Noel Bautista – San Francisco Running Coach
From: $100.00 / month and a $19.00 sign-up fee
Experienced running coach, specialized in helping experienced runners surpass goals & new runners learn their potential.
Description
San Francisco running coach Noel Bautista works with beginner to advanced runners, whether you’re just starting out and building up volume, or you’re looking to get past a plateau and hit a new PR, Noel incorporates personalized training with commitment and consistency to help you nail your next goal. Reach out below to get started!
LEVELS: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
TYPES: Road, Track, Trail
DISTANCES: 5k/10k/Half Marathon, Marathon, Ultra
TRAINING PLATFORM: Final Surge
TRAINING PLAN: Individual, customized training plan
COMMUNICATION: Unlimited email, unlimited phone, unlimited text
RESPONSE TIME: Within 24 hours
LOCATION: South San Francisco, CA
IN-PERSON SESSIONS: No, online coaching only
SPECIALTIES
- Advanced Runners: I design race-specific workouts for club and USATF athletes targeting PRs in distances from 5K to Marathon. My approach includes fine tuning pace work and race-day strategies that have helped my athletes consistently improve their performances.
- Beginner Runners: I specialize in welcoming newer runners to the sport with patience, structure, and encouragement. From my work with high school cross country and track athletes, I’ve learned how to build confidence and fitness from the ground up, helping new runners develop healthy habits, avoid injuries, and fall in love with the process.
- Returning or Plateaued Runners: Stuck chasing the same PR? Whether you’re navigating injury recovery, burnout, or need a smarter training plan, I’ll help you reset, rebuild, and refocus.. getting you back to your best.
PHILOSOPHY
My coaching philosophy centers around three core pillars that lead to long-term progress:
- Commitment – It starts with choosing a goal that excites and challenges you. Whether it’s your first 5K or a sub-3 marathon, I meet you where you are and coach you toward where you want to go, with full belief in your potential.
- Consistency – Progress isn’t built in a week, it’s built in showing up week after week. I’ll help you stay on track and adapt your training when life gets in the way, so you never lose momentum.
- Fuel – Great training only goes so far without good recovery and nutrition. We’ll explore what works best for your body to support energy, endurance, and post-run recovery. I coach the whole runner, not just the weekly mileage.
COACHING EXPERIENCE
I began coaching runners in 2022 through Excelsior Running Club, helping teammates build toward their racing goals. In 2023, I stepped into the role of Head Coach for Cross Country at a local high school, and soon after, Head Coach for Track & Field. These roles taught me how to guide athletes of varying experience levels, from total beginners to competitive racers, and to adjust training to meet individual needs.
Now, I combine club, school, and personal coaching experience to provide personalized online coaching that’s structured, supportive, and results-driven.
ABOUT ME
I didn’t grow up a runner, I found the sport later in life. I ran my first 5K at 26, and something clicked. The runner’s high got me hooked, and within a year I set a big goal: finish a marathon. I crossed that first finish line in 3:35 and I haven’t looked back since.
Running changed my life. It taught me how far I could go when I committed to the process. Now, as a coach, I love helping others unlock that same potential—whether it’s your first race or your fastest.
BIG INFLUENCES
One of the biggest influences in my coaching journey has been working 1-on-1 with elite runner and coach CJ Albertson. Through his guidance, I improved my half marathon time from 1:25 to 1:19, and my marathon time from 3:35 to 2:38. That transformation showed me firsthand the power of intentional, individualized coaching and inspired me to provide that same level of care to the athletes I coach today.
RACING HISTORY
In my 10+ years of racing, I’ve learned that progress isn’t linear and that even “bad” races play a vital role in growth. I started as a casual runner with no structured training. Over time, with guidance and consistency, I transformed into a competitive athlete with PRs I once thought were impossible.
Every step of my journey has given me the tools to guide others: the thrill of the breakthrough, the frustration of the plateau, and the satisfaction of steady progress. Now, I coach with empathy, expertise, and a deep belief that every runner has more in them than they think.
PRs
- 1 mile – 4:59 (2019)
- 5k – 16:57 (2022)
- 10k – 33:29 (2024)
- Half marathon – 1:16:39 (2023)
- Marathon – 2:38:04 (2023)
CERTIFICATIONS
- RRCA Certified Running Coach
CONTACT NOEL
Finding a coach who is a great fit for you is really important. We encourage you to email your coach prior to signing up so you can connect, communicate, and ensure a good athlete/coach fit.
Victor Skorapa –
I started working with Noel a few months ago. Noel has helped me navigate balancing training for a variety of distancess, ranging from 5k to 50k, with a busy work schedule, all while avoiding injury, beating goals, and breaking my 50K personal record. In addition to a busy work schedule, I like to do club runs and long bike rides. Noel has helped me to incorporate these into my training plan all while still improving running performance. Noel has been great about communication and timeliness. Once I give him my work schedule, planned club runs for the week, and any upcoming races, he has a training plan prepped within half a day. I am happy with my results working with Noel thus far.
Sergii Vasyliev –
Working with coach Noel for over 2 months now. I’m a 40+ competitive male runner, struggling with achilles pains for the last year.
Noel helps me to navigate between workouts and races, achieve my goals and recover properly to avoid injuries. Currently we are chasing ambitious goal to improve my HM PR by a minute. Some background: I was never part of a track or XC team in my HS/college years and I never trained with a coach before.
My challenge is to navigate between ‘bad’ days, when achilles hurts even walking and keep participating in races at around my top speed to keep the fitness level. We use Final Surge web site for workouts and it works great. It automatically syncs with Garmin and Strava. I set my racing calendar to about month ahead. But I have freedom to decide on the race the day before. Noel defines the next week’s schedule, including rest days and bike days (I like cycling for my rest/recovery days). Schedule is flexible and I can switch days, but Noel usually insists on not skipping the days but rather shuffle them around to keep the work load. I’m actually amazed, that I’m able to race and keep the fitness and recover my ankle at the same time. On some workouts we exchange messages on what can be improved. When I complain about fatigue, Noel restructures the week to ease the mileage and have easier intervals. He is also accessible by other means of communication too.
Overall, I’m pretty happy with my accomplishments and how this is going