First three intervals I survived on ERG, then switched to Level as I struggled massively in the third set.
During the first 2min my power dropped, which was highlighted by my 7-year old son looking at the screen:
[Him] Daddy, your number is too low.
[Me] I can’t reach it, it’s too hard.
[Him] no it’s not
[Me] I can’t do it
[Him] Yes you can, nothing is impossible!
F#ck me, Almost cycled myself a heart attack, but if your kid says that to you, you will give it 120%
Was it the power level, or the cadence, or both that did you in on the 3rd set.
Did you considering lowering the percentages rather than going to Level mode?
It’s the power aspect that does it. At times I have encountered the ERG spiral of death in MAP sections, whereas often when going level mode, I manage to hit the targets or slightly exceed them.
@TTDragon had a theory that hits the nail on the head as to why this happens: ERG vs Level.
And if all of that fails, and you can’t reach the target, it allows you to continue in any case.
I don’t like dialling down, Level mode allows me to at least try and hit the targets.
Just did Defender for the first time to get closer to 100% of the Sufferfest workouts. LOATHE. When the 3rd effort had me go 100 RPM I said nah, I’m good. Still completed!
How funny. Defender and Attacker are possibly my two favorite workouts in the Sufferfest… Looking in my history almost every workout has a note similar to “Was hard, but enjoyable.” “Trust the process…” “Hard but I love this interval session.” “That was a good one. Hard but could go harder…” “So pumped!!”
Those are all actual notes I made, covered in sweat at the end from those sessions. Is there something wrong with me??
(PS I’m also a “Sprinter” or Pursuiter with always a “sustained weakness.” And something about that Juliet Roberts song in the beginning of Attacker ALWAYS gets me revved up for the session!)
Your sanity is never in question. All true Sufferlandrians are known to be insane. And I’ve been one for over a decade. They are still trying to get me into the lower levels of the Castle…
I’m new to suffering and had my first go at Defender this morning - it kicked my arse. I was ok until my HR spiked into zone 5 early in the second set and stubbornly refused to drop. I started the third set at 100% intensity but couldn’t get near the cadence target so dropped to 90%. Paused and got off for a walk around at the end of the third set to let my HR get back into zone 2, did the 3 min recovery then started the final set back at 100% before losing the ability to turn the pedals about 90 seconds in. Savage.
My target for next time will be to make it through the first three sets without dropping the intensity (then obviously hoping I can hold on until the end).
Personally, I don’t deny that Defender is brutal, in fact, it’s even more brutal than Attacker.
Looking back when I did my Quest last year, I must have hit my head somewhere when I chose to end the Quest with Defender and I truth be told, almost gave up completing Defender.
