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The latest news, education, and resources from Hunter Allen and Peaks Coaching Group
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April - May 2016 Power News
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A word from Hunter
What a great month for masters racers! Masters Nationals typically are later in the year. However, this year, Masters Nationals will be in late May in Winston-Salem, NC, and we'll be there! Look for the Peaks Coaching Group Trailer at the Criterium on Thursday, May 26th, and come by our booth and say Hello. We'll be around supporting our clients on Friday and Saturday as well. We'd love to meet you! With an early "peak" for the masters that are competing, it will be important to take a break in late June when the fitness drops off and plan for a late season second peak. It's very hard to have two peaks in a year, but if there are at least three months between the peaks, then you have a chance to make that second peak just as strong as the first. Along with traveling to
Masters Nationals, we'll be at the
Storming of Thunder Ridge and I'll be speaking on May 20th at ride registration!
In June, make sure you are prepared for hotter weather, staying hydrated and getting in plenty of electrolytes when riding in the summer heat. If you are racing in the heat, you can pre-load some extra water into the body, by drinking plenty of water in the day before your event. Of course, you won't retain a lot of that water, but it is possible to become more hydrated for those hot races!
Lastly, as you ride or race in more of your events, it's important to increase your intensity the couple of weeks before, by adding in anaerobic capacity and Vo2 Max intervals. By completing these hard short intervals, you'll increase your top end speed and also be better prepared for riding with a group at a faster and faster pace. You can do it!
Make it a great ride!
Hunter
P.S. Be sure to give us a "LIKE" on Facebook for weekly tips, specials and product updates.
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Articles and Education
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Tired of syncing your workouts into multiple sites post workout? Linking your Strava account to Garmin connect can take one step out of your post-workout activity. Take it one step further and link your TrainingPeaks account to your Garmin connect account for painless activity uploads and syncing.
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by PCG Coach Chris Myers
Training is not all about numbers. They are a good indicator of your training performance, but you must look at every other aspect of your program, including your schedules, stress, nutrition, sleep, and most importantly, family. A good coach recognizes this and helps you balance all these factors.
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Local Events
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Storming of Thunder Ridge May 21-22, 2016
Hunter Allen will be the Guest Speaker at Packet Pickup for this wonderful charity ride!
Hunter will be speaking on Saturday, May 21 at 4:45 PM, discussing tips and strategies for surviving the Storming of Thunder Ridge ride. We will also have booth space at Packet Pickup, so come on by and say Hello! Also, our very own Kate Jenkins will be participating in the 75 mile race on May 22! Look for the PEAKS kit and gear!
We'll have a booth at Masters Nationals during the downtown criterium. Come by and meet Hunter and say Hi! We'll also be attending the TT on Friday and Women's Pro Race on Saturday supporting our athletes. We'd love to meet you!
Greater Lynchburg Off-Road Cyclists Outdoor Festival June 17-19, 2016
Come and join us for the first annual GLOC Outdoor Festival, a weekend of awesome mountain, cyclocross, road biking, hiking, music, food, camping, and great friends, at the Sedalia Center in Bedford, VA. There will be cool give aways from
Peaks Coaching Group and Sue Haywood's Downhill Clinic at Bryce Resort. Look for our booth! You won't be able to miss it with the bright green tents!
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PCG Around the World
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| Takashi Nakata |
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Peaks Coaching Group - Japan
Last year, PCG officially launched a franchise in Japan!
In 2014, Takashi Nakata came to Bedford to intern under Hunter Allen to learn the ins and outs of running a successful and rockin' coaching company. Last fall he returned to Japan and hit the ground running! Here is an update from Takashi:
If I could describe in one word, my experience after coming back to Japan, it would be "incredible!" But what does "incredible" really mean?
In May 2014, on my first ride with Hunter in the Bedford countryside, he said, "Hey Takashi, we're lucky people. Working as a coach is awesome. We can share knowledge and our passion with other people. Making a living with what you love is a great thing in life."
I agreed, but at that time I didn't have any clients, and making a living by being a cycling coach still seemed like an unrealized dream. In fact, I worried that I had thrown away my career and financial future by deciding to pursue my passion.
Fast forward 18 months to November 2015: My internship with Hunter at the PCG headquarters had ended and I was back in Japan. Arriving at Narita Airport, it seemed as if nothing had changed. The same busy people, announcements, and the 24 hour brightly lit signs of urban Japan. It didn't seem like much had changed in Japanese cycling either - Bike magazines hawked the latest Dura Ace, carbon frames, and wheels. "Hey, this frame rates a 9.7 on stiffness, 8.5 on comfort, and 9 on handling. It's sure to make you go faster! All for 600,000 yen!"
Scientific training was just an afterthought, and aspiring racers wanted to do just one thing - go full gas on the climb. However, what I originally thought about Japanese cycling culture changed when I held my first power cycling seminars: 170 seats sold out in the first month, and we had to add extra sessions to accommodate the interest! We also began to get requests from bicycle distributors and dealers to hold workshops on power training. Honestly, I could hardly believe what I was seeing. Before I left Japan, power meters were commonly described as "more expensive heart rate monitors" or as "toys for pseudo scientists" . I had worked hard while I was in Bedford to spread the ideas of power training through traditional and social media, but I really had no expectations of a change in how Japanese cyclists thought about power training. But obviously, things were indeed changing.
Hunter Allen's book, "
Training and Racing with a Power Meter" has sold more than 4,000 copies in Japan. I have held 8 public seminars with over 200 attendees. I have held workshops at 4 different bike companies.
I recently acquired a two-time Olympian, Kohei Yamamoto, as a client; and we are working hard to secure a spot for Rio. He came in 15th at the Cairns WC cross country. It's the best he's ever done and a historic result for a Japanese mountain biker. After struggling at the top level in recent years, he told me, "the power meter is the best investment for me."
I know that there will be challenges and struggles ahead, but right now I'm living the dream. And now I truly understand Hunter's words to me on that afternoon ride as we rode through the Bedford countryside. "Hey Takashi, we're lucky people."
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PCG Gives Back to Our Community
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Peaks Coaching Group supports our Veterans
PCG is partnering with
Ride 2 Recovery, a
groundbreaking Veterans program started in 2008, founded on cycling based programs. Ride 2 Recovery is using cycling as a way to rehabilitate wounded veterans by getting them back on the bike and providing a way to live a better life. They reached out to us looking for some guidance on training plans. PCG put together a package of training plans geared towards their specific needs and programs.
Ride 2 Recovery now boasts five main programs - Project HERO, Challenges, Honor Ride, Special Events and Initiatives. The programs serve over 10,000 Veterans and have helped them with improving their general health and fitness, reducing the dependence on prescription drugs, among several other amazing lifestyle improvements.
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Training Camp Schedule
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The Blue Ridge is beautiful in the fall! The leaves will be changing and we'll be enjoying some great riding with all the fall colors. We would love it if you'd make us part of it! Camp will begin with an optional "skills and software" day, where you'll learn critical cornering skills and then we'll get you set up to download your power data using the WKO4 software. If you want to corner better, be more comfortable in a paceline, or group, then this day will really make a difference. Our focus in the classroom will be helping you to develop a training plan for the winter and coming 2017 season. This will be a great opportunity for you to make 2017 the best season ever with our help! The rest of the week will give you a mix of riding with some great climbing up on the Blue Ridge Parkway, short hills in the valley and we'll even get in a few sprints to make sure you are sharp! You'll get the total pro experience as Hunter and other PCG coaches teach all the tips and skills you need to train smarter, ride faster, and perform better. What are you waiting for?
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Bedford, Virginia
Oct. 23-28, 2016
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What our Athletes say about us
I'm very pleased with the coaching I'm receiving from Bill McLaughlin. He and I hit it off from the first day. Coaching aside, Bill really cares about my well being, and I consider him a personal friend as well as my coach.
I will also add that I'm a former (competitor) client from many years ago. I always felt like I was a nuisance to my coach when I had a question and I never felt like he had a clear understanding of my issues. Basically I hit a plateau and never maintained or matched the fitness I had the first year with them. It was definitely a business relationship and not as friendly and open. I know your PCG coaches are not therapists but life events do happen and they physically affect you.
Lastly, my budget is very tight but the money I spend with Peaks is well, well worth the investment.
- athlete Barry Norman in North Carolina, coached by PCG Elite coach Bill McLaughlin
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Gran Fondo National Championship Series
The
Gran Fondo National Championship Series is seriously underway! PCG has created powerful 8 and 10 week GFNCS Training Plans specifically geared towards these events. There is still time to train and get in shape if you are looking to ride in one of the later season events!
The GFNCS has had tremendous success over the past three years, and it continues to grow as more and more riders take part in the events that contain all the great challenges that the famed European gran fondos do, plus incredible riding locations. These should definitely be on your must-do list for 2016!
PCG will have a booth at the
Gran Fondo Ashville in Ashville, North Carolina on Saturday, June 18, 2016. We will have fun prizes and giveaways! Come on by to say Hello!
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Coach Tip: Hunter Allen YouTube Videos!
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Did you know that Hunter Allen has been recording YouTube videos sharing his wealth of knowledge with the world? Every week, he posts a new video tip. Here is a current selection. Make sure you subscribe to Peaks Coaching Group's YouTube channel and get in the know!
Breaking In New Shoes And Cleats - Hunter Allen Training Tips
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Sponsor Spotlight: Skratch
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Hydration... for whatever makes you sweat!
At
Skratch Labs our mission is to provide people with the inspiration, life skills, and products to take better care of themselves and their families.
It's a mission based on the understanding that taking care of oneself and those we love isn't always easy. But that's okay, because the way we see it, there's nothing more satisfying and grounding than putting in the time, care, and effort to solve life's challenges.
This perspective - solving problems and delaying gratification without losing sight of the present - is at the heart of the community events, blogs, cookbooks, and all-natural nutrition products that makes up the sometimes hard to define mishmash of activity here at Skratch Labs.
Like most things in life, we're figuring it out as we go. That said, a few things are clear - that food and drink are better when made from scratch and that no matter where we find ourselves in life, that it's never too late to start from scratch.
You can buy Skratch products at:
www.shop-pcg.com
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Featured in our Storefront
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Check out the hottest items in our store! Questions?
Email us or call us at 540-587-9025.
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PCG athletes, don't forget to use your VIP discount codes every time you order!
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Cookbook Special
- FREE Cookie Mix
Buy a Skratch cookbook and receive a FREE Skratch Cookie Mix from our PCG store! Choose from one of the following nutritious and delicious cookbooks!
The Feed Zone Cookbook
Feed Zone Portables
Feed Zone Table
Click the link below to take advantage of this offer (and the delicious cookies) before it's gone on
May 31st.
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Triathletes: Periodization and Training Part II: Free-Style
by Chris Myers
This webinar is the second in our Triathlete Annual Training Plan and Periodization webinar series. During this webinar, Peaks Elite/Master Coach Chris Myers addresses one of the hottest topics for triathletes: "How to Improve Your Swim" Chris will take you through the most up-to-date, scientifically accepted swim testing protocols used to calculate swim pacing for short and long course triathlon events.
May 31, 8 PM $14.95
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Skratch Fruit Drops
We made our Fruit Drops with simple ingredients and flavored them only with real fruit to create an energy chew with a clean bite that isn't coated in wax. The result is a subtle taste that lets you fuel your active lifestyle with a functional food.
Use our Fruit Drops as an easy and convenient source of carbohydrate to help maintain blood sugar and performance during prolonged exercise. A single pouch contains ten 'drops' comprising two 80 calorie servings.
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