It seems that whenever I ask advice of fellow cyclists (whether on this forum or in real life), I'm most often told to "get a coach." The implication is that hiring someone to assign workouts and analyze them will lead to huge progress in one's cycling, and not having a coach is a pretty big handicap.

-I'm young (and can't afford the 200+ dollars a month for most non-cookie-cutter coaching plans).
-I'm very disciplined (so having to report to someone won't necessarily make me train "harder").
-I read a lot (cycling books, exercise physiology books, magazines, internet articles, etc.).

Do I still "need" a coach? How many of you have done well in the sport without? Where do you get your workouts, inspiration, enthusiasm, etc.? What are your power numbers? What category do you ride? What are your core workouts? How do you periodize? Etc. Etc.

I realize that those are a lot of questions, and I intentionally made them broad. Ideally, I'd like this thread to become an exchange zone of ideas for the self-coached. Any input appreciated.

If you're disciplined and knowledgeable, I don't think you need a coach to be successful on an amatuer level. I'm sure you've read it but if not, get a hold of "The cyclist's training bible" by Joe Friel. It's a great resource for understanding and developing your skills.

I am a big fan of training with power. Maybe because I just like gadgets though. Heart rate can change depending on how you're feeling, speed is a poor benchmark and perceived effort isn't always accurate. But a watt is a watt. Competitive cyclist had a great deal for a brand new handbuilt powertap setup for $650. The deals are definitely around.

we need to know your ultimate goals and how many hours of riding you plan on doing.
most good riders will share your knowledge, but you just can't soak up the mountains of know-how in a few months.
bike handling, how to actively rest, when and how to pace/attack
what level are you beginning at? have you ridden extensively?

Every year it gets easier from muscle memory.
Ride as much as you can.

Sat and Sun find a group ride and ride as hard as you can for as long as you can
Mon slow easy riding
Tues tempo pace
Wed tempo pace
Thurs hard interval
Fri easy slow pace
repeat.

ride as often as you can. 12-14 hours a week at the height of the season.

don't read so muich that you get paralyzed with numbers. ride instead.

Get a power meter. Coaching would probably be more helpful if you had a specific goal like an upcoming race. Not everyone responds to coaching. Others need to be told what to do and cheered on and coach will do that. Marketing mentor of mine said it like this, "Some people are walking around with an umbilical cord in their hand looking for a place to plug it in." If you're not that kind of person then read, ride and track your progress. GL

Power Meter (if you know how to actively use one)

Three day blocks of decreasing intensity.

Recovery periods (probably the most important).

Eat well.

You need to decide what "successful" means. Depending on your talent on the bike and talent in self-coaching, getting to Cat 1 is certainly reasonable, but at some point, the right coach will improve anybody.

You have to consider if you have room and motivation for another hobby, which is coaching. It's a hobby on its own, and in the first six months or so, it requires a lot of time from learning and analysis. You have to be able to put on your coaching hat and look at yourself objectively as an athlete. Separate the two.

Get a power meter, some good software (or write your own/use excel), read everything you can. Learn about strategy, and guide your athlete side to take risks with attacks at different times. Really learn the sport. Each category is raced differently, and should be analyzed differently.

I made it to Cat 2 self-coached on 8 hours/week of training, but with a lot of communication with my friends over in the 33. I've lost a lot of weekly training time and requested a downgrade because of the associated loss of fitness, but my coaching hobby is strong enough to keep my racing hobby alive and competitive.

So, was I successful? Well, I wanted to get to Cat 2. It happened at age 38, but nothing wrong with that. A little late for any hopes of going further

I don't mean to hijack the thread but I would like to know if anyone has done spinning classes, and did it help your cycling? Since spinning bikes have monitors for heart rate and watt output joining a class could be a cheaper alternative to buying the equipment required for interval training.

So from the example above:

Mon slow easy riding
Tues tempo pace
Wed tempo pace
Thurs hard interval < Replace with Spinning Class
Fri easy slow pace

Thoughts? Anyone done spinning classes and did it help?

First off, that schedule there would be one example, of what would work for some people. I'd never take a day of slow/easy riding, for instance. Total waste of time for me.

Anyway, to answer your question, my teammate/brother-in-law is spinning 4d/week, and it keeps him in great shape. He just returned to racing after a hip replacement and got 5th overall in a Cat 4 stage race, so the spin isn't hurting him. He's getting road miles on the weekend (usually a 50 mile and a 70 mile ride).

One thing on categorizing a spin class: the word "intervals" is meaningless regarding training zones. For example, one-on-one-off intervals are completely different training than 1' intervals with a full recovery. I don't think I've heard of a spin class with a full recovery (5+ minutes of doing just about nothing) between "intervals." For this reason, a spin class is always going to be a threshold and VO2Max mixed focus. So don't go checking off any anaerobic capacity intervals or sprints on your workout log from a spin class...

Interesting, the coach or no coach discussion so often revolves around fitness and training schedules. Just about anyone can get to 95% or so of their potential with a little reading, a minimum of thinking and some trial and error. There are a ton of fast, fit Cat 4's and 3's out there who never learn how to play the game. And I'll bet if you asked them why they don't get results they would have some fitness related answer, they need more FTP, speed work, whatever. Where a coach or mentor can really earn their keep is showing a newbie how to prepair for races, and how to race.

where i found a coach helpful was tactically, especially at the track.

to be fit for racing takes application and discipline. write out a training plan. stick to it. modify it as required.