The All New Run4ACozz Coaching!
Well, not quite all new but definitely lots of new! The training and philosophy are all the same. The name is still the same. I (Andie) am still here and my goal is still the same - to develop the whole athlete through confidence building and purpose driven training.
What’s changed primarily comes down to how I started coaching and where I am headed with it. When I started, it was just me. I had a very important role model in my life who coached all of his life. He may not have been a pro football coach but he left an impact on the athletes he worked with. In my own training journey I saw this impact when he passed. It reached me at a very pivotal moment in my running career and changed my relationship with the sport. Running is hard to do in isolation. It isn’t linear and you have to see beyond the performances in order to truly get the most out of it. I couldn’t run just to be fast. I had to have a reason, a purpose, or a cause that is greater than myself.
Over time this led me to finding coaching and the love that I have for it. Being able to take my own experiences to help athletes find their best selves through running has given me and my own training more purpose. As I grew I started to see what my strengths and weaknesses were as a coach. I also wanted to be able to help more athletes but I was reaching my personal limit. And that’s when I began thinking about bringing more people into the fold and more specifically, more women.
Women are under-represented as coaches in sports. In men’s sports, 4 of the top 8 men’s sports have ZERO womens coaches while on the women’s side, 4 of the top 8 have mostly male coaches (see figures below). Of the top 8 womens sports, track & field shows the lowest percentage of women’s coaches. According to the 2021-2022 Women in College Coaching Report Card, only 19.2% of women's track & field programs have women as head coaches. There are only 2 other college sports with less representation of women coaches, fencing at 17.2% and alpine skiing at 0% (alpine skiing only has 9 total programs and all are male coaches). Run4ACozz is hoping to be part of the change.
So this past fall we grew. And with that I wanted to re-brand. Moving from just me to a team of 4, I wanted to make this change a big one. I wanted to create something new from where I started. I wanted to change from me to we. So the website is all new, the logo is new, and these 3 women below are all new! WELCOME TO THE TEAM!
- Caroline Dickey -
I am excited to join the Run4ACozz coaching team! I’ve been lucky to have great coaches throughout my 10+ year running career. They taught me to love running. After seeing many of my teammates lose their love for running due to the pressures of performance, I realized the importance of pursuing and encouraging a sustainable relationship with running. Everyone has a different running story, and I’d love to be a part of more! I’ve worked with multiple athletes who’s stories involve transitioning from other sports which I find challenging and fun. I am excited to join the Run4ACozz team and encourage others to pursue their running dreams while staying healthy and true to themselves.
- Becca Caldwell -
Hello R4AC athletes! I’ve had a more unconventional start to running and fitness than my coaching counterparts, coming from a dancing background and only starting my running journey about 11 years ago. If you’re a midpacker, beginner, or returning to running after injury, or postpartum, I’m your gal. A mom of two myself, my first experience with a coach was returning to running after the kiddos. I loved the process so much that I wanted to help others and got certified in run coaching, having spent the last couple of years working with athletes coming back to running or tackling a new longer distance. I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining the Run4ACozz coaching team!
- Tracie Rodriguez -
I am so excited to be joining a team of amazing women and athletes. For over 20 years, running has been a part of my life, providing me with my fondest memories and best friends. My goal is to be a lifelong runner and over the years, I’ve learned that in order to achieve that goal, I have to do more than just run. Strength training entered my life after a particularly serious injury left me sidelined for a year. After experiencing the very real possibility of not being able to run like I wanted, which would be every day of the week, I knew something had to change. What began as me wandering around aimlessly in the gym, quickly developed into a structured weight lifting program. Once I could feel the changes in my body - more leg power, a stronger upper body, a finishing kick in a 5K - I was sold on the benefits of strength training and it’s something I want to share with you. As runners, we put our bodies through repetitive stress day after day. Strength training is the additional piece to your running puzzle that will help you create consistency, recover faster, and take your running to the next level. I look forward to helping you discover the many benefits of strength training in your running.
If you are interested in working with any of us, head over to our coaching page and fill out our contact us form! We have multiple options for coaching so check it out!
Excited for this new adventure. Excited to continue to elevate women in the coaching space. Excited to keep helping more athletes chase goals, big or small!
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-The Run4ACozz Coaching Team