Training & Nutrition - Worth the money being coached??

I have to admit maybe I have no clue as to what I really need for training.
I have been pondering the idea of either spending some money on better equipment or biting the bullet and getting a coach.
I am novice masters rider that began racing this year for the first time. I primarily train/ride with a club geared to racing. All I get from them for advice is "to get out and ride", but because I work shift work I do allot of my riding solo. I feel when I am out by myself I just don't push myself hard enough. I know that it is difficult to ride solo and push yourself. All I do when I go out is try to better my times from the last ride. I have several different routes that I take depending on time and how I feel.

So, my question is
Have you gotten good results from being coached?

Yes, I have had a coach for year and a half now. I have seen constent and consistant improvement the whole time.

I'm a coach.

So I guess I'm going to be a bit biased. :D BUT I do believe that a coach could always do more good than trying to do it on your own. Even someone who has the knowledge should not be coaching themselves. I would definitely get my own coach (which is my plan this winter) so they could guide and track my progress.

Coaches know more than you as to what you need- they can objectively look at your abilities and tailor a program based on your weaknesses. My observations with people who do things on their own is that they usually work on what they're good at, and they'll progress in that area, but they'll neglect their weak areas. Then they say "well, I'm really bad at A and B, but I'm really good at C and D." Well, my thought would be to focus on A and B, and spend less time on C and D. And dang, people hate the A and B stuff, and will avoid it at all costs, so they really will not like what I advocate doing, or they'll dismiss it because they want to focus on what they're good at just because they want to feel good about their training and do the stuff they feel is "comfortable" for them. Really, they don't realize they are doing this, but they are.

Coaches will also help to identify what your true weaknesses are and can put together a training program designed to make you stronger overall. If you want to see real progress, you'll find a good coach.

Koffee

I have to admit maybe I have no clue as to what I really need for training.
I have been pondering the idea of either spending some money on better equipment or biting the bullet and getting a coach.
I am novice masters rider that began racing this year for the first time. I primarily train/ride with a club geared to racing. All I get from them for advice is "to get out and ride", but because I work shift work I do allot of my riding solo. I feel when I am out by myself I just don't push myself hard enough. I know that it is difficult to ride solo and push yourself. All I do when I go out is try to better my times from the last ride. I have several different routes that I take depending on time and how I feel.

So, my question is
Have you gotten good results from being coached?


You need a coach!

Mon-off day today Tim, get some extra carbs and sleep in, this is basically the last hard week of training for the tour so let's get it done
Tue-1.5/zone 1, 2/2 x min mid zone to low zone on rolling terrain w/ 15 off at 90+ rpm and at least 1/2 in the drops
Wed-1.5/zone 1, 2 mellow, relaxing ride only, no efforts just spin the legs out
Thurs-2/zone 1, 2/5 min zone /min zone / min zone / min zone / zone all on rolling or hilly terrain, hammer this out, stay focused and make sure you are staying fueled up
Fri-off day today Tim, take the time to chill, this weekend is big
Sat-5-6/zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5/shootout or other group but the best way to get this kind of volume is to start with a big group, you can do the big loop through and the caves to finish out the time, you don't have to kill it all day but keep it pretty steady after the fast part of the shootout is over
Sun-3-4/zone 1, 2, 3//from the base to in a 53 x 21 in mid zone HR, from there you can ride zone on up for as long as you have time for, do drill i and m once down on the flats again, muscle it out and make it count


This is from my coach for this week, it's nice to have a schedule. i deleted some info from it.

I'm a coach.

So I guess I'm going to be a bit biased. :D
...

Coaches will also help to identify what your true weaknesses are and can put together a training program designed to make you stronger overall. If you want to see real progress, you'll find a good coach.

Koffee


Not biased, but from experience.

Coaching is worth your investment if you find someone that knows cycling. They can see what you can't, your position, style or how you 'fit' on the bike. Like weight lifting and golf, you want to start off with good form, not learning bad habits. So you not only feel good riding, you look good. Form follows function.

That is priceless.

I started back on the bike this year after twenty years off. I looked all over the internet for the best training methods, tips and tricks, I bought books, checked out forums, yadayadayada.

The one big thing that I could not do was assemble the facts (many of them conflicting) into a clear direction that would bring results. A good coach will do that for you.

I tried racing a couple of times and it was pretty clear that the training methods I had worked out by myself just weren't cutting it. So I needed a coach, and I found one pretty quickly. Knowlegable, no BS, straight-up.

Now I know where I'm going, and when I can reasonably expect to be there. Big picture has gone into the background, focus is on the next 4 four weeks only. Perfect.

Word of advice though, pay the price or you might end up paying the price! I had one guy offer to help gratis. He did for a while, but then he just disappeared. I had no idea what to do with the program he had left me with.