I’ve been using The Sufferfest for about 3 months now. I did my one and only 4DP near the start. It classified me as a Sprinter which was a complete shock, as I’ve never even done any sprinting. Anyway it said I needed to work on my MAP, and recommended things like ‘A very dark place’ and ‘nine hammers’. Whilst ‘nine hammers’ was hard, I didn’t feel any of the others were really that hard. In fact I had to lift the difficulty on some of them by a few percent to suffer properly. ‘the downward spiral’ and ‘blender’ being notable exceptions.
However I thought I should try something completely different and had a crack at ‘Thin Air’ yesterday. I was so cocky that I did it directly after a previous 30 min workout and even took it out of ERG mode for the first 15 mins to ride at threshold before the mountain stage. Boy was that a mistake. I blew up three times in the mountain section. It was way harder than I expected.
I tried it again today - just the ride as programmed - no deviation from the plan - I did it this time, but it wasn’t easy. It’s a hard one.
Why, when 4DP says I should focus on MAP, do the MAP focussed rides seem easier that the pure climbing FTP workouts like Thin Air? Should I be ignoring the 4DP recommendations as mix it up a bit more?
One key thing here is this is the selection process for rider type is simply based on the results of your test. So if your NM result is proportionately higher compared to the 20min section (than MAP or AC) you’ll get the Sprinter tag. It’s really as simple as that.
In my view rarely means you’re a sprinter
When I get that tag it usually means I smashed the sprint but the rest of the test hasn’t gone so well (especially MAP) for any number of reasons. Sometimes I’m not as rested as I want to be, sometimes I just haven’t managed to really smash the 5min test.
When I do hit the 5min section to my limit, my rider type then is more ‘relevant’
For your own test - it kind of sounds like it could be similar. You may (or may not because we don’t know your training history, tested max HR, or have a series of results for like for like comparisons to go on) not have pushed the 5min as hard as maybe you can.
FWIW - took me quite a few tests to get the 5min test to a point where I was truly wasted at the end of it.
The other thing that makes me think that the 5njn test wasn’t as strong as it could be is you finding the toughest SUF workouts there are to be ok, but the FTP ones a wee bit harder. If you had something left after the 5min test, then you may have been able to do better in the 20min.
Just a two pence worth. Hope that helps. Message me if you want a hand looking at numbers. Happy to help.
Here’s my opinion: you did not do the 4DP at the right intensity. A sure way you can get a more balanced workout in the future is to do the Half Monty after you have rested a bit. Maybe Tuesday or so
The first time I did my 4DP I completely messed it up . The resistance was almost negligible. I had to redo it a couple of times before I started to get it right.
Thanks Chaps. Good advice. I kind of used my Strava power curve as my 4DP guide that first time. I’ll have to have another shot at it. I’ll try the half Monty first though.
I would also recommend giving Half Monty a shot as this will help with your pacing of FullFrontal. We have the training plan for this under ‘special focus’ --> ‘Full Frontal/Half Monty Double’… Good Luck!
. The resistance was almost negligible. I had to redo it a couple of times before I started to get it right.