Jonathan Weeks
Conquering his ride across the Dolomites and Italian Alps thanks to 1-1 VIP Njinga coaching.
“I knew that I’d need to train seriously if I was going to complete the ride across the Dolomites and enjoy it. That’s where Njinga came in.”
Read on to discover how 1-1 Njinga coaching helped Jonathan conquer his epic ride across the Dolomites and Italian Alps.
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Achievement Highlights
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RIDE LONDON
Completed the 100 miles in 5 hours and 56 minutes - A new PB.
DOLOMITES CHALLENGE
Rode across the Dolomites - 15,500m of climbing including Stelvio.
FTP IMPROVEMENTS
Improved FTP score from 243w to 256w in the first 8 weeks of 1-1 training.
PERFORMANCE NUMBERS
Improved 12-minute climbing test by 15 watts (283 to 298w) in 8-weeks.
Before Njinga
I’ve cycled since I was a small boy. My dad was a keen cyclist, and I inherited his love of cycling. I raced quite a bit in my teens and twenties, but then an injury stopped me cycling for many years.
When I did come back to cycling, I entered some sportives - including the Etape and then unfortunately travel resulted in me putting my road cycling on hold again until early 2022.
As a 60th birthday present to motivate me to get out on the road again, my wife gave me a trip to the Dolomites - 7 days of riding some of the toughest road climbs out there.
It was an amazing present - but I knew that I’d need to train seriously if I was going to complete the ride and enjoy it. That’s where Njinga came in - well, eventually.
My first instinct was to get a coach. I’d worked with several coaches over the years and valued the feedback and the accountability that the relationships had provided.
I initially used a coach someone recommended, but was frustrated by the lack of feedback they provided, and progress so I stopped. I then used an app - one that used artificial intelligence to update your training programme week by week based on the results from the previous week. It was interesting but I wanted human feedback.
I decided to look again for a human coach. I Googled some search terms and came across Njinga. The website looked good, and the reviews were excellent, so I got in touch and arranged an initial consultation with Togo.
After that initial consultation, I was confident I’d found the right coach.
I set up a personal 1:1 coaching programme and as part of that I got a bespoke training plan which included indoor and outdoor recommendations and weekly calls with Togo. I was also able to complete “on-demand” Njinga training programmes and also got access to the Njinga Cycling Academy which has over 300 hours of on-demand content.
Jonathan cycling down to Brighton with the Njinga Collective..
I’d entered the RideLondon-Essex 100 mile sportive to help with my motivation. When I came to Togo I had only 6 weeks to prepare for the event. I’d been doing the occasional longish ride outside, but I needed a serious boost.
I joined the RideLondon training programme run by Njinga. The sessions were hard, but I enjoyed the competitive aspect that the on-demand platform (On the Njinga Cycling Academy) provided.
I completed RideLondon in a time of 5 hours and 56 minutes. That included a long wait of about 45 minutes due to an accident on the course.
"Even with that delay, my time was a personal best for me for a 100-mile sportive - 8 years after my last 100-mile sportive."
I continued riding Njinga on-demand programmes and having weekly coach calls with Togo. I also completed outdoor rides as guided by Togo’s plan.
Then in September, I jetted off to Venice to meet up with my fellow riders to take part in the ride across the Dolomites and Italian Alps - A trip that included 15,500m of climbing across iconic climbs such as Monte Zoncolan, the Stelvio, Passo Giau, the Mortirolo, and the Gavia. I won’t pretend the ride was easy and that I flew up the climbs like Pantani reincarnated. It wasn’t and I didn’t. But I did complete the ride and loved it (so much so I’m thinking about repeating it next year).
"Without the help from Togo and Njinga I’m not confident I would have completed the ride - and I’m certain I wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much as I did."
Jonathan at the top of one of the climbs on his ride across the Dolomites.
Jonathan and Njinga Head Performance Coach Togo..
I have so many positive things to say about Togo and Njinga that I’m not sure where to start! Togo is terrific.
He takes a genuine interest in his riders.
He’s the first coach I can remember who looked at my Training Peaks data and gave me feedback on it. Togo helped me to understand the importance of the data I was collecting from my rides and the need to analyse it and then respond appropriately at the next session.
I also love Togo’s holistic approach to cycling. It’s not just about riding the bike. It’s also about nutrition, recovery, pedal technique, breathing, core strength etc.
I thought I knew a lot about cycling but I’ve learnt so much from Togo that helps me, not only with my cycling, but in my general day-to-day life too.
"The whole Njinga set-up and the team are very professional. The resources available are incredible - I still struggle to understand how the team have put it all together."
IMPROVED FTP SCORE
Improved an incredible 66 watts from 174w to 240w in just 18 months.
POWER TO WEIGHT
Increase from 2.46 to 3.59w/kg. An increase of 46% in less than 18 months.
RIDE LONDON 100 MILES
Completed first 100 miles in July 2019 in a time of 7h47m.
MALLORCA 225
Took on the Mallorca 225 cycling challenge and conquered it in tough heat conditions.
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