It doesn’t matter if this is your first half marathon or your hundredth; if you’re a walker, runner or somewhere in between.

Everyone benefits from some guidance and motivation now and then, and a structured training plan can help you to stay on track to smash those goals.

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Meet the Coach – Richard Greer

I have been racing and adventuring for over 20 years. It all started back at Otago Uni when I brought my first mountain bike (the fully rigid type) to go exploring on the hills surrounding Dunedin. I then entered the 3 Peaks challenge (a 26km run) in Dunedin and it was during training for this that I was asked by a friend to join a team to enter the Coast to Coast. It was a big step and initially I wasn’t sure that I was up to it but I said yes and figured that I would sort how I was actually going to do it later…

After purchasing the bike, boat and all of the gear that goes with it I got stuck into training. Following a few months training I figured that if I was going to spend the money and enter I should just do the whole lot myself to save having to go back to do it again. However in that first year I placed 11th in the 2day and was hooked…

Since then I have raced at the pointy end of the longest day field, won the teams event, had a crack at adventure racing, kept up in A grade on the road bike, fallen off my mountain bike plenty of times and had fun doing it.

One of the reasons that I took up multisport and kayaking in the early days was that I was never much of a swimmer so a couple of years ago I had a crack at learning to swim (properly) and completed the Motatapu Xterra event. I am really proud of that achievement and enjoyed trying to master a new skill (although it was frustrating at times). I think as a coach that it is important to keep challenging yourself. Going back to being a beginner again was good for me as these experiences help me to relate to those that I am coaching.

During the last 12 years I have while coaching and developing CP I have been teaching for the Southern Institute of Technology delivering  the PT courses in Christchurch.  In that time I received an award for outstanding coaching in multisport at the 2010 Canterbury Sports awards and in 2014 I was super proud to receive the Educator of the year at the NZ fitness awards.

Team CP is now my full time gig and I am really enjoying the variety of athletes that I work with and the business development that I get to do on a daily basis.

Click here to check out the training options offered by Richard and the crew at Team CP.