Coaching

Having a structured training program which is both intelligent and targetted to your goal is vital to continual improvement and successfully reaching your goals. Engaging a personal coach will help you to identify your targets and set realistic and achievable training parameters to meet your goal. To date, every single private client to engage me as a coach and has followed one of my coaching programs has attained a PB, with many clients achieving multiple PB's. All private coaching is tailored to the individual and administered through Training Peaks coaching software. All elements of the training regime (S&C, swim, bike, run, classes, etc) are programmed and structured around the individual client's life, taking into account; family, work, studies, facilities and equipment available, and physical abilities of the client. Individual units are programmed so that they can be downloaded to a workout monitoring device and replayed to guide the session, with effort parameters set to suit the client's preferred method (HR, % of Threshold, RPE). Sessions are reviewed and the program going forwards is adjusted if necessary. Clients are able to communicate if sessions need to be moved or adjusted, and feedback is continual (usually via mobile message or email). Prices start at £45/month.

VO2 and blood lactate profiling for Endurance Athletes has been considered the Gold Standard in Physiological Testing for quite some time. At the Woodland Clinic we are lucky enough to house one of the very few privately owned testing suites in the South West of England - this is usually something reserved for Universities and Hospitals. With state of the art equipment including a treadmill that can't be outrun in a VO2 test, I have provided physiological testing on a wide range of athletes at all levels, including England vested athletes and those that have represented Great Britain at international competitions. Physiological testing enables both recreational and more serious athletes to intelligently progress their abilities by benchmarking and utilising data such as; VO2, blood lactate, heart rate, pace, and fuel substrate utilisation. Through a thorough physiological test we are also able to gain information such as fuel and hydration strategies for longer endurance races, and predicted capable race times. Locally all tests are conducted at the Woodland Clinic in Bideford and last for approximately 2 hours per person. If you have a large group of athletes you would like tested at your home location, or would like me to come to your University/Institution then please get in touch via the contact page. Price £120 / person.

Musculoskeletal strength is the absolute base foundation for physiological well-being, whether for sporting performance or day-to-day mobility. It is widely reported that muscular strength can promote positive bone health and growth, especially in the twilight years when bone mineral density decreases with age. As our modern world becomes increasingly sedentary it is much more vital to ensure that we engage in strength and mobility promoting activities to prevent degeneration of the physiological form.

In the sports performance environment it is important to ensure that the physiological make-up of the athlete is appropriately trained and prepared for the tasks demanded of it. Imbalances and weaknesses in strength and/or mobility in a particular area can lead to sports induced injuries which in some cases can have long lasting effects.

1-2-1 and small group strength and conditioning coaching sessions are tailored to the individual’s specific requirements, whether that’s healthy life, mobility, or specific sports related strength, mobility, and conditioning. Additionally, strength and conditioning sessions can be geared towards specific injury rehabillitation or sports specific injury prevention. Price £40 / hour.

Physical injury can place a great stress on ourselves and our lives. In addition, there's nothing worse than being stopped from doing the things we love to do and that make us happy, or that constant yoyo of 2 steps forwards and 3 steps backwards. Well it doesn't need to be that way. Through years of experience in injury rehabilitation, and over 25 years of coaching various sports, I have been exposed to a vast array of injuries. One of the biggest advantages of seeing a sports specific practitioner for your injury rehabilitation is that you will be seeing someone who knows what it's like from an athlete's point of view to be 'benched'. Sports specific injury rehabilitation can be complex and in most cases is not just a case of one factor, more actually a chain of factors resulting in various physiological outcomes. Many of the people I see in the clinic have spent long periods of time in rehabilitation and the psychological aspect can actually play a bigger part than the physical injury. Through the state of the art facilities available at the Woodland Clinic I am able to be compassionate to the athlete's situation whilst assessing and progresssing the physical and psychological state of well-being. Whether it's a movement analysis on our Woodway treadmill that enables me to see a biomechanical issue, or a minimised impact mobility session on the integrated treadmill in our state of the art Endless Pool, all clients receive the same dedication to getting you to an injury free state. Prices start at £40 / hour.

Being a physical coach and deliverer for over 25 years has enabled me to develop the necessary skillsets to be a confident presenter to small and large audiences alike. In the past I have delivered at England Athletics workshops and conferences, attended as a guest lecturer at Universities and Colleges, carried out workplace team cohesion days and project goal management sessions, delivered primary school physical activity initiatives and whole school resilience workshops, presented at various sports clubs and associations, and co-organised the annual South West Endurance Conference (of which I was one of the co-founders). In 2019 I was engaged by Inspired Schools to deliver their Inspired Playgrounds Initiative and also their School Resilience workshops, which has seen me deliver into over 30 primary schools in England and Wales in 2019 alone. These delivery days include working with the whole school from Reception to Year 6, and delivering young persons physical activity CPD sessions to the teachers.

Please feel free to contact me to discuss your content delivery requirements, whether it's a couple of hours to final year undergrad students, helping prepare a detailed event specific conference, or a specific subject matter talk to your running or tri club.

In 2019 I have worked in over 30 Primary Schools across England and Wales delivering the Inspired Schools playground physical activity initiative (Inspired Playgrounds) and working with students and teachers to promote healthy lifestyles across the whole school. Being lucky enough to have this opportunity to work with such an amazing project and group of people has solidified my beliefs that physical activity and Fun play are central to the development of young people. I have seen first-hand how students who can present a behaviour challenge become engaged and engrossed in individual and Team activities, channelling their attentions and focussing their behaviour. I have also regularly seen children who don't normally engage with PE getting stuck in, taking part in games and activities led by their Peers, and I have often had a teacher comment that a child who is normally quite shy has excelled in taking on a games leadership role. Unfortunately I have also seen how increasingly difficult it is becoming to shoehorn physical activity into the Primary School curriculum, and how easy it is for teachers to innocently forgo physical activity for more scholarly activities. For these reasons it is more important than ever before that we engage our young people in physical activity to ensure that they develop their Physical Literacy in line with their Academic Literacy. If you would like to discuss how you can get young people regularly more physically active then please feel free to contact me for a chat.

EnduranceRunner.co.uk

Running Coaching & Sports Physiology