The Chores - a celebration

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I’m sad to report that The Chores has been ruined. I’m not a great complainer and have not dug in to have a whinge. Overall I preferred the old Sufferfest branding, lore etc but understand that some things have to change. I’m also still very happy with the content and even if things never improved I would be happy as it is such a fab platform already. Where else can you get a selection of enterpaining workouts, great soundtrack, Fitness Plans, Strength Training, Yoga and even Mental Toughness programme? Nowhere else!

Now the first time I did the Chores was May 2020 and I couldn’t complete it. The next time was worse. I really didn’t like it. I could do the intervals but the threshold work afterwards was a killer.
But over the years I’ve come to love it and it may be one of my most used Sufferfest workouts. Part of the reason I love it so much is the soundtrack. The grungy rock in the second sub-threshold block is great and I have even sought out Double Fuzz on Spotify.

The piece-de-resistance is the final set. The first time I did this I certainly didn’t make it through the threshold part but the combination of the words on screen and the accompanying music are just perfect inspiration to me. I know what is coming and am looking out for the words on screen, and as I am waiting for these to arrive the soundtrack is playing Fire to the Night (by Native 51) which has a chorus “So I can take it higher, gonna set fire to the night” which only increase the anticipation. Then the display shows “Did we mention the targets are higher this set?”. “Oh cr@p, I barely made it through the last one, but this will be tougher.” I push through the 40/20s then the threshold interval starts, a little higher than previously and for a longer time. What gets me through is cranking up the volume (to 11) as Har Megiddo plays Be With You. (It’s the Arkatec Remix if you want to find it.) That has a fantastic build up of tension and then a release, along with a hypnotic beat that allows you to push, push, push and push the suffering away.
Thanks to this I haven’t failed for ages.

Or so I thought. Nooooo. The targets are no longer higher for the final threshold set, they are lower. The whole thing is ruined.
I know I can simply push the Up arrow and make up for it, but that’s not the point. In fact I did and even went 10% up for the final 2 mins, getting my highest indoor heart rate for ages (the other one being in Team Scream which also has a fantastic soundtrack).

So you can tell me I am making a fuss. I could even be wrong, the 40/20s are indeed higher with each successive set. Maybe it was always like this. In fact hopefully it was and I can go back to loving it like I always did!

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I love this workout too! Targets were adjusted by sir Neal around 2021, since then they remained the same. I 'm afraid you need to do Full Frontal and create a new profile.

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Actually I just did the Test week (HM and FF) so this is the first week on the new figures.
Like I said the soundtrack pushes me along and I got a higher heart rate than usual.

Is it really 2021 that the workouts were adjusted? Wow.

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LOVE the edited thread title change! Such a great SUF vid and workout!

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I started doing Sufferfest workouts in September of 2020 and have also always enjoyed doing The Chores and the music, although for a different reason. As a classical music lover, I found it soothing to have snippets of a Bach keyboard partita playing during the recovery intervals of the last set.

I’m a bit puzzled by the difficulty that you’ve sometimes had completing the workout. While it’s challenging, I’ve always been able to complete it. As Jud mentioned, I’m wondering if a new FF would be in order to ensure that you’re working with the right targets.

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