Meet Coach Alison Freeman
Hi, I’m Alison. 👋🏻
I found triathlon in 2010, in my late 30s, after finally coming up for air from having had three kids in three years. I’d spent a couple of years completely focused on them — three tiny humans can be very demanding — and I was ready to do something for myself. I’d run a few marathons in my 20s and was looking for something like that, but something new. I’d swum growing up and had taken spin classes for years, so I figured: why not triathlon?
I was looking for a goal. Triathlon turned out to be everything.
After years of watching my babies turn into toddlers and children while everything I did was doomed to be repeated within 2 to 72 hours, I was finally moving forward and hitting milestones of my own. Triathlon created structure for my days, weeks, and months, and an ebb and flow for my years. And as it turns out, no one can ask you what’s for dinner while you’re swimming laps.
From Self-Coached Athlete to Coach
I wouldn’t have known this was the right label at the time, but I started off self-coaching. I read and researched and planned out my entire first season down to each workout, based on periodization and fitness development principles. I love a project, I love planning and having a plan, and I love structure — and creating that season plan felt really natural and comfortable. I kept self-coaching, I kept learning, and I started writing training plans for friends.
Then, in 2014, we moved to Boulder, Colorado — the Mecca of triathlon and endurance sports — and I was in a career transition. I left a small business behind in the move and knew I needed to find something new. I loved the idea of talking about triathlon all day, so I decided to go “full Boulder” and become a triathlon coach.
At the time, I thought coaching was mostly about writing a plan and getting athletes to follow it. And that’s a piece of it — but there’s so much more. Coaching is about educating and teaching. It’s about helping athletes find balance between what they want to do and what they also want to do and what they have to do. It’s about helping people discover their athletic potential and — just as importantly — see that growth in themselves. My athletes, especially my beginners, are often transformed by their journey through triathlon and through sport. Being a part of that journey is an incredible privilege.
The Résumé (Since You Asked)
I’m a USA Triathlon Level III Certified Coach and co-founder of NYX Endurance, where I specialize in coaching beginner and intermediate long-course triathletes — the middle- and back-of-the-pack athletes who are chasing goals that are every bit as meaningful as anything happening at the front of the race.
Over the past decade, I’ve coached nearly 100 athletes across more than 400 finish lines — from first-ever sprints to full-distance Ironman finishes. Those numbers include 58 first-time distance finish lines, five athletes finishing a full-distance race after a prior DNF, and many well-earned IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship and USA Triathlon Age Group Nationals qualifications.
I’ve been a USA Triathlon certified coach since 2015 (Level I), earned my Level II in 2019, and completed my Level III certification — the highest available — in 2026. I’ve also competed in nearly 40 triathlons myself, including six Ironman and 15 half-distance triathlons, and have qualified for USA Triathlon Nationals five times. In 2021, I finished fourth in my age group at IRONMAN Texas.
As a writer, I’ve published over 50 articles at Triathlete.com covering training, skill development, and the athlete mindset — and you can find many of them on the Articles page of this site.
By the Finish Lines
I have coached athletes across ...
- 60 Sprint-Distance Finishes (3 firsts, 4 personal bests)
- 84 Olympic-Distance Finishes (11 firsts, 7 personal bests)
- 154 Half-Distance Finishes (17 firsts, 27 personal bests)
- 54 Full-Distance Finishes (20 firsts, 5 finishes after DNFs, 13 personal bests)
- 49 Half-Marathon, Marathon, and Ultra-Marathon finishes (5 first, 3 personal bests)
Why I Wrote This Book
This book actually fell into my lap. Not kidding. In August 2024, I received an incredible email from an acquisitions editor at Human Kinetics who was looking for an author for a beginner triathlon training book. My jaw dropped, and my brain flashed YES. If I was going to write any book ever, this was definitely the one. This is where my coaching voice shines the brightest, and it’s a perfect fit for my coaching and my writing.
Beyond that, this is a chance for me to create a bit of a coaching legacy. One of the incredible joys of coaching is watching athletes cross deeply meaningful finish lines and knowing that I played a part in getting them there. If I can reach more people through this book — be a part of helping more athletes cross more finish lines and achieve these profoundly meaningful goals — that would be one helluva legacy.
