Prospective

     As I woke up yesterday a a beautiful sunny day all that was on my mind was the thing that I love, cycling.  It was odd I almost didn't even go for a ride as I was make sure that I had everything I need with me, flat pack, food, water, helmet and so on.  I had it all with me and I finally jumped on the bike and got a quick ten miles in before I had to go to work.  It felt great and I was totally in the zone, I can't remember the last time that I felt so good on the bike.  I was upset that I was not able to have spent more time on the bike.
     I got to work and heard the news via twitter that Wouter Weylandt had crashed on a decent at the Giro and tragically died. Those that don't know much about Wouter, he was a 26 year old pro cyclist from Belgium,  he had a number of stage wins under his belt and what looked to be a long career ahead of him.  The sadist part of it all is that he was engaged and the couple was expecting their first child in September.
     As a coach I probably will never coach a cyclist that will descending mountains or racing in a grand tour.  However to each of us that next local race or group ride is a grand tour, it quickly sets in that anytime spent do whatever it is that you love is to be cherished.  Life is precious, may all of you stay safe every time that you get on the bike.  My thoughts and prays out to Wouter's friends and families may he Rest In Peace. 

Motivation is lacking...

Yes it's true even a coach is not always motivated to get on the bike for training. This is why a training plan is so important, you set the goal for the week and you have to meet it. Mine for this week was 6 hours on the bike. So far I have zero, this leaves me with a couple long rides. So here it is 1 hour of intervals tomorrow, two hours on Saturday, and three hours on Sunday. See here's the deal, if I miss the mark for the week the only one I have to answer to is myself. I can always find away to justify why I didn't train. That's why having a coach is great, they want the data. If you don't have it there is someone to answer to other than yourself. However in the end it is your own performance that suffers.


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Concentration when Training

Okay so here is a tip that I picked up along the way, some of you may think that this is common sense and maybe it is but sometimes these things just need to be pointed out.  Training for events takes concentration, it needs to be done with as little distraction as possible.  (I would never recommend training without taking a cell phone with you for safety reasons.)  That being said, TURN THE RINGER OFF....  Clear your head and take a deep breath before you set out on that training ride.  

Lets not forget that this is training not a leisurely ride on the bike, you need to concentrate on your training and your goals for the day.  I'm not saying you can't enjoy your riding I'm just saying you need to get done what you set out to do and that is train to meet your goals.  Lastly make it known that it is training, it is very important that your friends and family know the importance of what you are out there for.  They should support you and your goals and part of this is understanding that you need this time to be undisturbed.

Welcome to my Blog.

Welcome to the Blog of Breakaway Coaching.  My name is Patrick Kelly I’m  cyclist and a USAC certified coach.   The goal of Breakaway Coaching it to assist athletes in achieving thier cycling goals. This would be done through providing that athlete with individualized workouts based on thier needs.