Going to need to lay the ground work before my actual question. I am currently doing a low volume plan to prepare for the Big Sugar 100 mile gravel race in October. My workouts fall on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday which allows me to be able to get some other riding in. I am also a NICA coach and we practice on Tuesday and Thursday. I normally do the prescribed training in the mid morning and then lead or sweep for the intermediate NICA athletes which is usually not that demanding of a ride. It’s a lot of starting and stopping to keep the group together. I try to maintain rest days during the week. Is this the best approach to make sure I’m prepared for the 100 mile effort. I only have a goal time of 7 hours which would be an hour faster than last year.
I think you have probably found the best way given you are a NICA coach. There is no way to have a NICA ride be anything than unstructured at best staying within zone 2-3. You have to manage the practice which is not the same as working out. It sounds like you are doing it really well in light of that constraint on your schedule.
It is volunteering. You are giving that time away for the good of others. Just accept that and do the best you can with the time you have left. The kids are grateful for it. That mindset has helped me deal with the fact I am not going to train like I would prefer. I do use the practice rides to focus on a skill like cornering or wheel lifts, which is probably less critical in a gravel ride.
Hey @Bmac66,
Welcome to the forum and good question! 
It’s probably best to keep your coaching rides separate from your training. There isn’t going to be much structure in those rides, but they still count as time in the saddle. Generally speaking, it never hurts to get some easy hours on the bike in addition to your structured training if your body allows for it.
I’d recommend looking at how much time you’re able to sustainably spend on your bike each week and subtracting the amount you’re spending on your bike as a coach to find out how much time you can afford to train.
It looks like you’ve been pretty consistent over the past few weeks which is really what’s important. How are you feeling overall? It looks like your work with NICA has only recently started so I’d keep a pulse on your fatigue, desire to train, and overall energy levels and make adjustments to to your training as you see fit. You only have so much time in a week, so it’s really a matter of figuring out how you’re able to spend your free time while considering rest, recovery, and downtime. 
You can do really well with a low-volume plan as long as you’re sticking to the plans as best as possible, and allowing yourself to recover with proper sleep and nutrition. If you’re doing two rides on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I’d recommend focusing on recovery between rides, even if the evening ride is relatively easy. Otherwise, it might make sense to shift your workouts to Mondays and Wednesdays if those NICA rides are easier and aren’t too stressful. 
You’ve also mentioned fitting in time for “other riding.” What do you mean by that exactly? How many days a week are you looking to ride? You could always work up to a mid-volume plan if you’re riding 5 days a week which really just adds two endurance workouts to the low-volume plan that you’re currently on. It’s important to keep those rides between workouts a little easier so that you can really deliver during your hard workouts when it counts. Again, if those NICA rides are easy enough they could hold the place of those two easy rides in a mid-volume plan, but just remember that more isn’t always better. Being able to knock out those three hard workouts each week with quality and consistency is likely going to benefit you more than simply getting more riding in. 
The other rides would usually be MTB rides with my kids or friends that are usually similar to the NICA rides. Sometimes it might be a long steady gravel or greenway ride but at zone 2 intensity. I’m 58 yeas old and know that recovery is very important and try to make sure that I recover properly and also focus on nutrition. This is a recovery week so I skipped the TR recovery ride today since I have NICA practice tonight.
Can you post a general idea of what your week looks like?
Not seeing your schedule I wonder how stressful (or unstressful) are the NICA rides? Maybe use them as recovery days then do quality on Monday and Wednesday?
I’m a level one NICA coach this year. I’m not on a plan perse, but I do train like I’m getting ready for something, even if it’s just Strava KOMs.
I’ve been paired with the JV and Varsity kids, so our NICA training rides can get pretty spicy.
That being said, I typically get to our training trails about two hours before practice and get my time in before the kids show up. The NICA ride is just extra credit.
This past Tuesday, with getting there early and also practice, I had in a three hour MTB ride.