If you want to maximize your training and have the disposable income then yes, a personal cycling coach is the best way for you to achieve your goals.
I have had a personal coach now for 4 months and my fitness has never been better.
Before this I had spent years just riding my bike. Whenever I wanted to shape up for an event I would just search google for things I should be doing.
I considered myself to be pretty knowledgeable when putting together a training plan for myself but after seeing for myself the gains in such a short amount of time, I now know I was just messing around.
As my events would be endurance based most of my training would be to just ride for a long as time allowed. 6-8 hours on a weekend ride would be commonplace.
Ever since getting a coach the longest session he’s had me do so far is 3 hours. I’m sure there will be longer sessions coming but I can see that my endurance has really improved.
For example just a month ago, you could see that the amount my heart rate would rise over a 3 hour period was 12% while keeping the same power.
This is known as cardiac drift. It’s now down to under 2%. This means I will be able to ride for longer without my heartbeat rising quickly, meaning I can keep the power on.
This improvement was not all down to training though. My feeding strategy was way off. It was only by consulting with my coach that this was highlighted to me. Something I wouldn’t have if I was just following a plan. Which leads me on to my next question.
How is having a personal cycling coach better than just buying a cycling plan?
I bought a pre-made cycling plan a few years ago. It was a Sufferfest plan to improve endurance. Keep in mind that this was early days for Sufferfest and I think it’s a much more developed application now.
When I got it, I was given the 8 week plan and a list of videos I had to download in order to follow the plan. All I had was a heart rate monitor and a resistance turbo trainer.
The only problem was that when I was told to “push hard” I didn’t know how hard that was exactly. It was all down to your own perceived exertion but my 7 out of 10 might be a lot harder than someone else’s.
After about 2 weeks I was burnt out and I started skipping session and 3 weeks into it I packed it in.
And before you start pointing out that it would have worked if I had stuck with it, that’s exactly my point. I couldn’t stick with it. Those plans (I’m not just talking about Sufferfest now) will be good for some but are too generic to help everyone.
And because I wasn’t accountable to anyone meant that I could easily skip a session without anyone knowing. Now, if I skip a session, I will have to explain myself so I’m much more motivated to show up.
Being Accountable Can Help You Stay On Track
Just having someone to be accountable to can make a huge difference. In fact I’d go as far as saying that this accountability is what makes me show up every day. It’s like when you plan to meet someone for a ride. You’re much more likely to get to the meeting point on time than if you were just planning a solo ride.
Physical training is only part of it. Motivation is great for getting things started but in order to keep things going you need to have someone there to help.
As I said, I’ve had a coach for 4 months now and I’ve barely missed a session and the time has gone by so fast.
A Coach Can Make A Plan That Suit You
Having a coach means that your plan is much more reactive and tailored to your needs. For example, if you have to take a few days off due to illness then your plan can be adjusted to get back on track.
If I was just following a plan and I lost a week from it I would feel that I would have to start again, or even give up.
Who Is My Coach?
My coach is Niel Copeland from Turn Cycling. I had been following him for a while on YouTube. He competes in races that I’d like to do in the future. He also co-hosts a podcast along with Robbie Ferri of Riding With Robbie. It’s called The Niel and Robbie podcast and I highly recommend a listen if you want to learn more about endurance cycling.
I had no intention of hiring Niel as my coach at this time. Having a personal coach was still something I thought only rich people can have. But when I decided that I finally needed a coach it had to be Niel as he does the type of riding that I want to do, which is ultra endurance.
I recommend you doing the same. Try to find a coach that is interested in the same type of riding you want to do. So if mtb is your game then hire a mtb coach.
I’m not saying Niel wouldn’t be able to coach you in any discipline. But because Niel competes in ultra distance himself then he will be able to advise me more than a coach that just works in making a faster rider.
Niel uses TrainingPeaks to organise my workouts. He could populate 1, 2 or even 3 weeks in advance.
And this is another great thing about using a coach. You can tell them what days do not suit you for training so they can organise the training around your home life.
Anyway, after each workout you can leave a comment on how it went. Niel will analyse your workout to let you know where you can improve for the next one. He may also adjust future workouts if he feels the need.
I also have 24/7 contact with him via WhatsApp. And if that wasn’t enough, he also joins you to the Turn Isolation Ward. A whatsapp group of other athletes that he coaches.
They’re from all different parts of the world and are such a friendly bunch and are a wealth of knowledge in itself.
We’re all competing for something so it’s great to have someone to cheer on in big races like the transcontinental, Race Around The Neatherland, 2 volcano sprint or any of the bikingman events. This in itself is enough to inspire me to train hard because the turn will come when the guys will be cheering me on.
After my event (Race Around Ireland Ultra) is complete I would like to think I would be able to keep him on but it’s early days yet. The truth is that coaches don’t come free. But the way I see it is this. If someone was able to make you as fit as you could possibly become then would you pay for it?
For years I tried to cut corners. A cheap training plan, super diet that will make me fly up hills. I tried it all and nothing worked. It’s only now that I’m really starting to see some significant gains. It’s not wasted money if you’re achieving a goal so I’m my book, a personal cycling coach is worth every cent.