Since the Covid-19 pandemic began in the first quarter of the year, 2020 has turned out to be a strange year for many people, including runners and triathletes, who have faced numerous race cancellations. Such cancellations of goal races, though disappointing, are in fact, necessary to curb the spread of Covid-19.

But these can have an adverse mental effect on runners and triathletes, many of whom have lost motivation to continue with their training regime with no races on the foreseeable horizon.

Coach Ben Pulham

This feeling is normal, according to Ben Pulham, head coach and founder, Coached, who explains, “A lot of athletes structure their goals around external events like races. When races don’t happen, they struggle to find the motivation to do the work because they feel like there is no point. That’s a real shame.”

Led by Ben, a former professional triathlete, Coached is a heart-rate training programme for runners and triathletes that allows you to track, optimise and enjoy your training.

Ben added, “When athletes stop training, they lose fitness and motivation drops. It’s a vicious cycle.”

This is not the time to stop training completely and spend time slacking off, according to Ben.

Said Ben, “There is far more to swimming, cycling and running than races.”

Added Ben, “These sports provide a superb vehicle for improving health and quality of life. When done right, they boost energy, enhance fat burning and body composition, improve mental health, increase strength and much more. On top of that, they can provide a great social connection if you join a training group or virtual team.”

Ben also reminds athletes that now is the time to get back to basics and work on your weaknesses.

He explained, “If races are your primary focus, now is a fantastic time to be changing things up and laying a foundation for when events begin again. Get back to basics. Work on your areas of weakness and your technical skill. Consistency is the ultimate performance enhancer, so training consistently during this period will give you a significant advantage for when you next toe the start line.”

In order to stay focused, Ben advises athletes to keep to a structure. He said, “In my experience, structure helps to keep athletes on track. At Coached, we provide all of our athletes with a personalised and structured training plan based on their goals. That goal may be a virtual race, or it might be focused on achieving a consistency milestone, a time-trial, or to improve a specific area of weakness or maintain fitness. We work with each individual to determine what will be the best for them.”

Continued Ben, “On top of that, we conduct regular group training sessions and clinics, which we encourage people to join regularly. You don’t have to be a Coached athlete to join these sessions; and they are a great way to get some face-time with a coach and to meet like-minded people to train with.”

As well, Coached also does a weekly group video call with athletes to share team results, updates, training advice and to answer questions. Said Ben, “This community is essential to helping people stay motivated during this difficult time.”

Moving forward now, in the wake of Covid-19, Ben advises athletes to restructure their training based on their goals. 

He said, “For most, this means you should dial down on your training load and focus on consistency to maintain fitness. If you have a strong base, it will be simple to tweak your plan to prepare for a race once they begin again.”

Coached is a team, says Ben.

And that is where Coached comes in, for those who need guidance and assistance. Said Ben, “Coached is a team. We have coaches, a sports scientist and a strong network of specialists who offer support to all our athletes. More importantly, our team is packed with like-minded athletes, all trying to be better than they were yesterday. We provide structured training in the form of our online training programme and group sessions, and we connect our athletes in various ways.”

Added Ben, “So if someone needs an external motivator and wants to track their progress, we can do that through testing in our lab, or by integrating field testing into a training plan. If someone wants accountability, we review logged sessions coming into Coached and will provide feedback when needed. If someone wants a community, they can join our group training or clinics.”

Those who may be interested to join Coached but are still uncertain, or sitting on the fence, can trial their online training programme for free for two weeks, as well as experiencing one group training session, for free.

Said Ben, “We want to help you be better, so if you need some help, please get in touch.”

If you are interested, you may drop Ben an email at hello@coached.fitness. 

Photo credits: Coached