Having enjoyed coaching rugby, Lisa Llewellyn decided to get involved with triathlon coaching as she discovered more about the sport and the ways she can help other people to stay fit and be physically active.
“I started triathlon about ten years ago,” commented Llewellyn. “I had two young children so started running regularly, then I got the urge to learn how to swim properly and then I started to think ‘I fancy doing a triathlon’.
“I met some other people locally that were starting on their triathlon journey so we started Mendip Tri Club and it all went from there really.”
Llewellyn had previously played rugby to a high standard before turning to coaching the sport. It was this experience that gave her the urge to qualify as a triathlon coach as she got more involved in swim, bike, run and Mendip Tri Club grew.
“When I gave up rugby and my children started playing, I went into coaching and gained my coaching qualification,” Llewellyn said. “I really enjoyed coaching. It spurred me and made me think how I really, really enjoy this side of sport.
“From my passion for the strength and conditioning side of sport I went on to do my level one and level two strength and conditioning qualifications. Being a busy, single mum of four, coaching provides great flexibility so I can fit it around my kids and the school day.
“As the years have gone on with me doing triathlon and getting more involved with making Mendip Tri Club more of a training club rather than a social tri club, it felt like a natural progression for me to go on and do my level two tri coaching.”
The British Triathlon coaching pathway enables coaches to learn and develop coaching skills to support others and improve their coaching. The entry-level, level one course enables coaches to lead and deliver pre-planned sessions or plan basic sessions on their own which are reviewed by a higher level coach.
However, like Llewellyn, coaches with existing qualifications in other sports or higher education can jump straight to level two if they meet certain requirements.
“I already had quite a lot of group coaching from rugby,” Llewellyn added. “I got my level two triathlon coaching qualification in-between lockdowns last year having been steadily doing more and more and being mentored by other coaches locally who have been a great help.
“I don’t look at coaching as being top-end, I try and make it inclusive for everybody. That’s what I enjoy about it because triathlon can appeal to so many fitnesses, sizes of people, anybody can do a triathlon if they train for it.
“That reward of seeing people be able to do a sport that, especially if they have young kids at home, they can do for themselves and mental health is a really big part of my coaching, I try and make sure it is fun. I put fun as quite high on my priorities.
“You don’t have to be at the top of your sport to be a coach, you can learn that. Your people skills need to be priority, you need to be able to communicate with people and have empathy and be able to form a bond with people so that they trust you. Anybody can become a coach if they want to help people.”
Llewellyn is still regularly involved in taking part in triathlon races for herself and is able to balance her own training alongside coaching others in strength and conditioning and at Mendip Tri Club.
If you’re interested in getting involved with coaching and are looking for level one courses in the South West, checkout the course finder on the button below.
