frequency and duration of workouts which is super important in order to peak at the right time
- A coach will ensure there is a healthy balance between getting fitter, fatigued, adapting and being fresh for you’re a race
- Our coaches can restructure your workouts and training plans when you get sick, travel or having to deal with real life stresses like sick kids, work deadlines, etc.
- We have been in your shoes! Our coaches know what you are going through and have years of experience in getting you to the start line in the best shape ever. Our coaches can be Drill Sergeants, Hand holders or Cheerleaders, whatever method will work best for you.
We have a great selection of coaches at different rates to suit every budget and requirement which will be shown on the coach profile.
Whatever works best for you. Options include text, phone or video call, WhatsApp or in person if you are in the same location
This is entirely up to you. During the on-boarding call your coach will ask you whether you prefer weekly bi-weekly or monthly feedback and will give feedback accordingly.
Our premier product is the online coaching which comes with phone or message access to your coach for questions, guidance, gear recommendations, feedback or assistance with anything triathlon related. We are human too and sadly not available 24/7, but all messages will always be answered at our earliest convenience.
Kindly take note that we are based in different parts of the world and there could be a time difference depending on your coach of choice.
We sadly do not offer direct coach support for the basic training programs. If you need expert advice you can speak to one of our head coaches by scheduling an online consultation at a fee. Reduced fees are offered if you had your own plan designed.
Training Plans
TrainingPeaks™ Premium account holders will have the option to move workouts around by dragging and dropping workouts in your calendar, as long as you adhere to the general principles of not having intense workouts on consecutive days. If you alter your training program too many times you might undo a lot of the expertise your coach used when designing your plan. Another option is to schedule an online consultation (at a fee) with one of the Wingman head coaches who can log into your account and provide you with feedback on your proposed changes.
It depends on the plan you select (weekly hours are shown in the plan preview)
Less hours are required for beginners training for shorter events (around 6 hours per week) and it gradually increases based on level and event distance. For elite athletes on Ironman distance programs it can go to 24 hours per week.
Yes. Programs include body weight exercises you can easily do anywhere. We also advise you to make use of “micro workouts” throughout the day which will not even make you sweat or panting but builds training load throughout the day and week. An example is to do 20 push-ups or air squats before you shower or while you are on the telephone.
You should never train (or race for that matter) if you are sick and you should lay off until cleared by your doctor to resume training.
We reckon that even the most disciplined athletes, even professionals, have to skip a workout here and there for a bunch of reasons. Life happens – we get it. Injuries, illnesses, emergencies and travel plans can sometimes prevent you from training. The more workouts you successfully complete, the better you will be prepared for the race. Not all workouts are equal. Some workouts, like the long bike rides are crucial to your race outcome and should not be skipped. Other workouts like swims/recovery rides & runs can be skipped with little consequence. If you are signed up with one of our online coaches your coach will make recommendations and adapt your program for you.