is a coach worth it?

HillClimber101
HillClimber101 Posts: 149
edited September 2009 in Training, fitness and health
I'm 14 and getting into riding. my inital instinct is to train hard and ride lot as if i'm fast now i'll only get faster...

...but is there a chance i'll mess up my body and my future chances.

so will a coach help structure my training so i dont "mess up" my body.

also, how much will a coach cost? as i have imagine them to be quite expensive.

thanks.

Comments

  • Frank the tank
    Frank the tank Posts: 6,553
    You will benefit from joining a club and getting help/advice off the older hands initially, see how you fare and then in a few months think about a coach.
    Tail end Charlie

    The above post may contain traces of sarcasm or/and bullsh*t.
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    Frank the tank wrote:
    You will benefit from joining a club.
    +1

    Look for a "Go Ride" acreditted club near to you on the British Cycling website. They will have at least 2 coaches that are qualified to help junior and youth riders.
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • mackdaddy
    mackdaddy Posts: 310
    Depends how serious you are.

    Definitely join a club.

    However, you need to balance how much you will be prepared to spend on equipment versus how much you'd spend on a coach. In comparison, coaches aren't that expensive and a good one will do better than the one-off gain you get from equipment (although granted, coaches aren't usually as sexy!)

    Also as a young athlete, you need to be careful how you train. For any athlete, training to fatigue is usually overtraining and is counter-productive. For a young athlete doubly so.

    The Go Ride suggestion sounds like a good one, it'll get you started. It's a shame cycling doesn't have the same coaching infrastructure as other sports such as athletics though, where you'd get good quality coaching for very little cost.

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