Reviews

I emailed Steve prior to purchasing the training plan and he responded quickly with really sensible advice based on my triathlon history and current training volume. Of course being an 45 going on 12 year old age grouper I ignored all sensible advice an purchased the only plan that gives me any remote, long shot of getting to Kona….I’ve just finished my first month of the base phase and despite pushing through a couple of those weird one-day training head-colds due to the increased volume, I’ve loved every minute so far.

Having read and enjoyed Friel’s Training Bible I was still left with just a big empty spreadsheet and too many decisions to make for myself. I’m a normal bloke for god’s sake, tell me what to do or I’ll just sit and watch the Discovery Channel!

Steve’s plan takes away all the science, mathematics and preparation that a triathlete with a full-time job just doesn’t have time for. Once the testing phase is done, each session is is concisely described, training zones set and drills presented via video links etc. where appropriate. For bike sessions I don’t need to know any more than I have a bike session today, once I fire up Zwift, some black-magic means Steve’s session is already there in front of me and ERG means I’m training at exactly the prescribed power throughout, brilliant!

Moving sessions around the plan to fit in with other work commitments is easy and intuitive and for some reason I’m actually motivated to stretch for the first time in 25 years because it’s on the plan. Well I say stretch, think Uma Thurman in Kill Bill trying to wiggle her big toe, but hey, I’m trying.

In all seriousness, having debated throwing a few quid at a properly structured, proven plan for the price of a decent pair of runners, I now couldn’t recommend highly enough. Absolutely fantastic value for money

I’m thrilled to start my Ironman journey with you. My training partner fell in love with your plan and will be buying one too

I presented Coach Steven with a unique challenge of being time deficient and only had limited opportunities to train each week. And those times changed often. He worked to constantly adapt to my timings while also getting the most out of the time available. I found this adaptability and ability to these challenges a commendable skill. Coach Steven also had an excellent ability to keep me focused on either the week ahead or on the Ironman process, as required.

I felt your coaching skills combined with your knowledge of when to push and when to accept my excuses (!) was such a help to me. Our partnership was key in getting me across the finish line in the race with a PB too…. I definitely did more brick sessions than in previous years and that stood to me on race day

Training to a plan built by someone who knows what they’re talking about has made a huge difference. For me having the structure outlined by Steven was motivating, but more importantly it has improved my enjoyment of racing and without-doubt has improved my times. I have had sprint and olympic PBs already this season and with Dublin 70.3 on the horizon I am confident of a PB at that distance too.

Just by way of saying thank for being my coach during my time leading up to the Ironman Triathlon in Barcelona in Oct 2016.

During this time I found you very knowledgeable and helpful on providing advice and structure on the training plan you set for me. The detail was very helpful in understanding what was required both from each of the training session as well as the delivery of the race day performance. Your knowledge experience and understanding of the requirements showcased your knowledge of the sport and Ironman distance racing.

Since we teamed up your coaching and advice has made a major difference & improvement to my training. Your analysis has highlighted instances where I was overtraining, brought a focus and rationale to training in the correct HR zones which has developed my endurance. Your coaching has also introduced proper periodization to my training. Crucially having you coaching me has taken away the usual second guessing that goes with setting one’s own training schedule. On the journey I have found that you listened well to my particular circumstances and been flexible and adaptive to suit my busy worklife. TrainingPeaks played a key role here also allowing me to lay out my work commitments in advance and you could tailor the training load and schedule to fit.

So thank you very much for the 2016 season and I look forward to working together again in 2017

I enlisted the help of Coach Steven to provide a comprehensive and structured training plan and improve my overall performance, he exceeded all my expectations! Coach Steven used Training Peaks to plan my sessions and monitor my progress, I found this hugely beneficial as it allowed me to track my improvement on-line. In addition, Coach Steven was very responsive to any queries I had. His experience of competing at multiple Ironman events proved invaluable. Within six months of enlisting Coach Steven’s services, I recorded PB’s at Sprint, Olympic and Half Ironman distances. I’m delighted to be working with Steven for another season, I cannot recommend him highly enough.

I have known Steven for a number of years and have been deeply impressed by his enthusiasm and effective efforts to promote the appreciation and understanding of the sport of Triathlon. Combined with his own experiences, interest in technology and new up to date training techniques & ideas, I decided to engage with Steven as my coach 2 years ago. Given my own experiences and while doubting the methods/sessions at times, “trust the plan”, his focus and commitment has kept me in check to successfully achieve my personal goals. As a partnership, it works and can only recommend anybody thinking about being successful in triathlon, to take on Steven as a coach!

I hired Steven to bring more structure and direction to my training, as I had been racing for a few year but not achieving the results I wanted. After a meeting with Steven to discuss my goals for the year, he created a clear plan focusing on the races I wanted to do. I got a detailed plan allowing me to see what was ahead in the next few weeks taking into account personal and work commitments. Steven even managed to update my plan on the fly to accommodate my unpredictable working environment. Steven zoned in on and focused on my run weaknesses and without letting my biking or swimming slide, Steven pushed me to achieve multiple PB’s. I enjoyed the constant monitoring my workouts and commenting with support or a kick start when needed. Steven is a pleasure to work with and makes the whole training planning seem so easy.

I’ve been working with Coach Steven as my coach since late 2015. He’s has a great flexibility to his approach which really suits any Athlete’s personal circumstances. Since he has been my coach I have achieved a number of personal bests at various distances, also I’ve learn’t a lot about the sport outside of the day to day training, understanding what to eat prior to a race, also how to prepare myself physically & mentally on race day.

TrainingPeaks is ideal for our Coach / Athlete relationship having a young family & busy job it allows us to plan ahead but move sessions easily if required. The rich data the platform provides also allows us to agree small changes to ensure we maximize the benefits of every session. The e-mail alerts when Steve comments or changes a session really helps me plan my day according to what I need to achieve as an athlete, employee & Father

I really do appreciate your help with my strength training! It’s difficult to find a healthy balance with strength training and triathlon training. I know I need strength and conditioning to rehab my body and prevent me from getting injured further, but I also don’t want my muscles to be too sore or tired to perform in key endurance sets or races. This plan is easy to understand, well thought out, and conducive to strengthening your body to complement your normal endurance training. All exercises are ones that will benefit you in the sport, rather than just going to the gym and throwing weight around.
Thanks again for this plan! You rock.