Coach Rachel Schilkowsky
Hi there! Rachel Schilkowsky here! A native of upstate New York, I now live in Providence, Rhode Island with my husband, John, and our two young children, Charlotte and Thomas. I graduated from Cornell University in 2014 with my bachelors in Biological Engineering and Masters in Mechanical Engineering. Currently, I work as a project manager at an orthopaedic research facility. Originally a soccer player, I transitioned to running my sophomore year of high school and never looked back. Although I had a relatively successful high school career, it wasn't until halfway through my collegiate career that things really came together. During my final two years, I earned a total of five All-American honors in the 3000m Steeplechase and Cross Country. I was also a three-time Ivy League Champion and set the Ivy League record in the 3000m Steeplechase with my personal best time of 9:43. Since graduating, I have continued to compete in track and cross country while also delving into the world of road racing. In 2018, I placed 9th at the USATF Cross Country Championships and was selected to represent Team USA at the NACAC Cross Country Championships in El Salvador. Later that fall, I ran my first marathon at the Hartford Marathon. I won and qualified for the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials. |
Coach Rachel and Coach Katie competing for Cornell University.
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COACHING & EDUCATION BACKGROUND:
I have been self-coached since graduating from Cornell, an experience which has been challenging, yet rewarding and which has taught me so much about myself. My first foray into coaching someone else came in 2017 when I began writing mile/3k track workouts for John, who I still coach to this day. A year later, I launched a small, online coaching company and began working with athletes from across the country who were training for everything from the 5k to the marathon. Here are the key components of my training philosophy:
Personalization: For some coaches, personalization means selecting a pre-made training plan based on just the number of weeks in the buildup and target weekly mileage. To me, though, personalization means a whole lot more than that. In addition to buildup length and mileage, your personal training plan will take several other key factors into consideration, including: family/work commitments, injury history, access to facilities and equipment, opportunities to train with others, and desired race frequency. Have to do many of your runs with a stroller? Fine by me – I will account for that added effort and adjust your target pace and/or mileage accordingly. Find yourself with more free-time during the week than on the weekend? No worries – I will shift your training to place longer, harder efforts during the week and shorter, easier ones on the weekend. Live in a place where it snows heavily during the winter months? Not a problem – I will design workouts that can be safely and effectively completed on the treadmill. By taking all these important factors into consideration, I will do my best to create a truly personalized training plan that fits both your personality and lifestyle.
Flexibility: Having a plan that provides structure and purpose to your training will certainly make you a better runner, but knowing how and when to adjust that plan is what will allow you to perform at your very best. The truth is, no training cycle is ever going to go 100% according to the original plan. Running – and life in general – just doesn’t work like that. My job as your coach is to help you navigate the inevitable hiccups in training and make the tough, but necessary decisions. Whatever the situation, I will work to create a new plan that keeps you moving towards your overall goal, while ensuring you can focus on what’s most important: your health, your family, your livelihood, and your general well-being.
Quality Over Quantity: One of the most common misconceptions in running is: "the more I do, the better I will be". My goal as your coach is to design training plans which optimize your training efforts rather than simply maximize them. For some, that may mean lowering your mileage, but working to increase the intensity of your workouts and long runs. For others, that could mean scaling back the frequency of workouts while experimenting with higher mileage. By focusing on quality rather than quantity, I will aim to create a training plan that is both efficient and effective, allowing you to reap the full benefit of all the hard work you put in.
Personalization: For some coaches, personalization means selecting a pre-made training plan based on just the number of weeks in the buildup and target weekly mileage. To me, though, personalization means a whole lot more than that. In addition to buildup length and mileage, your personal training plan will take several other key factors into consideration, including: family/work commitments, injury history, access to facilities and equipment, opportunities to train with others, and desired race frequency. Have to do many of your runs with a stroller? Fine by me – I will account for that added effort and adjust your target pace and/or mileage accordingly. Find yourself with more free-time during the week than on the weekend? No worries – I will shift your training to place longer, harder efforts during the week and shorter, easier ones on the weekend. Live in a place where it snows heavily during the winter months? Not a problem – I will design workouts that can be safely and effectively completed on the treadmill. By taking all these important factors into consideration, I will do my best to create a truly personalized training plan that fits both your personality and lifestyle.
Flexibility: Having a plan that provides structure and purpose to your training will certainly make you a better runner, but knowing how and when to adjust that plan is what will allow you to perform at your very best. The truth is, no training cycle is ever going to go 100% according to the original plan. Running – and life in general – just doesn’t work like that. My job as your coach is to help you navigate the inevitable hiccups in training and make the tough, but necessary decisions. Whatever the situation, I will work to create a new plan that keeps you moving towards your overall goal, while ensuring you can focus on what’s most important: your health, your family, your livelihood, and your general well-being.
Quality Over Quantity: One of the most common misconceptions in running is: "the more I do, the better I will be". My goal as your coach is to design training plans which optimize your training efforts rather than simply maximize them. For some, that may mean lowering your mileage, but working to increase the intensity of your workouts and long runs. For others, that could mean scaling back the frequency of workouts while experimenting with higher mileage. By focusing on quality rather than quantity, I will aim to create a training plan that is both efficient and effective, allowing you to reap the full benefit of all the hard work you put in.