FX Multisport Coaching - Interview with Robyn Wilham

Back in January we caught up with Robyn Wilham, founder of FX Multisport Coaching and all-around badass triathlete, to hear about how she got into triathlon, why she started FX Multisport Coaching, and why you need to be signing up for the upcoming Ironman Chattanooga training camp.


Thanks for the time Robyn!


TB: You have a pretty great resume on both the athlete and coach side of the house. Tell us a little bit about how you got started racing triathlon.

RW: So back in 2002 I started training for the Sportsbarn Sprint and the reason why I had picked up swimming and biking was because I had a case of shin splints from running too much. I was at the track out in Collegedale and I just did not feel good. I was about a month out from the triathlon and come to find out I was pregnant with my 2nd daughter. So I didn’t end up doing that race but I did it the following year when I was three months post-partum and that’s where I got started with triathlon. I was hooked at that point. After that, you want to get faster and you want to go further, and so 5 years later I ended up doing my first Ironman in Coeur d’Alene. Since then, it has just progressively became more a part of my life. That was 15 years ago now and the reason I really got into triathlon was to get back in shape after having my daughter.

RW: I didn’t grow up an athlete. I was 25 years old. I taught myself to swim and then I would wake up on Tuesday mornings and drive 40 minutes downtown to Dick Dillard’s triathlon swim class. My husband and I bought bikes from East Ridge Bicycles and rode together. The first time we rode 20 miles we thought we conquered the world. That’s an activity we still enjoy doing together today. The running was just something I did 5 miles here, 5 miles there. Something I had always done just to stay in shape.

TB: In 2017 you raced both the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga as well as the Ironman World Championship in Kona. Most of us dream of qualifying for just one of those. Can you give us just a quick recap of what it is like to race on such a grand stage?

RW: I raced both the World Championship here in Chattanooga and Kona. There’s a lot of energy so that’s really the biggest thing I can remember. Everything is just very alive. You have thousands of people that are just turned on, they’re amped, they’re energized, motivated, inspired, and all at the peak of their fitness. Kona was amazing and it was everything I had ever dreamt it to be and more.


RW: I could not have planned it better. Anything and everything I could have wanted to happen, happened but racing worlds here in Chattanooga, on my home turf, in my front yard, now that was amazing. When they first announced Ironman was going to be in Chattanooga it was like Christmas. To be able to actually qualify for it and race it was pretty epic.



TB: That was an amazing year.

RW: It really was a good year. I really enjoyed both of the races immensely. Them being so close together, only 6 weeks apart, I probably didn’t have peak fitness for either race. I was training long for Kona when I did the half and there wasn’t enough time between the half and the full.

TB: How was meeting Mark Allen? I hear he was a pretty decent triathlete.

RW: That’s funny because months before Kona I was trail running out here on Bauxite Ridge and listening to the Rich Roll and Mark Allen podcast and I remember going on to twitter that day and tweeting to Mark Allen “I can’t wait to meet you in Kona” and then it really happened!

Check Out the Podcast Here

RW: When I was at the AWA Gold breakfast he was there, literally as close as you are to me. So I got to talk to him and give him a hug. Then, I was walking on the street later that day and he walked by and said “Hey Robyn!” and waived to me. I’m totally a Mark Allen fan. Later that day he gave the opening ceremony speech.


TB: Last year you were part of the Betty Squad, a badass women’s triathlon team focused around the Betty Designs clothing brand (#BadAssIsBeautiful). Can you tell us more about that team and what it means to you to be a part of it?

RW: I have been a part of the Betty Designs team going on 3 years and I love the all women camaraderie that we have. I’ve been on several teams over the years and in fact, I event created my own team once, Mystique Women’s Race Team. I like this spirit of Betty Designs because Kristin Mayer designs all of the clothing. How she started the brand and got it off the ground is very much the spirit of what “being a Betty” is. You know, having a dream and following your passion. So that’s what we do for each other. We motivate and support each other across the globe. It’s worldwide.

https://www.bettydesigns.com/collections/all

TB: Are there Betty’s in Tennessee?

RW: There are a few in Memphis. Kristin cut the team this year because it got a little too big last year. I was invited to be 1 of 14 Betty’s to be on the Elite team. No pressure. That is definitely something that keeps me on my game. I probably wouldn’t’ be going to the track today after our interview if I didn’t have that pressure on my shoulders. I have to represent Betty, and my teammates, and I have to be the best version of myself. That is what being a Betty Squad member is all about, supporting each other and doing epic shit!

TB: What is Loadebar?

RW: Loadebar is one of my sponsors and they are fantastic. They are made just 3 miles from here. It’s an organic, all-natural, whole food energy bar. It is vegan and gluten free, so it meets all of the criteria for us healthy people. It also provides about 280 calories of pure food energy. I eat one every day right before my workouts. That’s how I utilize the energy. I love the fact that it’s made local and I know the family that makes it and I go over to the bakery and watch them make it. They make 2 different flavors, with chocolate and one without chocolate.

TB: What is your podium for top 3 races in Tennessee?

RW: Well I’m going to be partial to Chattanooga races..Ironman 70.3 Chattanooga, Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon, and Ironman Chattanooga.

TB: Are you doing any of those races this year?

RW: I am not doing the Ironman events. I am possibly doing Waterfront. It’s a good race and I loved it last year. I won my age group.

TB: What is the TN tri scene missing?

RW: We need more off-road triathlons. I think that would be nice. We need more collaboration between coaches and teams and less cut-throat competitiveness. I am a huge believer in working together rather than against and I would like to see more of that. I don’t like to see when people go behind your back and take your athletes from you or talk bad about you behind your back. I’ve been in the triathlon industry for 15 years and I’ve seen it all. It’s the same people over and over. Can we not just all get along?

TB: What made you want to start FX Multisport?

RW: I have been coaching unofficially, without it being my profession, for a while, mentoring I guess you could say. I coached high school cross country and everything I was doing was free work. Eventually it starts to wear on you because it’s all of this energy going out to people, which I love to do. My husband encouraged me to become a coach for a long time and I just always had something going on. I was getting my degree online, or I was training for Ironman, or a new job and I never thought it would work with what I was doing. I graduated from college and got my Bachelors in nursing and to celebrate I bought myself an Ironman ticket. I went and raced and finished it and I realized “I’m ready”.  I was supposed to go to CNRA School and I decided I was not going to do that. I decided to become a coach because I really do have a passion for the sport. They say if you do what you love than it doesn’t feel like work and it’s a service that I can provide to people and now I use that service to also supplement my income. So I turned it into a business. That’s how that all happened.


RW: I work as a nurse so I see a lot of illness on the backend. We treat a lot of sickness and unhealthy people. As a coach I get to meet people on the front end and provide life altering services like encouraging exercise and healthy eating, lifestyle changes. That is why I love the sport of triathlon and being a coach, because I get to see the transformation when people actually do the work and they feel the rewards and the confidence that comes from it by meeting their goals. All of that is so rewarding and it prevents the end result where I see them in the hospital.

TB: It seems like everyone is getting their coaching license these days.

RW: I agree. I opened my business the winter before they announced Ironman Chattanooga, so the timing was perfect. I got my foot in the door before all of that took place and I learned a lot in the process because the first year I exploded. I have over 30 athletes. I had 30 athletes finish Ironman Chattanooga that first year and I learned where my limits are and how to provide a good service as opposed to just providing a service. I do see that pretty much anyone that wants to, or thinks they can become a coach is going to do that and that is fine. I wish them all well. Coaches are like churches. You’ll see one on every corner because everybody wants something different. I do believe there are enough athletes in this world to fill all of our needs and that is why I don’t believe in the cutthroat actions that sometimes occur. Just play nice.

TB: Tell us about how you came up with the name.

RW: When I was trying to come up with a name for my coaching business I originally came up with Moxie Multisport. It turns out there’s already one of those. I didn’t realize that the owner contacted me and said “you know, you can’t do this”, even though it was spelled differently and in a different area. I had already set up my website, but you know that was fine. I’m not here to make enemies. So I changed it and I had to come up with something rather quickly. To me FX was just very eye catching. You see it and it’s easy to assimilate. It means functional exercise, which is what we do. Everything has a purpose. It is high vis so I can put a huge FX in bright pink or bright yellow and people are going to see it without having to think too much about it. It’s not attached to my name so if I ever sold to someone I could do that. If I wanted to travel to CA or HI, it’s not tied to Chattanooga. So those were my reasons.

TB: Should everyone have a coach?

RW: No I don’t think so. I think a lot of athletes, especially beginner athletes can find their way into entry level races without having coaches. There are plenty of online services and plans. Where I think a coach comes in and is necessary is that 90 to 100 percent that your lacking, where you want to make the most gains possible and take it to the next level. So let’s say someone has been doing triathlon for a few years. They figured out all of the gear and other stuff on their own but then they start to plateau. That is when it is time to start considering getting a coach or if you’re racing a full Ironman. I really think that if you’re going to do a full distance Ironman that you’re going to have so many questions and there are hundreds of different answers out there for you. It is just stimulation overload. It is what you’re eating, what you are drinking, what you are thinking. You can’t be present for your family and kids because you’re thinking about whether or not you did the right workout or if you’re recovering well. With a coach you can detach from all of that and just do your workout and move on.

TB: Tell us more about the Ironman Chattanooga training camp. (4/13/18 - 4/15/18)



RW: Quintana Roo is sponsoring it this year. We are going to have packet pickup on Friday night at the QR facility where they make the bikes. That’s a little bit of a social event. We will talk about the weekend and give out the race packets. Saturday morning we meet at Ross’ Landing and we get on the boat, White Lightening, and we will swim the swim course. It is up to the athletes on whether they want to do the full course or 25 yards of the course, whatever. We will have support on the water. Then we will break for people to change, shower, etc and we will regroup for a run. Early afternoon we will run the course. We will have water stations set up on the course. The camp is 6 weeks out from race date so it’s the perfect opportunity to a big volume training weekend. We do a social event Saturday night at Fast Break. We will talk about the latest shoes

TB: Their new store is awesome!
Photo Credit: Fast Break Facebook

RW: Yes, it is. There will be a Q&A that night and then we will provide some refreshments and some food. Heaven and Ale Brewery is right next door and people can go to after if they want. One of the other sponsors is the Glace Cyrotherapy. They are going to open up for us and let the athletes get cryotherapy. Sunday we will ride the course and we will have support from East Ridge Bicycles. That is pretty much it. There will be a discussion time, maybe Friday or Saturday, where we talk about the athlete guide and course. We usually have about 25-30 athletes attend the camp. People can sign up for the camp for free if they want to volunteer and there are places on the website to choose your volunteer spot.

RW: The feedback I get from people who have participated in the past is that it is invaluable to have that experience of swimming the race course, being able to site the course, and knowing the landmarks.

Registration closes in less than 2 weeks so make sure you sign up now.

REGISTER HERE!


You can find out more about Robyn and FX Multisport using the links below.

https://www.fxmultisport.com/
https://www.instagram.com/fxmultisport/

FX is fueled and supported by:
http://www.quintanarootri.com/
http://www.glacecryotherapy.com/
http://thewiredcoffeebar.com/
https://www.eastridgebicycles.net/
https://www.loadebar.com/www
https://www.sisusaunastudio.com/

Comments

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