5 minutes with Rockies coach Zongamele Dyubeni

Not everyone knows that Rockies has its own experienced coach, who is available to all members. Whether you want to improve your times, or run further, Zongamele Dyubeni is the one who can guide you there, at no cost to our members. While he’s brilliant at guiding many of our elite runners, he’s comfortable with and able to coach novices, and runners of all levels.

Here Zongamele answers some of our questions:

What have you recently won in your veterans category?

I won the Old Eds 10km, the Wanderers 10km and the Dischem 21km.

What are some of your qualifications?

Aside from being a qualified coach, I’m also a CGA board member and an ASA commission member.

What is your best marathon time?

2.16.08

What has been your fastest 5km time trial on the Rockies course?

15.46

How did you start running?

I used to play soccer in Orlando, and met some runners who encouraged me to start. I ran my first race in 1998, and then started training with Hendrik Ramaala. I joined Rockies in 213.

What is your typical training schedule?

I run about 18km to 22km every morning, and on weekends I’ll do club runs or around 45km in the Southgate area. I do gym at home – core work and strengthening exercises.

What do you eat before a long run or race?

Brown bread and peanut butter, and oats before shorter distances.

What would a typical training programme that you give to someone include?

Long runs, interval training, and recovery.

What is your best training advice?

Don’t try anything new on race day, train hard to race easy, and prepare and plan well for races.

How does one get in touch with you for coaching, and what would one expect from a training programme?

I can be emailed at [email protected], or you can phone me on 073 266 1752. Before giving out a training programme, I would assess each runner’s goals, and current fitness levels. That would be the starting point, and from there I will give a training programme. There is always communication and check-ins, and I’m always there to support and advise.

Would you like to be featured on our website? We’d love to feature more Rockies runners here. If you’re interested, please email us here.