Run Your Potential

WHY COACHING?

I’m a firm believer that everyone has an inner athlete that can be unlocked. When you train properly you strengthen the body, the mind and set yourself up for performance gains that surpass expectations.

Some are able to figure things out on their own through trial and error but having a great coach is often necessary to get you to the next level and beyond. Ideally your coach will have the experience to see the overall picture, the patience to focus on incremental growth over many cycles and understand your individual strengths and weaknesses in order to make corrections that lead to big improvements.

I’m committed to helping people reach their potential and looking for motivated, goal oriented individuals that are searching for direction and assistance in their running and racing.

TESTIMONIALS

Shane W.

“You are a miracle worker, I look like an actual runner.”

Just watched the old and new videos. You are a miracle worker, I look like an actual runner. I also forgot that used to run knee braces. I knew my foot was coming down on the side but didn’t know it was that much. I also thought that I was landing in front of me instead of under me. Looks like that is not the case. I’m glad the video shows that.

Thanks, again

Giovanni P. – Dallas, TX

“I’ve worked with a lot of coaches in my early running years and I really feel like coach John is one of the best coaches out there”

I ran in High School for two years and four years in college – both track and XC. I was a decent runner in college but when I finally started putting things together in the last few months of my college career I lost the motivation to run when I started working full time. Then I took a very long break and didn’t run a step until I was in my early 30s and was very inactive and unhealthy. Since I started running again I lost over 50lbs and my times are starting to get close to what I ran in college. I ran my first marathon in November ’08 in 3:03. It was miserable ending in a death march and I had no intentions of running another marathon, but my wife found out that it was a Boston qualifying time and she encouraged me to give Boston a try in ’09 since she went to Wellesley and had good memories of the race from her college years. Before Boston I picked up the training a bit and ran a 2:39, which was way better than I expected going into that race. That race about destroyed me though and it took me six weeks to recover so I decided to focus on half marathons for a while and showed some potential at the distance with 4 PR’s in a row and eventually dropped my time to 1:10:57. This year I changed my focus back to the marathon and I started the year with a 2:32 at Houston. [Gio ran a PR 2:29:04 at the Carmel Marathon in 2013 and a PR 1:09:21 Half in Indianapolis in 2012 – Ed.] I’ve worked with a lot of coaches in my early running years and I really feel like coach John is one of the best coaches out there. I’m glad to be a part of this group!

Christian B. – Istanbul, Turkey

“Today I’m in the best running shape of my life”

I got back into running about 6 years ago… 39 years old, out of shape, 192 lbs, with borderline high cholesterol levels and some chronic ITB and knee issues. The pivotal event triggering my running revival happened at a family reunion. I got on the treadmill next to my sister and was not being able to go more than ¼ mile without getting out of breath. I committed to myself that I would get myself into better shape before my 40th birthday. Today I’m in the best running shape of my life. Knock on wood. Just completed my 13th marathon and ran a PR of 3:20:20, accomplishing my BQ goal. Coach John has given me superb advice and leads by example.

Jenny Y. – Seal Beach, CA

“Immediately training with a coach was so different….He taught me to run in a “disciplined” manner“

I ran my first marathon in 2009 without a clue. I didn’t drink water till mile 18, threw the GU that was being given away because I had no idea what it was and basically crawled to the finish. I swore up and down I would never do another one again….but yup….you all know the story. I met coach on one of my long runs in Huntington Beach. I spot “speedy” runners right away. I ended up stretching right where he parked his car and to my surprise this “speedy” guy started talking to me! I was so excited. He told me a little bit about himself and his coaching. I told my husband immediately about him and he told me to sign up. I was not sure how “serious” I wanted to be about this whole running thing. After my 6th marathon…. I was frustrated. I missed the BQ by 4 min….but more than anything I was tired of hitting the wall at 22 miles. My husband surprised me with a mother’s day present and signed up with coach for my next marathon. Immediately training with a coach was so different. I think everything I was doing was wrong. He taught me to run in a “disciplined” manner and more than anything he gave me the courage that I could not only BQ but actually do better. I ran Foot Traffic Flat in Oregon in 2011 and BQ’ed with a 3:39. Better than I ever imagined! So…..now I’m training for Boston. Excited….super nervous….Hopefully I can meet more of you on those Back Bay runs!

Matt H. – Irvine, CA

” …gave me the encouragement and mental toughness needed to run a successful race”

Working with John Loftus was one of the single biggest contributing factors to my recent success in the OC Marathon where I achieved a new PR by more than 7 minutes and met my goal of qualifying for the Boston Marathon with a time of 3:19:23! John worked with me to create a customized training program that took my fitness, my schedule, and my goals into mind which allowed me to “run my potential.”

One of the things I enjoyed most about working with John was the ability to stay in touch with him throughout my training to get his feedback, to adjust my schedule and routine, and to answer any questions I had about workouts. In addition to the customized workouts and focus on building up my mileage in such a way as to avoid injury, John also did a great job of giving me the encouragement and mental toughness needed to run a successful race.

I have said to many friends that the two biggest things I took away from John’s training program were the endurance and confidence I needed to breakthrough those physically and mentally challenge miles every runner encounters in the marathon. I am looking forward to working with John on my upcoming 5k-10k season and would encourage any runner who wants to “run their potential” to talk with John about creating a custom program for them.