Over the past weekend I took advantage of the opportunity to attend the Elite Coaching conference offered by USAC at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO. Always wanting to be a ‘student of coaching science’ it was a great four days of listening to presenting lecturers along with plenty of discussions concerning an array of cycling performance related topics. About thirty coaches were in attendance, all having differing backgrounds and connections to the sport . At times some of the material certainly raised questions, but this is all part of the learning process. As a coach it can be easy to get comfortable with a set way of doing the training, but as more research is done there will always be ways that we can better ‘tweak’ the old tried-and-true, even if for no reason other than to offer a rider a new challenge towards a familiar outcome. The conference was a good reminder that it’s important to question methodology and to do things purposefully.
My coaching mantra has always been to understand a rider’s situation (how does riding mesh with the day-to-day life) and goals, then to move forward by prescribing purposeful and directed training so that progress can be measured and goals accomplished along the way. Fitting with this philosophy, the discussions concerning nutrition periodization, sports psychology, interval training, and overtraining were all very applicable. With some athletes more coaching attention given to nutritional concerns could really aid their overall performance, while for others more conversation regarding the ‘nuts and bolts’ of their interval sessions might be most helpful in the end.
Each rider brings something unique to the coaching experience so having four days to cover an umbrella of topics was fantastic. I’m excited to use a bit of the conference with each of the athletes I’m working with. Coaching is rewarding work and the conference proved to be a nice part of my continuing education. As a USAC certified coach since 2003, it’s nice to have earned the ‘Level I’ certification, even though certifications don’t mean a whole lot when it really comes down to the day in/day out coaching. Fortunately those who I work with seem to agree that it’s largely a positive experience.
Enjoy the ride,