Before Joining Propello, Achille tells us that he had moved to Ireland and re-started cycling in 2017. However, he felt that he was slow, unfit and was generally unhappy with his overall performance. He had cycled as a club rider thirty years previously so he had a good understanding of what he was capable of. “I re-started with road riding, riding principally on my own and participating to local sportives.’ he tells us, “The first one was Haul D' Naul, a flat 70K that I struggled to finish.”
Feeling that he wasn’t progressing, Achille decided to give professional cycling coaching a go and also signed up to TrainingPeaks and used their coach matching service. Over time he has also invested in a power metre, smart trainer and an endurance bike as well as some other gear.
‘My goals started with finishing one or two century rides over a season.’ he says, ‘They progressively evolved and this year I am targeting Liege-Bastogne-Liege in April, Wicklow 200 in June and la Marmotte in July. In addition to that, I am riding for the "Randonneur Round the Year" award, requiring to ride one official Audax 200 KM route every month for 12 consecutive months.’
Achille found the Propello Onboarding Programme easy to understand and helpful. It allowed him to find a balance between budget and the minimum level of coaching he would need to reach his goals. This is because our onboarding process involves a deep analysis of an individual's goals and important factors such as lifestyle and commitments. This allows us to recommend the right level of Individualised Performance Coaching for your specific needs.
The evolution of my objectives speaks for itself. Overall, the biggest improvement is in my ability to tackle long challenging events (around 200 KM with 3000+ M of elevation gain). Illustrated in numbers, my FTP went from a very modest 176 W (2.00 W/Kg) to 250 W today (3.01 W/Kg).’
Achille will check in with his coach Rob monthly where they discuss any challenges, the improvements and the next steps. ‘More importantly, says Achille, ‘Rob is always available online to change the plans when needed or answer questions. My training plan is created each year based on the season's goals and agenda, then permanently updated to reflect current fitness, areas that need to be worked on and daily life constraints.’
Happy with his experience, Achille is pleased that he’s been able to see some results in his cycling performance telling us, ‘Rob always has a can-do, positive but not indulgent attitude, and brings his knowledge of training to provide guidance on what to do - and what not to do. His advice goes beyond training, covering amongst other things nutrition and pacing.’
Achille is a model student, he is keen to learn why he is doing things and then executes flawlessly. He is a strong and quick communicator which means I can progress or very occasionally regress his training as it unfolds. Achille takes his cycling seriously, works hard and reaps the rewards.
Propello Cycle Coaching can help you to achieve your goals with Individualised Performance Coaching. To find out more, get in touch today!
