What's next for Systm?

Agree. I place very little value on SYSTM’s no-vids. And if you do happen to like no-vids, any and all workouts are already no-vid if you turn off the video in the workout settings.

I find Inspiration videos interesting, if not inspiring, and OK once.

2 Likes

@Saddlesaur There are some great workouts in the NoVids and all you have to do is bring your own entertainment. Pull up YouTube, a show or movie or even one of the ongoing bike races. You can add music as well if that is your preference. I do it all the time.

6 Likes

Mini PLYR is a boon when it comes to riding no vid. Also, it is possible to export to Zwift or IndieVelo for completion there.

3 Likes

For example, there is nothing like the non-vid progression workouts in Sufferfest.

5 Likes

I’d like to see some of the no vids turned into Sufferfest videos. Whilst I do no vids, and watch something else at the same time, it’s not as engaging as a video with a story that follows the workout. I also like the on location videos, they’re a nice change, I find variation is key, but what keeps me coming back is the 4DP profile and Sufferfest content, and I hope there’s more to come, the recent additions have been great. Like others have said, I can do them again and again and not get bored, a small part of me also wills the onset of winter so I can revisit more of them. On that note, I haven’t done Blender in a while….

9 Likes

@sir_james.p Here is an older post from @Glen.Coutts that has some good ideas about expanding content.

7 Likes

Don’t get my hopes up Sir @JSampson! Since that post Standing Starts, Cadence Builds and Primers have all been moved out of the Sufferfest channel as has Tapers (which has been given the SUF treatment) as well as Elements of Style where the Star Wars like opening explains the history of the Couchlandrian Occupation!! Maybe Sir @Rupert.H can do some minion magic :slight_smile:

5 Likes

Of course I can use the miniplayer to overlay a no-vid workout over some other external content. But there are an infinity of no-vids out there on other platforms and I can make up a no-vid on most of those platforms myself in minutes. No-vids are cheap, easy and not why I subscribe to Systm. Like the OP, I want more Sufferfest.

I’ve pointed out many times, all workouts are no-vids if you turn off the vid in the workout settings. And at that point, you can use the miniplayer to overlay the workout over external content of your choice.

3 Likes

@Saddlesaur Right but no other platform has Sufferfest and NoVids plus a whole lot of other stuff - yoga, strength, On Location, ProRides so it is a unique offering at a very competitive price point.

I haven’t done a Sufferfest workout since Attacker back in early February. I generally do NoVids workouts both inside and outside. So the platform as it stands caters to both of us.

Personally I find the Sufferfest workouts fun and certainly appreciate them. However, I have also been very satisfied with arranging my own audio and video. It allows me to catch up on races, podcasts, etc.

10 Likes

100% this :point_up: :point_up:

10 Likes

what I don’t like about on locations, apart mr cotty, is that most of them have so looooong and booooring warmup and recoveries and then BANG something so hard. yes, it maybe more similar to reality, but it IS boring, and you can’t choose on IF which doesn’t give an estimate of the hard part.

It’s good to like various aspects of what Systm has. That’s why we’re members, but the discussion here started out as “What’s next for Systm?”. What are ideas for improvements or additions or direction it should take? I’ve been expressing my preferences in that regard.

1 Like

I’ve also been thinking about this recently. I love the Systm platform. It really has so much in it. My favourites are the Sufferfest content, but I use most of the content at times, plus yoga and strength, just perhaps not the mental strength training.
It would be lovely to have more high-quality Sufferfest content but if it never changed and nothing got added to it, then I would still think System was great.
Add the On Location and ProRides and you have a wonderful rich set of riding workouts.

The other aspect is the Inspiration videos. They are useful and better than doing a Suf workout at 55%. However, most do not bear repeating.
As I understand it most of the Inspiration videos are licenced for a period and then either renewed or not. I think this is ideal and maybe I would encourage shorter licence periods and more frequent changes.
(But I would want warnings before they are replaced.)

8 Likes

Hi,
Re the On-location videos: for me they are gold. And I have ridden some of them over and over again. for the stunning locations and because I like the workouts. Especially for tiring stuff like over unders for me they’re great.
Then sometimes nothing beats a good systematic no-vid drill with a good playlist in the background. In summer I am riding outdoors and still using the workouts.

Idea: a sophisticated workout builder would be great where you tell the syst(e)m what you want to achieve in a week or month and AI chooses and maybe adaptes workouts from the library to meet your demands.

7 Likes

@Saddlesaur Right - you want more Sufferfest and less NoVids. I get that. I was making the point that there is room for both and it makes the platform unique in that regard.

What I would like to see is an improved workout player that allows for more customization during the workout and also allows for the ability to capture metrics for workouts other than cycling. Right now the player is focused primarily on cycling so if you do strength or yoga or running the player falls short as it focuses on the users cycling metrics. The current player also doesn’t allow any ability to connect an HRM for yoga and strength. My workaround has been to use the Wahoo App for those workouts but it be great to integrate that into SYSTM directly.

Also I would like to see more ability to customize the calendar and add workouts recorded by non-Wahoo devices and platforms. Right now we see completed Zwift workouts. It would be great to see others to the extent that the user needs that - including stuff that is planned on those other platforms appearing in the SYSTM calendar.

I love the algorithm approach mentioned by @Phil5236. TrainerRoad has gone that direction and so have apps like JOIN, Humango and Athletica.ai. When you miss a workout or do something else or add a race mid plan it would be great to see the plan adjust due to the additional work. Also it would be nice to select days of the week when you are available and how many hours so that the plans would adapt better to an athlete’s schedule.

Finally I would like to see some integration with metrics from TrainingPeaks or Intervals.icu. Right now TrainerDay allows the ability to see CTL right in their app for paying members. Sure you can visit the separate app but having that in one place would be nice not only as a check on current fitness but also how your plan will potentially affect CTL over the coming months.

5 Likes

This :point_up:

This would definitely be a good addition.

Not every week is the same. Also some spur of the moment race or AVDP for fun should shake things up in the plan.

3 Likes

I have found myself turning off the audio & video on 90%+ of the rides. I have done them enough that I just prefer to put something else on. Mostly YouTube but occasionally just music. I have played around a bit with IndieVelo and may give that a go when my annual subscription here expires. I’m just not finding it consistently holding my interest right now. Not sure if it is a situation of ‘familiarity breeds contempt’ or something else, but it is where I am at right now. I hope something is next.

4 Likes

I was using SYSTM and Zwift. Then was using SYSTM and RGT. Then had to go back to SYSTM and Zwift. Now I’m using SYSTM and IndieVelo. I find that having 2 different apps helps alleviate a lot of my boredom. SYSTM just doesn’t have the same free-riding ability as IndieVelo or Zwift or RGT. So I use SYSTM for the videos or the workouts. And then use IndieVelo for either the free riding, the climbing, or to ride along to the no-vid workouts that are available in SYSTM. Helps alleviate the boredom and gives me many more options.

8 Likes

I’ve been using Zwift exclusively for a few months now, as I was able to use it after the RGT ended thanks to the voucher. But now I’ve been drawn back to Systm. I started with ‘No Place like Home’, which seemed very appropriate :grinning:.

Zwift is a really good app with a lot of variety. But the videos and soundtrack of the Systm workouts are unbeatable and help me get through the workouts. That really is a USP! I think Wahoo would be well advised to keep investing in this. Whether these are Sufferfest videos or not is not that important to me personally, as the whole Sufferfest ‘lore’ has never really been that important to me. But of course I can understand other users, especially those who have been with us for a long time, to see it differently. So more Sufferfest videos!

Apart from new workouts, I would be most excited about the Apple TV version and the new workout player :slightly_smiling_face:

4 Likes

Agreed, although one point of contention: no annual subscription increase without the development of new sufferfest videos, of the same caliber as originals?

1 Like