Wahoo Forum

Winning a World Championship isn’t just about having a big engine; it’s about having no weaknesses. The Arc-en-Ciel Protocol requires you to earn your “stripes” by conquering four distinct areas of performance. You start with the tactical endurance to reach the final hour, the anaerobic capacity to bridge the winning gap, and the neuromuscular snap to finish on the top step of the podium. The 4 Workouts Complete these four sessions to earn your badge: SUF | High Time: A fast-paced, high-intensity session designed to build your Maximal Aerobic Power (MAP). It features sharp, repeatable supra-threshold efforts with brief recovery periods to teach your body how to process lactate and sustain speed under heavy fatigue. SUF | Revolver: A legendary Sufferfest interval session. It consists of 16 x 1-minute all-out micro-intervals with equal 1-minute recoveries. It is designed to push your heart rate to its limit, boost VO2 max, and build mental toughness. SUF | Long Scream: A brutal, continuous 30-minute time-trial effort. There are no breaks or recovery valleys—just a relentless pace right around your Functional Threshold Power (FTP) that tests your pacing, efficiency, and sustained mental focus. SUF | 14 Vise Grips: A punchy anaerobic capacity workout featuring 14 high-power, sub-minute attacks. It simulates hard surges, race-winning attacks, and sudden acceleration out of corners, crushing your legs through rapid spikes in intensity. How It Works Complete all 4 cycling workouts i

Winning a World Championship isn’t just about having a big engine; it’s about having no weaknesses. The Arc-en-Ciel Protocol requires you to earn your “stripes” by conquering four distinct areas of performance. You start with the tactical endurance to reach the final hour, the anaerobic capacity to bridge the winning gap, and the neuromuscular snap to finish on the top step of the podium. The 4 Workouts Complete these four sessions to earn your badge: SUF | High Time: A fast-paced, high-intensity session designed to build your Maximal Aerobic Power (MAP). It features sharp, repeatable supra-threshold efforts with brief recovery periods to teach your body how to process lactate and sustain speed under heavy fatigue. SUF | Revolver: A legendary Sufferfest interval session. It consists of 16 x 1-minute all-out micro-intervals with equal 1-minute recoveries. It is designed to push your heart rate to its limit, boost VO2 max, and build mental toughness. SUF | Long Scream: A brutal, continuous 30-minute time-trial effort. There are no breaks or recovery valleys—just a relentless pace right around your Functional Threshold Power (FTP) that tests your pacing, efficiency, and sustained mental focus. SUF | 14 Vise Grips: A punchy anaerobic capacity workout featuring 14 high-power, sub-minute attacks. It simulates hard surges, race-winning attacks, and sudden acceleration out of corners, crushing your legs through rapid spikes in intensity. How It Works Complete all 4 cycling workouts i

ChrisMTB: Hi all. I am 52 and noticing that sometimes I am pretty fatigued going in to some hard workouts. I usually do the 2:1 plans (2 weeks on, 1 off) as i think i recall one of the podcasts saying that was better as we get older. I started wondering if the built on plans take in to account your age when considering timing between hard workouts. I am thinking of getting some coaching advice to get a plan moving forward. Are Apex still around? Chri At 52, I think paying attention to how you feel going into those hard sessions is more useful than blindly following the calendar. A 2:1 setup can work great, but recovery is going to vary from person to person. If you’re regularly feeling beat up before the hard sessions, that’s probably a sign to look at the overall workload and recovery rather than just adding more training. Sleep, stress, and what you’re doing outside the bike all count too. Getting some coaching sounds like a solid move. A good plan should fit your life and recovery, not the other way around.

@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

Thanks (I think ) @richie_engineer @Glen.Coutts I’ve just had a look at The Omnium and Costa Blanca: Cumbre del Sol, and both are now on my to do list, cheers me dears

The Omnium is my favorite SYSTM workout – a smorgasbord of short types of suffering.

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.

lisa01: I’ve been trying to get a bit more consistent with my indoor riding, but I keep changing what I do each week. Some days I’ll just ride easy, and other days I’ll pick a harder workout depending on how I’m feeling. Curious how everyone else does it. Do you usually follow a training plan, or just choose a workout when you get on the bike? I think a little structure goes a long way. You don’t need to follow a strict plan every single day, but having a mix of easy rides, harder sessions, and recovery days gives you a much better balance. Some days you’ll feel great and can push it, and other days an easy ride is the smarter choice. The main thing is keeping the bigger picture in mind instead of judging every ride on its own.

@Anne for AC without Full Frontal. Did it this morning, great workout definitely less daunting than Full Frontal but still intense.

Also, the kilo from The Omnium if you’re in level mode.

Heretic: Xert has had this for years @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.