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Coach Gareth
Coach Gareth working with an endurance athlete
Coaching

Why you need a coach

Sometimes a good coach just has to tell you like it is. Having a coach helps you to do the things that you do not really want to do but know you should. Accountability and an objective opinion is key.

Train the limiters, not just the strengths

It is ok to train your strengths, but you must train your limiters too if you really want to hit your potential. No one really wants to foam roll every day or stay in zone, but these are the details that make you a better athlete.

Help the coach to help you better by doing your part. Commit to being coached by doing the daily work. Why skip it? What is the gain if you do that? Do not limit your potential or your coach’s ability to help you.

Record your morning stats

First thing every day: sleep hours, quality of sleep, resting heart-rate and HRV. Morning weight and percent body fat is also useful, along with any notes on soreness, energy levels and general fatigue.

Tracking these can help you recognise when you might be getting sick, and also allow the coach to know if your programme needs adapting to how you are feeling today. Knowledge is power.

Record all your workouts

Debrief all sessions with a few comments on how it went. It only takes a few seconds, stores your data correctly and guides the coach on how to build your next phase of training. It also creates a record of your training and data for review.

Try to do this as soon as your HRM has downloaded the data to your phone. Save your energy for training and, to almost quote a certain famous brand, just do it right.

Train with Gareth

Triathlon and running coaching in Santa Monica

Coach to world & national champions · 30+ years.Monthly coaching from $300.

More from the lab

A cyclist working hard during a test at the lab
Training

Interval training

Interval training is one of the best ways to raise performance in every endurance sport. How the sessions progress, and how to pace them so they work.

A triathlete at the finish line after racing at speed
Training

The need for speed

Once the aerobic base is in, speed work comes in three parts: threshold, aerobic capacity (VO2) and peak speed. How to do each one.

Endurance athletes on a training run
Training

Periodization

Periodization is the science of putting the building blocks of training in the right order, so each phase prepares you for the next.

Book a test

Stop guessing at your zones

One hour in the lab in Santa Monica, and you’ll know exactly how your body produces energy, and precisely how hard to go.

1736 Ashland Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90405