An exclusive interview at TriathlonWorld
Triathlon World : You were an elite athlete and right now you are a coach. What kind of coaching services do you offer? How an athlete from Greece could contact you?
Richard Allen : I am still very much a Pro/Elite Triathlete and now race the Ironman 70.3 distance with 2 big podiums in 2011. Coaching goes hand in hand with this. I do 3 Worldwide camps in Greece, Abu Dhabi and the US. I also do training days and online coaching. Greek athletes can check out my website www.richardallenfitness.com
Triathlon World : For the past years you organize a training camp and a race in Sivota (western Greece). How can a greek triathlete participate at this camp or/ and this race?
Richard Allen : The tri camp in Sivota, Greece, is in early May. It’s the perfect pre season camp with lots of open water and transitions coaching. It’s their chance to train with a Pro triathlete and work with some excellent coaches and physios. More details of this are on the website www.richardallenfitness.com As far as price, the camp is £335 (approx €uros 398) and hotel & most buffet food is £299 (approx €uros 356). So for Greek athletes making their own way to Sivota the total price would be €uros 754. The race is part of the camp and currently only open to people staying in the resort. Insurance wouldn’t cover an open race. Contact me through the website with any questions and for more booking details.
Triathlon World : What is your training philosophy? What is your competitive advantage as a coach ?
Richard Allen : The training I give to my athletes is very much based on the training I do every day. I have been experimenting on myself since I turned Pro back in 1994 and I know what works and what doesn’t. Performance is about consistency and balancing rest with the right amount of training for your life. Communication is also key if you have a coach.
Triathlon World : How the training philosophy & approach in Triathlon has changed the last 20 years? What more to expect the coming years concerning the training of triathletes?
Richard Allen : Training is much more scientific these days. We can used power meters and lactate testing to check performance levels. Sports psychology also plays a much bigger role in racing and coaching these days. 20 years ago the sport was new and athletes just training as hard as they could until they broke. They didn’t know any different. We have learnt a lot in the past 20 years so we don’t make the same mistakes.
Triathlon World : What are the most common mistakes that age group triathletes are doing and never stop repeating?
Richard Allen : Many age group triathletes do all their training at too high an intensity rather than balancing very easy training with harder interval training. They also want to do more and more training to get better when it should always be quality over quantity.
Triathlon World : Could you give to our readers – most of them are age groupers- some tips for a fast improvement?
Richard Allen : Be consistent. Have your swim technique analyzed. Learn some basic sports psychology techniques. However the best way to get better fast is to come on our camp! They would learn so much in a week.
Triathlon World : What tests do you recommend to triathletes in order to measure their progress (laboratory tests and tests on the field)?
Richard Allen : For beginners, basic regular time trials are good enough to measure progress. For more advanced athletes, blood lactate testing, VO2 and max power output can all help.
Triathlon World : What instruments do you think that are necessary in order to monitor the intensity of each session?
Richard Allen : Just a heart rate monitor. Power meters are great for biking but very expensive.
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