Caleb Sweeting – Runner

“Runner” was certainly not a word Caleb Sweeting would have used to describe himself for the first twenty years of his life. In fact, sport had never been a priority for the accomplished Digital Producer and talented writer. However, despite many successes in other areas of life, Caleb can’t hold back a smile as he recounts the moment he proudly crossed the finish line of his first half marathon in front of family and friends.

Caleb began running with some friends in early 2019. The group was following some free online programs, and having some fun doing so. However, it wasn’t long before Caleb found he needed more guidance, and perhaps even more motivation to achieve some personal goals he had in mind. It was his girlfriend’s mum who recognised the need for Caleb to seek an improved training environment, and she recommended RunAsOne. Caleb is forced to admit that this advice fell on reluctant ears to begin with, but it wasn’t long before he worked up the confidence to take his goals, and join the group at RunAsOne for his first training session in July this year. Caleb was so relieved to find a range of different levels of runners, and a group motto of leaving no one behind! Soon after, he experienced something he certainly never expected. Caleb started to experience a level of support from his new training partners that made him feel as though they cared as much for his goals, as they did their own - He was hooked!

What followed was a consistent period of training. Guided by coaches Riley Cocks and Izzi Batt-Doyle, Caleb was able to progressively increase his training from 18km in the first week, to nearly 40km by week 10 of the 15 week, carefully constructed program. He cites the tempo run as his favourite session, and one from which he gained a lot of confidence during this particular training block. Unfortunately, Caleb did suffer a small setback that threatened his chances of toeing the line for his goal event at the McLaren Vale Running Festival. A foot and calf complication had Caleb convinced that he couldn’t run. Incredibly, it was as a result of this setback, that Caleb was able to experience the true strength of the support network he had accumulated during his time at RunAsOne. Coach Riley Cocks, and Physiotherapist training partner Scott Smith put their experienced minds together to come up with a solution, and reignite Caleb’s confidence in his body to achieve what he so richly deserved.

With some time now to reflect on his eventual success at the half marathon distance, Caleb has been able to sit down with his coaches and set some new goals. The confidence he has in the people around him is clear to see, as the energy from his body language combines with an excited tone of voice to inform me of his new goals for time and distance. In this same tone, he preaches the importance of planning and preparation for achieving personal goals. He can’t thank his coaches Riley and Izzi enough for their support in both preparation and on race day, and would highly recommend RunAsOne coaching to runners of all levels.