Testimonials

After my first Gran Fondo, Dubai 92, I was inspired to find a new challenge. As a new comer to cycling I was in awe of the Haute Route 7 day events and just thought it must be amazing to be capable to do such an event.
10 months later and the announcement of Haute Route Oman, I was all in for 2 x 3 day events Oman and the Dolomites building up to the 7 day stage race of Haute Route Pyrenees.

I started training with Sean in the November of 2018 not really knowing if I would be able to complete these events. February 2019 the Oman event including the notorious Jebel Akhdar. It was and still is the most brutal day I have ever had on a bike. But Sean had me ready for it and just as importantly believing in myself.

I cant recommend having Sean as a coach highly enough, aside from the technical and scientific expertise and education he passes on, the human side and understanding that we have to fit the training around our lives and not the other way around means that under his guidance you can achieve anything on the bike you want to regardless of family or professional commitments. Sean has a flexible and knowledgeable approach that means your training always remains realistic and achievable.

I learned a lot about riding a bike and importantly what “noise” to ignore and what is important to focus on. Dolomites and Pyrenees were amazing experiences which I completed with great fun and satisfaction because I was well prepared and everything was timed to perfection to arrive fresh and ready.

I think the best compliment I can pay Sean on the effectiveness of his training and my fitness gains is that after competing the Pyrenees, 7 days of 20000m climbing and approx. 1000km, the next day I wanted to get out on my bike again and I could! Never expected that to be the case.

Forever grateful for all I learned and achieved with Sean, MonoCoach, and will work with him well into the future.

Find your goal and he will have you ready.

I started cycling quite late. While in the beginning it was purely about recreational time, I turned more towards fitness and competitive cycling over the last two years. Mono Coach Sean McBride helped me to steadily increase my skills and strength. I might not be winning a lot of races but he elevated me to a level where I’d be able to compete.

I accidentally met Sean while taking my bike for a service right before my first full Ironman in Taiwan. We got chatting and was intrigued by his positive attitude, and his knowledge around triathlons and biking. Once I was back from my IM the first thing that I did was to give him a call and arrange for a meeting to discuss how we can work together.

Fast forward 3-4 IMs later I've been working with Sean for about 2 years now, and I must say he is a very structured individual that knows his stuff, and he has been able to help me see tremendous increase in speed, power and endurance in all of my disciplines, in other words he is my coach and proud about it. He follows a very personalized training plan for me, and also we have a weekly check-in in order to assess progress and next steps, go over the data that is flowing in to make changes and improvements, in other words a data driven approach, and I love data, so fits right into my mentality.

Working with Sean has been an amazing journey and one that I will keep on repeating.

Having a coach is like having a Google Map telling you what’s the fastest way to get to where you want to go. Sean was my Google Map.

Before I give a full and outstanding testimony of Sean’s work, I do need to give some context to my background.  In my own sporting field, I had reached the top, a post-graduated sports scientist and accomplished athlete. Following my retirement from competitive sport I have sustained my engagement through coaching, at the performance level. I’m difficult to coach; I think I know everything. It’s pretty simple.  

I turned to cycling, like many other MAMILS. I was okay. I had my buddies and they were about the same as me. Then one of them improved, significantly and rapidly. He had invested in a secret weapon, the MonoCoach himself. Initially I was hesitant to invest; I thought I was an expert in all this stuff, what could I learn from someone?  I was wrong. What makes Sean so effective is his ability to create a truly personalised training programme that can be flexible where and when you need it. Many coaches can set a plan but adapting the plan as the unexpected session cancellation comes up is a significant skill. 

Sean’s abilities were amplified when I declared I wanted to attempt a 70.3 triathlon, having never ran in my life. The target completion. He never batted an eyelid to the ridiculous idea. Whilst guiding me through the absolute fundamentals of endurance running, he equally extended my cycle and swim skills with expertly planned training sessions. Not only did he guide me to completing my 70.3, but a sub-6hr time, which was well beyond my initial aspirations. 

Sean was flexible, whilst also making me accountable for my training. He truly is an outstanding coach who without doubt will guide anyone to a better version of themselves, whether on the bike, in the water or on the run. We often discuss the best investment for that extra speed, or making the bike that little bit lighter. Forget it. Invest in Sean, the best investment you will ever make. Period

After some struggles with rigid training plans that don't allow for life to happen, I decided to try out working with a coach. Sean helps me put together my training and race preparations to maintain and progress. He keeps cycling interesting, even during the Dubai summer months when the "great outdoors" is too hot to enjoy for long.

What I like about Sean is that he has a very collaborative coaching style. When I started working with him, we sat down and worked out what I wanted to achieve from my cycling given the time I had available. He then put together a comprehensive training plan that helped me grow in terms of my strength, stamina, conditioning and endurance. Due to work commitments, I can’t always do what I want to with my training. However, Sean is always very flexible and makes the most of it in the time I have available.

What I also appreciate is that he explains what he is doing with you and what each different training session is designed to build. This has helped me gain a greater understanding about what my body is capable of and how to get the best out of it. I’ve also learned a lot from him about how to maximise my hydration and nutrition during training, which has really helped my performance. So much so that I have been able to have a few podium places in competitions!

I would highly recommend Sean as a coach. I’ve enjoyed out time together and continue to grow under his supervision and guidance.

I’d just like to say that the time I have spent with Sean coaching me has allowed me to get into the best shape I have ever been in. I definitely recommend Sean and his positive coaching style to others.

I’ve been cycling for years to keep fit following a career as a triathlete in a previous life. My cycling was a social form of fitness which I enjoyed, but I wondered if the passing years meant I would just get slower and slower.

MonoCoach set me up with a doable training schedule which didn’t take any longer each week than I’d previously been cycling and kept my core social workout to ensure there was lots of enjoyment in the plan.

I was suitably impressed with the results which showed as an improved ftp, stronger and faster for less effort! Then along came 2020 and coronavirus lockdowns and for me a mild form of COVID-19, followed by the dreaded long-COVID. Some months into long-COVID a routine scan detected breast cancer. All the while I’ve been able to maintain my cycling albeit not at the intensity I was at, but giving me a physical goal each day to ensure that I’m in the best physical shape for surgery and in front of the curve for recovery. MonoCoach has provided a great resource for focusing on the positive while ensuring I have sufficient energy day-to-day. I can’t recommend Sean highly enough and would say that whatever your background and whatever is happening for you at a particular time MonoCoach will help you achieve your goals.

When I started being coached by Sean I hadn’t been cycling long and had never raced. But immediately from the off, I saw a huge improvement in my confidence on the bike and towards racing. Sean and I maintain conversation that doesn’t just surround cycling, which adds a much more comfortable human aspect to the coaching relationship, knowing each other better. One of the things I appreciate most is the flexibility in my training. Although I work a full-time job, Sean is still is able to get an efficient, strong week of training in for me and can change to suit how your life works; not to mention the support when you have a bad day. After one year of racing I’ve come away with multiple top 10s and some podiums for my age group and I owe them all to Sean. I could not be happier!

As a recreational rider, I was not sure I ‘deserved’ a coach!
I wanted to be a stronger climber - we lived in Beijing and the mountains there are incredible and challenging - so that I could just enjoy it more.
Working with Sean has been amazing – he encourages all levels of riders. He set up a bespoke indoor training schedule for me with the right progression and intensity that got me to my goals in just a few months. The improvements were measurable, visible to me and those I rode with, especially on two fantastic cycling holidays in Taiwan and Japan! I totally recommend anyone, at any level, who wants to get more efficiency out of their riding, to connect with Sean.

Sean has been training me for quite some time now. Initially I was just bored of doing laps at Nad Al Sheba without any reason and he gave me some basic intervals to do that kept me entertained. Since then the focus has changed and we put some goals together that give training a purpose. Throughout the process Sean has always been reasonable and understood changing circumstances, but he also pushes at the right moments and gives feedback at the right time to keep me focused and not frustrated. All he does – it works for me. I enjoy my cycling and keep getting stronger in the process. If you are looking for a personal approach, a reason to get out of bed in the morning and someone who has your own goals in mind, Sean is your coach!

It’s great to be able to ride your bike for fun, exercise or to get somewhere. But if you’re serious about cycling, then you may want to consider a coach. After a very long break from cycling, I took up the sport again five years ago, but I didn’t really know what I was doing. I would go out thinking I am going to take it easy that day, but if someone passed me, I would get all fired up and start chasing, or I would tag onto a group and let them dictate the speed and distance... This is when I decided to look for a coach. A bike shop referred me to Sean McBride. Having a coach is like having a Google Map telling you the fastest way to get to where you want to go. Sean was my Google map.

It’s easy to sign up for some online training plan; some are even free! But they’re also generic and don’t take into account the individual. Sean asked me about what I want to do with my cycling, my goals, and the events I wanted to be a part of. He always explained exactly why he was focusing on a certain aspect of training. He was also able to work with the time I had available with a full-time job and redesigned my week if I couldn’t make a session. This interaction certainly isn’t possible with an off the shelf plan.

During my training with Sean I participated in a few races and accomplished some goals: I raced my fastest 40km ever with a speed 41.4kmh; I also came in third in my age group at a 20km ITT. Needless to say, I was very happy with all the hard work Sean made me do.

My cycling journey started in 2015, and I knew Sean from our Dubai cycling club. I signed up for a cycling event in Southern India in 2017. The 7-day tour would cover over 1,000 kilometres, with over 14,000 metres of climbing!
I met Sean for a coffee to talk about it, and he politely reminded me that, given the profile of the course and only 3 months to go, I would need some preparation to enjoy the experience to the fullest.
Sean was patient, yet resilient with my training and together we made the event a reality.
I have all the happy memories from that week and I can’t thank Sean enough for helping make that happen for me!