Coachingsolo

THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUR CLIENTS MISS TRAINING

12:31·24 June 2021

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KEY TAKEAWAYS

Missed workouts are usually a time problem, not a motivation problem — fix your schedule, not your mindset.
Batch similar tasks together: answer all emails in one window, take all calls in another, and stop switching between them throughout the day.
Double your time estimate for any project — tasks always take longer than ideal conditions suggest, and the buffer lets you get on the bike guilt-free.
Block out two to three hours of distraction-free deep work and you'll outproduce a full day of half-focused, phone-checking effort.

There was one reason given over & over again for clients missing training. I want to talk about how to avoid this common pitfall

Support this podcast: www.patreon.com/anthony_walsh

All the bits & bobs I recommend are here www.roadmanresources.com

Start Your Challenge https://www.roadmancycling.com/8week

KEY QUOTES

“If you think something is going to take, if you have a feeling that a project is going to take one week to complete, give it a two week completion time. We're left feeling unproductive if we're missing targets, but those targets were never really realistic that we're setting because they're based off total optimum conditions and zero interruptions are stuff going wrong.”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host and cycling coach

“If you locked yourself in the room and you got two hours, three hours of this force field, Jedi Knight worked on. A lot of times that's going to trump eight hours of sitting there, all Edlyn picking up your phone every 30 seconds.”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host and cycling coach

“Tasks that are similar take a similar energy. And when you switch from one task to a different task, a different energy is required. So to switch from an email to doing a zoom call to back doing another email, it's a waste of energy, it's a waste of bandwidth and you don't accomplish as much in the day.”
Anthony Walsh — Roadman Cycling podcast host and cycling coach

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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT3 SECTIONS

Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

Roadman, today I want to talk to you about why you're missing training and how to solve that problem. Let's cue that intro! The big question is this. How do we use cycling as a tool to improve our health, our happiness and our long changes? That is the question and this podcast will give you the answers. My name is Anthony Walsh and welcome to the Roadman Podcast. Robeman, welcome back. It's another Robeman cycling podcast where only two days away from the start of the tour, the France. I absolutely cannot wait. And I suppose at this junction, I'm going to a lot of Instagram DMs. If you haven't followed me yet over on Instagram, do so. It's just Robeman dot cycling. I'm going to a lot of Instagram DMs. Am I going to do a daily Tour de France and it's kind of like yes and no. I think I am going to come daily during the Tour de France but I'm also going to scatter in some interviews during the Tour de France just for my own piece of mind because if I have to do a full roadman podcast on a fucking flat stage where the breakaway gets caught 4k from the finish and try and make that sound exciting, I think I may go into some sort of serious mental health facility. So it's just to preserve my own sanity that I am going to, I'm going to drip in some interviews during the Tour de France, but I'm going to go pretty much daily. Look, I'm pretty much daily anyway. I'm five days a week on the podcast. So I'm going to be five days plus a little bit more during the Tour de France. So I'm looking forward to it. Today I want to talk to you about what you're missing training and a solution for that. Because this sort of topic is actually prompted by a recent chat with just a bunch of clients, got a bunch of clients together and kind of looked for the number one reason that clients are missing training. And one of the biggest reasons people were given was the day just got away from me or I just ran out of time. So I want to talk about the solution to that because the solution to rumm out of time or the day getting away from you is to improve your productivity and to cut down on that waste of time. Today's podcast only give you three very tangible strategies for making sure you improve your productivity and get more done so you can get the boring stuff you have to do out of the way so you can go and ride your bike. Before I jump into that road, man, thank you to everyone who's subscribed over on Patreon. If you haven't subscribed yet, it takes you two seconds. It's the price of a point of beer once a month. Literally, if you see me in Dublin City and you're a podcast listener, would you be willing to buy me a point of beer once a month to just go, you know what, I'm getting some value out of this, this is enjoyable. And that's what the podcast is. Like I could easily try the podcast behind a paid firewall and every single person has to pay a five or a month if you want to listen to the podcast. But I don't want to do that because I know a fiver is a lot of money for some people out there, especially if they're unemployed. So the podcast works on a model of soundness. If you can afford to pay a five or a month for the podcast, you You know, dig not so deep and give us a fiver of the month and pay me for my work. If you can't afford it, no bother. You're the listeners, they've got your back and it goes on and you're going to get the podcast entirely free. You know, maybe at some point down the road when you graduate from school, from college, when you get a job back again, maybe you'll jump on and support the podcast. Until then, it's that modulus soundness. So to get me that virtual point of beer, head on over to patreon.com forward slash Anthony underscore Walsh and that's where you can do it. Okay, let's talk about tree, sort of tangible hacks to improve our productivity. These productivity hacks are working super well for me and that's why I want to share them with you. So the first one, I've actually recorded a full podcast on this before but it's watery visiting because it's that powerful. It's the idea of batching, of dealing similar things at the same time. So this the analogy that works best for me and explain this is if you had to Load the dishwasher if you had to do dishes you wouldn't wash one dish And then go and answer an email and then come back and wash another dish and then go do a phone call and then come back and wash another dish No, you sit down and you wash all the dishes in one go Like always if you had to water all the plants around the house You know you wouldn't come along with the water and calm water one plant and then do something else and come back and water the second plant.

Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

It's not an efficient use of time. So instead what we do is we batch it and we wash all our dishes in one go, we wash all, we water all our plants in one go. But somehow when it comes to work, we don't do this. And this task switch does a brilliant book by Dan Heat called Switch. And I've actually borrowed largely this sort of idea from his book. And in the book Dan Heat talks about the damage it costs us in terms of productivity, from one task to another. But the practical solution, if you want me to save, you're reading a 150 page book, all you have to do is batch similar tasks together because tasks that are similar take a similar energy. And when you switch from one task to a different task, a different energy is required. So to switch from an email to doing a zoom call to back doing another email, it's a waste of energy, it's a waste of bandwidth and you don't accomplish as much in the day. So instead what he advocates and what works super well for me is batch all emails at a certain time. So I only answer emails before 10am. After 10am, that's it. I'm not checking my emails till the next day. But for me, if I'm doing interviews or if I'm doing, you know, I'll often I was on a career school podcast this week. And if I'm doing two or three podcast interviews with other podcasters rather than scattering them across the week because then I'm just so stressed out. I'm just like, no, you know what? Thursday afternoon is when I record podcasts, so I schedule all my podcast recordings, interviews on other people's podcasts for a Thursday afternoon. You can do the same with emails, Zoom calls, anything you want, but just batch similar tasks together because they take similar levels of energy and then you won't lose that task switch. Secondly, and this is a really, really powerful one, plan for Tings to take twice as long as you think they will take. So if you think something is going to take, if you have a feeling that a project is going to take one week to complete, give it a two week completion time. We're left feeling unproductive if we're missing targets, but those targets were never really, realistic that we're setting because they're based off total optimum conditions and zero interruptions are stuff going wrong. Like if I've to edit a YouTube video, I'm going to say, yeah, that's going to take me eight hours to do. It's going to take me eight hours to edit a YouTube video in optimum conditions, me working at a hundred percent capacity, no brain drift and start thinking about the race that's on next weekend. Start wondering who's in the break in the Tour de France. total in the zone, no interruptions, optimum conditions, zero going wrong and then it takes me eight errors. And the problem is that puts me under stress because I'm after saying to somebody a boss, a client, etc. I'll have this video for you in eight errors and then eight errors takes past and the pressure is on because now you're late with the project. Instead of I say, look, that's a 16-hour job. I'm going to feel better for overachieving if it takes me 12 hours to do and I get it across the quality of my work is going to be better. I'm going to have better headspace and I'm going to be able to manage external pressure and external expectations way better. Tasks take longer than you think. That's the second one. So block that off in your calendar because then you're not going to feel guilty getting out in the evening because you've left longer for these tasks. So you can get on the bike, guilt free. And the final one that I want to finish today's podcast on is I call it force field time. And I've been using this since I was in school and I used to, I wasn't brilliant for, you know, keeping up with assignments and doing stuff through the year, but what I was brilliant with was I'd say you'd need to turn into a Jedi Knight for like two weeks before exams. And by Jedi Knight, I mean, I had this like Zen-like focus where every single other thing in my life was blocked out. The world collapsed around me and I wouldn't have known. I was getting ready for that log exam. And that's what you need to do with you'll hear authors now speaking of force field time or deep work, because there is a difference between errors worked and deep errors worked. When we block ourselves in the room, when we turn off the phone, when we remove any distractions, when we focus solely on one project, the quality of the work we can get done is exceptional.

Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

Like the idea of logging in and saying, oh, I got eight hours worked on today. Like it's bullshit. Did you get eight hours worked on? You didn't. If you locked yourself in the room and you got two hours, three hours of this force field, Jedi Knight worked on. A lot of times that's going to Trump. Eight hours of sitting there, all Edlyn picking up your phone every 30 seconds. You're mind wandering and you're physically here with your mind is, you know, you're in the race in Bohermin, six weeks from now and you're in the break trying to figure out how you're going to win the race. That's not And when we bring it back to this force field time, it means we have to spend less time getting through these tasks so we can spend more time doing what we love doing, which is writing our bikes. I just thought this was an interesting topic because it's one that it just stresses clients out so often and it's been one as well that stressed me out where I've missed training sessions and this idea of the day getting away from you. So if you can use simple strategies like this to prevent the day getting away from you, It's an absolute win. You might be skeptical about some of them, you might think, oh that's pretty easy, but I'd encourage you to take them, even take one of them and try to implement it for a week and let me know over on Instagram how you're finding it. Folks, all the usual stuff, how you can support the podcast, it's Patreon as I mentioned, and that's brilliant. I really appreciate everyone who subscribed over there, but it's the other small things that matter so much as well. Share in the podcast, if you're like an episode, screen capture, tag me, roadman.cycling and share it on your Instagram stories. I like to like the stuff and put an up review the podcast and raise it wherever you listen to your podcast. All this helps us get out there and all this helps small little production wedge war against these big guys and we can keep bringing you the content that you guys want. Roman, thank you for listening to another Roman podcast. Tomorrow it's for the France preview. We're going to look at the contenders. Let me know who you think your podium is going to be really looking for the tomorrow's podcast and getting stuck in and seeing can be seen beyond the Roglish and Pogacha show, the Pog and Rodge show. Tomorrow stay tuned and find out. Roadmen ride safe and I'll chat to you then. Okay, stop what you're doing. It's Anthony again. I want to talk to you for one second about the next step in the roadman journey. I'm laying down a challenge for you. It's called the 8-week challenge. So for 8 weeks I'm challenging you to be the very best version of yourself. out is. For eight weeks I want to take you under my wing and I want to personally build for you customize training plan on our analytics platform. This plan is going to be laser focused on your goal and I'm going to navigate around your life, your work, your social commitments so don't worry about what your circumstances are right now. I remember after I took some time out of cycling I went off and taught a really big business man. I came back and I realized I wanted to get into the cycling, but I knew after a bit, to try it in a loan, it actually wasn't making me any thinner. I needed an entire system, it needed a 360 overhaul. So for the first time ever, I want to share with you this exact system I used to get back in shape. I'm talking stuff like I'm going to give you my morning routines, the cold therapy I used, the cook books and recipes I used, and even the motivational audios I listened to get back on track. So And right now what I want you to do is pause this audio, go to www.roadmancycling.com forward slash eight week or check out the link in the bio, click that. So one more time at roadmancycling.com forward slash eight week. Chatty all soon.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Why do cyclists keep missing training sessions?+

The most common reason cyclists miss training sessions is simply running out of time. Anthony Walsh found this reason came up repeatedly with his coaching clients, and frames it as a time-management problem rather than a motivation problem. Fixing how you structure your day is therefore more effective than trying to boost willpower.

How do I stop running out of time for cycling training?+

Batch similar tasks together into dedicated time windows instead of switching between emails, calls, and other work throughout the day. This approach, drawn from Dan Heath's work and discussed by Anthony Walsh on the Roadman Podcast, reduces the mental overhead of constant task-switching and frees up more consistent time for training.

How long should I budget for tasks so training does not get squeezed out?+

Budget twice as long as you expect any project or task to take. Interruptions and overruns are almost inevitable, and building that buffer into your schedule prevents work from spilling over into your planned training window.

Is missing workouts a motivation problem or a time management problem?+

For most cyclists, missing workouts is a time-management problem, not a motivation problem. Anthony Walsh makes this distinction clearly on the Roadman Podcast, arguing that clients who feel they lack motivation are often simply failing to protect time in their day. Addressing scheduling habits produces more reliable training consistency than focusing on mental drive alone.

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THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUR CLIENTS MISS TRAINING

KEY QUOTES

Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

THE NUMBER 1 TRAINING MISTAKE HOLDING YOU BACK

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

WHY YOUR CYCLING TRAINING HAS STALLED | ROADMAN CYCLING PODCAST

RELATED CONTENT

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

THE MASTERS CYCLING TRAINING PLAN FOR RIDERS OVER 40

HOW TO READ YOUR TRAININGPEAKS WORKOUT (WITHOUT OVERTHINKING IT)

THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUR CLIENTS MISS TRAINING

KEY QUOTES

Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

THE NUMBER 1 TRAINING MISTAKE HOLDING YOU BACK

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

WHY YOUR CYCLING TRAINING HAS STALLED | ROADMAN CYCLING PODCAST

RELATED CONTENT

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

THE MASTERS CYCLING TRAINING PLAN FOR RIDERS OVER 40

HOW TO READ YOUR TRAININGPEAKS WORKOUT (WITHOUT OVERTHINKING IT)

THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUR CLIENTS MISS TRAINING

KEY QUOTES

1.Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

2.Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

3.Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

THE NUMBER 1 TRAINING MISTAKE HOLDING YOU BACK

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

WHY YOUR CYCLING TRAINING HAS STALLED | ROADMAN CYCLING PODCAST

RELATED CONTENT

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

THE MASTERS CYCLING TRAINING PLAN FOR RIDERS OVER 40

HOW TO READ YOUR TRAININGPEAKS WORKOUT (WITHOUT OVERTHINKING IT)

THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUR CLIENTS MISS TRAINING

KEY QUOTES

1.Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

2.Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

3.Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

NEVER MISS AN EPISODE

READ THE GUIDE

RELATED EPISODES

THE NUMBER 1 TRAINING MISTAKE HOLDING YOU BACK

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

WHY YOUR CYCLING TRAINING HAS STALLED | ROADMAN CYCLING PODCAST

RELATED CONTENT

STRENGTH TRAINING FOR CYCLING SIMPLIFIED | DEREK TEEL

THE MASTERS CYCLING TRAINING PLAN FOR RIDERS OVER 40

HOW TO READ YOUR TRAININGPEAKS WORKOUT (WITHOUT OVERTHINKING IT)

Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours

Why Clients Miss Training Sessions

Batch Tasks and Plan Buffer Time

Deep Work Beats Distracted Hours