5 Mistakes Self-Coached Runners Make

Coaching yourself? These are the five mistakes we see self-coached runners make most, and they're easier to fall into than you'd think. TJ and Zoë start with a listener question about the best time of day to train. Physiology gives late afternoon a small edge as core temperature and muscle readiness peak, but the real answer is whatever time lets you train consistently. They also cover running in the dark, why one missed workout doesn't matter, and whether evening runs wreck your sleep.Then the list. First, copying the wrong model, including what the HERITAGE family study found when hundreds of people did the identical training program and got wildly different results. Second, the Franken-plan, where a podcast workout, a YouTube session, and a group track night get stitched together with nothing connecting them. Third, training your strengths instead of your limiters, and how to periodize hills, speed, and technical downhills months out from your goal race. Fourth, the planning fallacy, and the research on why we underestimate how long everything takes, even compared to our own worst-case guesses. Fifth, making big training decisions in the wrong emotional state, from post-DNF race sign-ups to the dangers of watching a Billy Yang film on a full stomach.Plus, meet Microcosm coach Skylar, who works with road runners from the mile to the marathon.LinksFoothills community ($10/month, coach calls + Slack community), code FOOTHILLS10: https://microcosm-coaching.comWork with a Microcosm coach, including Coach Skylar: https://microcosm-coaching.comSend us your questions and Hot or Nots: microcosmcoaching@gmail.com