Most training apps rely on a single stress score to quantify your workouts. The problem: A blanket number fails to show what a session actually did for your body, making it tough to know if you’re truly building the right kind of fitness.
Check out our latest video on a better way to track your progress:
In this video, we break down Wahoo’s Dimensional Training Load (DTL)—a new approach that reveals both how hard you worked and precisely what energy systems you developed. By analyzing your power, pace, and duration against your unique 4DP (cycling) or 3DP (running) Athlete Profile, DTL helps you target training gaps and make every workout count.
Since rolling out this feature, how has DTL affected your day-to-day training and how you plan your workouts?
While this is an improvement for Wahoo, contrary to the video, it is not the first training score to do this. Xert has had this for years. I presume intervals.icu and other platforms do this as well.
Big fan of the metrics. I had a recent injury induced three months break, and returning slowly with mostly Zwift sessions the DTL data highlights how limited those rides are unless building in intervals properly. Back to training plan once the weather turns!
In any case the statement in the video about the originality of their system is incorrect. Xert has had this ability for a long time, Vekta had it before SYSTM as well.
Accuracies/inaccuracies aside, I do pay more attention to balancing low and high stress workouts than I used to mostly because of the DTL stuff. I use it and enjoy using it. So I generally like the new suite. However, as per some of my past posts, I try not to be too numbers focused - but it’s good to have the metrics when I check in every so often.
One question and one comment:
The comment: Maybe not related to DTL, but the workout recommendation engine is MUCH improved in my opinion from about 8 or so months ago. The recommendations make a lot more sense now. Before it seemed pretty useless, but now it’s many times better.
The question: That fitness score - does this number have any meaning in absolute value? Like, if you’re less than a “50” you suck and need to suck less… etc.
Thanks!
Sam
PS: I’m asking the question because I think it was Richie who said that he’s over 100… and I’m really afraid that I really suck because I’m just not there… (I know… I know… never compare yourself.. but how can you not???)
Ok yeah the workout recommendation engine has been improved and I also agree it’s way way better.
So yeah I had a comically high fitness number, frequently 110-100. Commuting 190 miles a week will do that for you.
Well I switched to an ebike for commuting in December so I’m down about 85 regularly.
This has made me a faster cyclist. On the days I commute on the regular bike I can hit it harder. My weekend rides and SYSTM workouts are better because I’m not always fatigued.
I did HM in January and again in July - FTP up 19W, MAP up 31W.
Two takes from this:
Fitness Score/ CTL is not a measurement of your worth as a cyclist. It’s a measurement of how much work you can do in a week, not how fast you are. IMO it’s useful relative to itself. I’m recovering from injury right now and Fitness Score / Training Capacity are going to be very helpful in maximizing my recovery and not overdoing it.
Make the easy rides easy and the hard rides hard - polarize the work. The ebike makes my easy commutes easy. That means all the outdoor rides and trainer rides can be HARD. One of the things I like about SUF is the emphasis on very efficient HIIT work that gets you gains without tons of volume. Even with being injured and way lower volume I’m setting lifetime power PR’s on the trainer.
I use the DLT to try and improve on my weakness, I have been doing this by choosing workouts in the library from the 4DP cycling section that are aimed at the area that is lowest in my Athlete profile, for me that is AC. I also try to keep up with what is going on here in the forum and from that I learned my aim might be a bit more technical than that so am going to try a plan that focusses on my weak area and see how that goes as well. I completed a Full frontal test a month ago and I failed the last one minute part of the test and get the message that I am not achieving 110% of my MAP. This has happened to me previously so I am now trying to improve it, although to be fair to myself and if my maths is correct, had I achieved an AC score of 0.8 higher I think I would have achieved it. But as they say ‘a miss is as good as a mile’ eh?! But that part of the test always gets me. So the result is that my AC part of the Athlete Profile chart doesn’t have an orange bar so it’s pretty bad But it’s very clear to see in the diagram form which is helpful. One question, does my Athlete profile only change when I do a Full Frontal, or i guess, a Half Monty test. I really hate the FF and avoid it at all cost But I am assuming this is the only way that I will know if I have improved my Athlete profile weakness? On a positive note I am so grateful to have my smart trainer and Wahoo app, it really has given me improvements that I didn’t know I could achieve. And here in the forum I have learned a lot from people about training. I think improving my form has been game changing. It has meant that when i do ride outside, I feel more efficient. So although I am not the most athletic person here, I really enjoy everything about my Wahoo set up and this Forum, so thank you. I’m not sure if I have a full understanding of DLT as yet but am using it to the best of my current knowledge so it can only get better, onward and upward.
whew! thank goodness… (the less than 100 thing)… you have a 40m/day commute?!!?
yeah, the metric looks like a moving average so it’s really about trend when it comes to usefulness. i will say that i can so clearly see the impact of international work/travel - like a kick in the proverbial shorts. makes me want to retire (which at my age has to happen sooner or later).
I had a similar thing with three reasonable bars and a little teeny Yellow MAP bar. Doing lots of MAP work got both my MAP and FTP up.
OK with the athlete profile updates:
Full Frontal will update everything. I also hate it so I’m 100% with you there.
Half Monty will update FTP, MAP, and threshold HR.
You can manually update all of the numbers.
If I got a power PR elsewhere for 5s, 5m, or 20m, I would update my NM, MAP, or FTP accordingly.
AC is weird because it’s repeatable 1 min power not max 1 min power so Full Frontal is the only good way to do it. All that said if you find the AC workouts are getting easier and you just want to bump up your AC, go for it.
Thank you for this Richie it really helps all round. My plan now is to grit my teeth and stick with the Full Frontal, find a plan to help with my AC and chuck in the monthly challenge, (i really enjoy these). Now I understand a bit more about my last minute test of the full frontal I need to try harder to keep going through it next time with the aim of getting that orange bar. Thanks
@Heretic I haven’t used Xert in a while but my recollection was that it was only 3 metrics. Personally I found that their XSS score didn’t work well for higher volume.
I do like the inclusion of AC in Wahoo’s metrics as I find myself hitting a lot of that in both MTB and gravel.
Yes they have only 3 metrics, but they corresponds to the major energy systems just like 4DP. I find their representation of MAP as a energy reservoir, as opposed to a power number, is more meaningful. For me the AC metric in Wahoo is not particularly relevant, but for you I imagine it is a lot more important.
Xert seems to be able to predict how I will do on a Full Frontal, so I have cut down on the frequency that I do it (last one was January of this year) of FF. FF’s estimate of my threshold HR never seems to be right because I can sing when I should not be able to (not that you want to hear me sing) and meaningfully talk when I should be out of breath.
@Helga I’m trying to understand the readings in the activity details of a completed cycling workout in my Systm history. At the end of these details is my personal 4DP Power profile used. What is the relationship between the ‘Power details’ that I actually achieve during the workout in relation to my personal ‘4DP Power profile’? Is that used to calculate the DTL figures? Or, should I be using these figures myself to inform me of where I can make improvements and if so how do I do that? Or is it the case that the figures will always differ in relation to the workout chosen and are more for info. I use a Kickr smart shift trainer and am usually in ERG mode as I struggle with level mode, but do give it a go when instructed. I mostly, and currently, keep up with the level set for me based on my 4DP power profile and it is definitely challenging me. I was just wondering how it works in case I could be doing something that I am not, Thanks
Richie: I’ve been debating going to a 3 on, 1 off, 2 on, 1 off weekly regimen (from my current 6 on 1 off) for a few weeks now. Since being more attentive to the whole DTL stuff, I’ve been feeling more tired since I’m doing more MAP, NM than I used to (for whatever reason, my history had been mostly <=FTP and AC stuff for a few years now - I just hate those yellow bars).
The note you posted about dropping fitness score but increasing other stuff answers that question. I am now 3-1-2-1 b/c I guess you don’t improve unless you recover.
It is when you recover you get faster. Training only creates the conditions for improvement. The recovery is when your muscles repair using overcompensation and your muscles regenerate. No recovery – no improvement.
But it’s very clear to see in the diagram form which is helpful. One question, does my Athlete profile only change when I do a Full Frontal, or i guess, a Half Monty test. I really hate the FF and avoid it at all cost 
Thanks