[Closed] Talk me through Sufferfest...

I find them great. They totally kill the boredom of a turbo session.
I started with just a couple of them and did with no plan in mind. I've now got the set and use them with trainer road. I still ride outside though putting in at least 1 big ride a week.
I use them about 3-4 times a week at the moment and have just completed the 'Tour'. I have defiantly noticed the difference coz I am now measuring what I do. 10% since xmas.
I am no expert but..
You can build them into a plan as they are turbo sessions of specific types with video and music.
They are fairly intense though and can't really replace real riding. The indoors and outdoors should be put together if you can i.e. Do a couple of Sufferfests and outdoor rides, using outdoors as the more cruisy session.
It all cost money though so depends what yo can afford and what yo are looking to get out of it.
The best way forward would be just to download a couple and give them a go, then take it from there.
There's been loads of posts on here lately about Sufferfest and trainer road.

I'm hoping to do mayhem solo this year. I've been doing sufferfest blender for about 2 months...not very often cos i have been out riding too but it has made a difference. I am using a magnetic spinbike in the house and have found i have had to up the resistance to get my heart rate into right zone.Just remember a towel!!!

They do a Training plan thing. It costs but looks interesting.

Hmmm. Based a lot on rpe though - I may be tempted to slack off!

This why Trainer Road is so good when it integrates with the Sufferfest videos - you can't slack off. I find it impossible to gauge my RPE, when I've just started a workout I go too hard and then can't effectively complete the workout as instructed. Trainer Road gives me the necessary structure - I'm also pathologically lazy so need someone telling me exactly what to do.
I know a lot of people bang on about Trainer Road on here, but it really is that good. If you are serious about training, then it's a brilliant tool. Also at around £6 per month, it's much cheaper than buying a lot of Sufferefest videos if you don't have them already. Trainer Road comes with loads of training plans anyway so you don't really need to get the Sufferfest ones too.

OK, just looked at Trainer road - looks really good and can relay virtual power to my garmin, but I need a ANT+ dongle first? Do I ALSO need Bluetooth or is that instead of ANT+ ?

Can it relay it to your Garmin? Don't think it can - just to your computer, and yes you do need an ANT+ speed sensor and dongle, and one of their approved turbos for it to work properly.

You can set your rpe by selecting a specific gear and cadence.
Having a sensor to measure your cadence is pretty important IMO. Trainer road actually gives you power to aim for so long as you have the correct setup.

If you already have a speed/cadence sensor with your garmin you'll need an ANT+ stick to communicate with your laptop - bluetooth won't do this for you.

I bought a couple of sufferfest vids to use with trainerroad and my only warning is that they can be a bit on the intense side compared to some of the native trainerroad workouts. Not necessarily a problem, just worth making sure you're up for it 🙂

stevious - Member
If you already have a speed/cadence sensor with your garmin you'll need an ANT+ stick to communicate with your laptop - bluetooth won't do this for you.

Yep, i have everything except the ANT+ stick - even an approved turbo. Just checking I don't need bluetooth as well.

Looks good then, £35 plus $10 a month, hmmm!

Bluetooth is an alternative.

Looks good then, £35 plus $10 a month, hmmm!

You can pay $60ish for a full year I think? I did anyway, it adds up to less and saves forex transaction fee each month as well.

I have tried sufferfest and also trainer road, not together. But for me the crappy music on suffer fest put me right off. I don't want to pay for something I cant use the sound on.

In the end I opted for trainer road only. I dont think the videos are necessary if you have TR. You are too busy concentrating on keeping the numbers right to get bored. Some of music to your own taste also helps.

TR gets two thumbs up from me.

Suferfest vids.... I would not bother personally, but if you dont have the means to get TR going maybe its worth a look.

3LC DVD are what I use, all done on Cadance and efforts.

I do it once a week only due to riding to work each day and 2 long road sessions.

Great DVD that works for me.

Also with TrainerRoad you've got access to the Sufferfest workouts anyway, just no video unless you buy 'em. I'd rather put my own music/tv/film on for background and focus on the numbers

TrainerRoad and Sufferfest takes it to an entire new level of training/suffering/pain, especially when you've set your FTP up correctly.

Highly recommended.

I started using sufferfest a couple of months ago and found it really enjoyable as well as making turbo sessions a lot more structured. Some of the music is good, some isn't - you can't please everyone.

Using it with trainerroad and the virtual power has made a massive difference though as the numbers don't lie and as a combination it's fantastic.

I think TR can relay the power to a garmin head unit. It's a fairly new feature (Trainer Relay in the config.)

Oh and yes, with FTP set correctly it is a good way to suffer. Maybe not the best way to train though.

I've already decided my Turbo sessions are done when I can't get out at lunchtimes/evenings, and weekends are for base/club/mtb rides.

Thanks for the heads up on Trainerroad, that's where I'm heading.... (Gulp!)

I'm slightly dissapointed after my first session on Blender.

1. I don't find watching people cycle motivational
2. The music isn't really very motivational either

Plus it's all very complicated and I wonder if it's any better than 2,4 or 6min intervals.......

Plus it's all very complicated and I wonder if it's any better than 2,4 or 6min intervals.......

That's all it boils down to. If you're capable to staring at a dot on a graph for an hour then there's plenty of options for 'free' workouts on trainerroad, suferfest just adds motivation and guidance.

The difference is, for 95% of people (the people who treat cycling as a hobby rather than a competative sport) just doing sufferfest sessions every other day in a random order over the winter would probably improve their fitness. If you wanted more structure then some are definately 'base', some are 'build' and others outright sprint training, and if you needed (not wanted) more structure than that, there's probably some guy in a Team GB tracksuit called Dave paying for your flights, bed and board for a month in Tennerief.

Blender is a bit of an odd one though, as it is 1hr45 rather than the usual 60 minutes.

I signed up to TrainerRoad this morning. You can search the plans for a plan of correctly sequenced workouts to perform over a period of weeks using a handy flow chart, but this does depend on you having a goal in mind and honest evaluation of your ability.

Personally I need something to not only tell me what to do but show me/make me do it to the right performance level.

You need to do a fitness test for your first session, rubber glove is a good one. That sets your performance level (it gives a recommended setting at the end).

Talk me through Sufferfest.

Walk to shed,

Turn volume right up,

ride as hard as poss.,

try not to throw up,

crawl back to house and eat own body weight in food.

following day have trouble walking 😀 I do like them BTW, especailly 'pyramid' sections

Have varied between the speed (tempo/!) ones and the endurance ones

Personally I need something to not only tell me what to do but show me/make me do it to the right performance level.

Which is eaxctly what virtual power will do...

Personally I think TR trumps Sufferfest by a long way, you can do all the Sufferfest sessions on TR even if you don't own the vids, it just has no video. Stick a DVD on and you're away.

As everyone has said TR is by far the better option and it sounds like you have made a good choice.

I don't really get the whole visual and audio style of Sufferfest and don't find it vaguely motivational so don't understand the cult following it has. TR on the other hand gives you a wealth of information, actually helps give the time on the turbo some clear structure and purpose and much better feedback as to how well you are meeting the goal of the interval/ session.

There is nothing mind blowing about TR but it is a very nicely put together, complete package that should give you the flexibility to take as much or as little away from the time on the turbo as you wish.

I must say I was a bit disappointed that Sufferfest didn't have scope for anything but RPE - why not offer %FTP, or HR or something. I'm rubbish at 'feeling' the difference between 8/10 and 8.5/10, I need numbers to follow!

MSP - Member
You need to do a fitness test for your first session, rubber glove is a good one. That sets your performance level (it gives a recommended setting at the end).

Yep, TR's first session is a FTP/FTHR calculator, which it'll do for you.

njee20 - Member
I'm rubbish at 'feeling' the difference between 8/10 and 8.5/10, I need numbers to follow!

Which is exactly what virtual power will do...

Yes, thats what sold it to me.

Which is exactly what virtual power will do...

It does, but not nearly as well as a proper PowerTap/SRM/etc. The virtual power thing can vary quite a lot depending on setup... things like how much air you have in your tyres and how warmed up your turbo is. Power based training, you really need a power meter 🙂

But surely those things are largely repeatable? You can always just inflate your tyre. Why does the warmth of the turbo make a difference? Unless the resistance was changing as it got warm, which I'm not aware of on any notable scale.

I'm not sure Virtual Power will compare that favourably to 'measured' power in all instances, but it's repeatable, which is the main thing.

And much, much cheaper.

Has anyone tried turbotraining.co.uk as an alternative to trainer road? It looks very similar but cheaper (though they aren't yet stating a price for their virtual power level membership, free beta atm)

I really like the SF vids, only started last month, particularly amusing moment mid way through downward spiral when the interval was 'supposed' to be 1:45 at 8RPE, and it bloody well was much longer, as I started to get close to puking I swore at the laptop, only for a message saying something on the lines of 'don't shout at us, this is for your own good!' as if voice activated.

I'll have to look into trainerroad.

The reviews I've seen of the trainerroad virtual power all say pretty much the same thing. It may not match a power meter in terms of the actual output ie a power meter will say 270w and the virtual power 235w or whatever but it will track the variations in power very accurately - 10% increase on the power meter is 10% on the virtual power.

They acknowledge that differences in setup can mean differences in power reading but if the bike is setup in the same place, tires at same psi etc etc then it's apparently very consistent.