Coach Rachael Warner Sanchez

Road · Beginner to Elite

Specialty: 5K to marathon runners, from first races to BQs, sub 3, and athletes chasing OTQs

Rachael lives and works in north Texas and joined Higher Running in 2021 after being an independent coach for two years. She began her coaching journey in 2008 as a cycling coach before officially becoming a running coach in 2017. During her independent coaching years, she also completed the Revo2Lution Running Certification in 2019. Rachael is also a NASM Certified Personal Trainer and has passed the NASM Certified Nutrition Course (CNC) exam. Since then, she has continued to pursue her own ambitious running goals, including the Marathon Olympic Trials Qualifier and a 75-minute half marathon. Rachael’s athletic performances and coaching started with professional road cycling. She was fortunate to travel the country racing and learning how to be an effective coach to a wide range of people. Her focus transitioned from road cyclist to running when she moved from Virginia to Texas in 2012. Along the way of pursuing her running goals, members of local running clubs inquired about hiring her as a coach. It was an easy yes and has served her well to fine tune her coaching style. Her athletes have found continued success and happiness, setting new goals once the original ones are reached. She has coached everyone from newer runners racing their first events to marathoners dropping from the 2:40s into the 2:30s. Rachael continues to be a steadfast student of running and is pursuing more certifications and educating herself to provide the best possible service to runners.

Rachael’s coaching philosophy stems from the basic idea that it is a privilege to have runners entrust a coach with their running goals. Health and happiness are the most important metrics to coaching success. Her passion for coaching has allowed her to have a strong understanding of how to adapt structured training to one’s unique physiology, and she has learned that the true seeds of coaching success are rooted in open communication and a willingness to work in detail with each person.

Rachael welcomes runners of all levels with goals both big and small, short term and long term. Each athlete receives a fully personalized plan that adjusts as training and life change, detailed feedback in Final Surge on pacing, heart rate, and effort, and guidance on goal setting and race planning. She loves receiving questions and input from the runners she coaches and genuinely loves being kept busy assisting her athletes.

Email: Rachelruns50@gmail.com

Signature Plan: $280/month for a 1 year commitment, $330/month for a month to month commitment (3 month minimum)

Core Plan: $210/month for a 1 year commiment, $260/month for a month to month commitment (3 month minimum)

Follow Rachael:

“I started working with Rachael in the summer of 2023. I had taken up marathoning a few years earlier and, while I’d completed both Chicago and Boston twice, I had never worked with a coach or followed a truly personalized training plan. Instead, I relied on programs I found online. I was happy with my results, but I couldn’t help wondering what I might be capable of with expert guidance.

After a brief conversation with Rachael, I knew she was the right coach to help me take my running to the next level. At the time, I had no idea just how much of an impact she would have.

When we started working together, my somewhat arbitrary goal was to break 2:40 at the Chicago Marathon that fall. I was coming off a strong Boston Marathon, where I had set a new PR of 2:43, so Rachael didn’t try to reinvent the wheel. Instead, she took the time to understand what was already working, then made adjustments and refinements to help me reach my goal. The result was a 2:39:01 finish in Chicago. I was thrilled, but Rachael was quick to remind me that even bigger improvements were ahead.

Under Rachael’s guidance, I went on to set PRs in the 5K, 10K, 10-mile, half marathon, and ultimately the marathon again, where I achieved my biggest breakthrough yet with a 2:34:32 finish.

What I appreciate most about Rachael is her ability to tailor coaching to the individual. She took the time to understand what I enjoyed, what I responded to, and what needed improvement. She adjusted workouts when life got in the way, accommodated vacations and schedule changes, and always found away to keep me progressing toward my goals.

Rachael is an exceptional coach, and I honestly don’t believe I would have come close to achieving these results without her. She combines expertise, flexibility, and genuine investment in her athletes’ success, and I can’t recommend her highly enough.” -Daniel L

“Working with Coach Rachael has been an absolutely transformative experience for my running. She is more than just a coach—she is an insightful partner who genuinely cares about my long-term development and goals. Her detailed, personalized training plans are perfectly balanced, challenging me to improve while always respecting my need for recovery. Thanks to her expert guidance and constant encouragement, I’ve achieved milestones I never thought possible, and I look forward to every training session knowing I have her in my corner. She is truly the best!”

-Mario A.

“Coach Rachel understands her athletes as ‘whole people,’ meaning that running is one aspect of our lives that we want to improve while also juggling many responsibilities. When I was working a lot of hours, it was nice to have a workout plan as something to aspire to and to get me out of my desk chair. Sometimes it was really hard to fit in my workouts, but coach Rachel kept me from completely falling off the rails and losing fitness! When I finally got back into racing, I ran 4 half marathons and improved steadily, which could only be achieved by — the bane of my existence — speed work. Coach Rachel set the intentions, and I slowly began meeting these speed goals. We both know I’m capable of faster times, and when Coach Rachel sets those intentions, it helps me tremendously with the mental side of running.”

-Barb E.

“It’s been incredible training with Rachael! Not only has she helped me break so many PRs but took so much time off all my distances as well. I travel often so it’s great to help her actively adjust my training and fueling to accommodate. Would highly recommend training with her especially if you’re newer to the sport as she has a lot of patience to answer basic questions about running.”

-Triet N

“Rachael has been an incredible coach and I’ve been working with her for well over a year. I’ve been a runner for 15+ years but she has taught me so much, helped me achieve some big PRs, and most of all is responsive and very thoughtful. She really cares about the success of your running and has so much knowledge and experience. If you want to run fast, learn more, and achieve goals that you thought weren’t possible, I’d highly recommend her.”

-John D

“Coach Rachael has been helping me get after my running goals for the past four years. Her training plans have given me a strong foundation through consistent and smart programming. Her guidance has taught me to be kinder to myself and protect my rest, though I’m still a work in progress! I look forward to her celebratory comments when I conquer tough workouts and positive notes when I’m talking about my goals. I’m always excited to see what the next week of running brings. Her coaching has really taken the guesswork out of my training and I totally trust her advice and planning. Over the past four years, running has become an integral part of my life and this is, in huge part, thanks to Coach Rachael!” -Hannah C.

Articles and videos from coach Rachael:

When should we be flexible with our structured training?

Thriving as a Masters Runner

Sauna Training

How to Plan Your Training Around Abnormal Work Hours

How to Run Strong in the Heat