How To Turbo Charge Zone 2 Training

[@gcn]

What has your experience with zone 2 training been like? 🤔

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

@@gcn Mostly Z2 on the way towards a 3-4x a week for hour long Z4 or Z4/5 sessions. Occasionally it’s Z1/2 with the grandkids… me on a 40/11 and a Z4 for them on a ~ 20/11 with a sandy chain and dragging brake shoes.

[@xGshikamaru]

I find that it didn't increase my FTP but to be fair FTP is not the be all, end all of measuring your progress. What it did help with was recovering from hard efforts sooner and being able to put more reps of these efforts. My guess is that the increase in mitochondria helps clearing the lactate quicker but also burn more fat. Your FTP can only be so high relative to your VO2Max and this one is tied to several factors, pulmonary capacity, blood stroke volume, max heart rate, some of which cannot be really improved a lot through training. I think the emphasis on mitochondria might be helpful to some, others will need other types of training. Also beware of sweet spot training, yes it's very effective, but you can quickly get into overtraining doing it too often

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

@@xGshikamaru Agree. Very well said.

[@GarryFam]

like turtle 126hr /24kmh flat road

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

@@GarryFam Must be a super turtle to stay in Z2 at 24 kmh, much less hold than for 126 hrs and not experience cardiac drift.

[@dmoore4520]

I do zone two on the trainer. As a heavier fella it's hard to stay lower power on the roads with hills. Z2 has literally changed my riding and built my endurance so much.

[@shepshape2585]

I hear you brother. I'm 110kg and luckily I live in FL because those hills do make it tough to stay in that zone. I can't imagine trying to ride up an 8-10% grade, I'd have to get a new cassette with some very big gears.

[@jakemathis]

I appreciate the comment about the nose breathing not working 100% for everyone!

[@Pastamistic]

It goes both ways too! I can comfortably breathe through my nose into low zone 4.

[@barberbetty8]

Breathe Right strips. I never ride without one!

[@boudoir00]

I do Z2 on my commutes - 60 km on most weekdays. On the weekends I go full beans on the good bike. It works for me.

[@rolfguggenbuhl5642]

Danke!

[@gcn]

And thank you. Really kind.

[@event4216]

I'm not an athlete and cycle purely for enjoyement and to shake out stiffness after a days of office work. Mostly zone2 (as you call it) - going at steady pace over flatland and rolling hills. But at the end of second summer I've noticed I can go on for hours - much longer than when I started. But I also have started fueling myself before and during ride more than I used to and this obviously has affected my stamina.

[@richardpiotrowski1043]

My primary trainiong is an indoor traner. but cycling isn't my primary acivity. so Z2 is what I do...unless I'm completely bored and then it may be the alpe... I also agree with Dr Attia's comment that he trains for longevity for his family...

[@eduardocarvalhoneto909]

Really well put together, I like the clear examples and charts. Well done Connor.

[@gcn]

Thanks for the comment! 🫶

[@CycleXplorer]

Whenever I hear zone 2 all I think of now is Pogacar 🔥 🧨 💥

[@Bike4Coffee-Cake]

Great video! When I have enough time I like to do long Zone 2, with bits of Zone 3,4+ and some weights, and feel great. It’s the only way I can do high volume and recover. But weeks where I only have 2-4 hours to cycle, I feel better off with high intensity intervals (given I have plenty of recovery time anyway).

[@davidcarino6500]

Especially when you get older zone 2, really works for me. Zone 2 for 2-3 days a week and 1 day a week let it rip for 30-60 minutes.

[@VictorElGreco]

Admittedly an older person’s view 🙄 but I complement my cycling with a good 400-500 hours of Z1 *walking* per year. 😅 You get to stretch your back and hamstrings, and hopefully also enjoy a good conversation along the way. ☺️

[@tapuzak]

Great summary video.

[@sebastienmichaud6949]

As a competitive squash players, we recon a hard squash match is the equivalent several of Vo2 max efforts... so during the squash season I mostly do Z2 bike rides. When the ridding season begins (late spring here in Canada) I somehow always feel stronger than the previous one! I hang the racket and focus on having balanced cycling efforts and recovery. Then squash season restarts in the fall and I feel fitter than the previous year. Now I'm 43 years old and I understand it'll probably start going down every year soon lol. Thanks for the great videos, GCN ROCKS! 💪

[@overcookit1433]

Zone 2 training has been done by Pros for decades - for me (respectively my body), that level of exercise is not high enough, at least for the duration of my rides (commonly 1h45min to nearly 3h), When I was younger, I did such rides for 5h+, but now it seems that after only doing long and slow rides, it is difficult to ride faster now and then; it is quite hard then to get the pulse rate up again. I feel better after at least tempo (L3) rides.

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Agree. The thing often overlooked is that pros do hours and hours of Z2… plus hours of Z4 and Z5. It’s easy to forget that latter stuff but that’s where lactate thresholds, peak power, and VO2 Max gains live. Plus, threshold training is massively time efficient for those who aren’t able to train 16-20 hrs a week.

[@kjaesp]

Well since Z2 is by design not "high level of exercise" yeah, zone 2 is indeed not that. You train other things while riding zone 2. Simply saying its not high enough for you is very ignorant and in the face of today's science quite frankly a bit stupid. Nobody forces you to do Z2 but pretending it won't benefit your fitness is hilarious.

[@richardmiddleton7770]

This is generally because you haven't activated the sympathetic nervous system. This is a good thing and is required for recovery. To go hard you need to do an 'opener' day, where you go really hard but for a short time, then the next day the hard efforts will feel much easier. You then need to rest and switch back to parasympathetic mode with more zone 1-2. You can remain 'switched on' in sympathetic mode for a while (few days), but it will come at a cost of a big crash later on as you will over reach. If you continue, that is over training. Basically, zone 2 training stops you over training. If you are truly feeling 'flat' after a period of zone 2, it is a sign that you were doing your zone 2 too hard.

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Congrats on a video that contains more nuance than simply catering to the lazy (aka do only Z2). This is a good time to move away from using power meters to establish bragging rights, rather than using them to gauge sustainable output as part of a sensible and regular (ie. not weekend warrior bs) cardiovascular/pulmonary based training plan.

[@ThomasRedmond-q8q]

Agreed, a great video!

[@GiJoe94]

Z2 if done right is most definitely not for the lazy. Intensity vs volume, if you have less intensity you need more volume, meaning you might need to spend 2-3 hours in zone 2 per session for optimal stimulation. I prefer bit higher intensity because I'm not fan of sitting 20+ hours a week on the bike

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

@@GiJoe94 That’s the thing @GIJoe94. How many people regularly spend 2-3 continuous hours doing Z2, multiple times a week? Because most heart associations’ recommended *minimums* start at 150 minutes of low intensity cardio exercise a week. That’s to merely stay fit from a cardio perspective. If you’re unfit, or wishing to get fitter, Z2 needs to be a LOT longer. Like you, I get better return on investment in time in Z4/5… and my in-zone time is 3-4 hrs a week. That keeps me reasonably fit, but far short of any seriously athletic level of fitness.

[@aarondcmedia9585]

Noone with half a braincell is advocating only doing Z2. Noone.

[@cybercat1531]

Worth considering that a majority of us probably don't even know what our FTP is. I really don't and cycle very regularly across the whole range of zones.

[@DR_1_1]

But HR is not always representative of the load... I have been climbing cat. 1 slopes - very slow -with HR in zone 1 ! HR was faster when descending the same slopes without pedaling!

[@garethjenkins3737]

Great video. If you are training for performance (ie. A race) then 80% low intensity and 20% moderate to high intensity is the ideal balance. The types of workouts that you do in the 20% moderate to high intensity as you say will vary as your training plan progresses, but you still maintain that 80/20 balance else the athlete will fatigue to much and gains will be minimal or lost. The “grade” on Zwift is a good low pressure way of testing your fitness. Also a Zwift crit race (30mins) will let you know how you are doing too!

[@banderge]

I've started at miserable state: Although I had some power in legs (I did 1.1k watts in sprints) my ftp was somewhere near 150-160 watts. During winter I've started to ride 3 times a week in z2 on zwift and once it was sunny outside, I've started to ride outdoors (on ebike). In outdoors I got a little bit crazy and averaged to 16-22h on a bike weekly (only in z2). This week I got back on zwift and my z2 is around 140-150 watts and ftp is somewhere in 200 or so. I think I could achieve more if I did at least one SS or VO2 max or Over/Under ride during a week. Good video 🔥

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Oh, your sustainable watts would increase considerably more if you did interval training to step thru each of the heart rate zones all the way to Z5. It’s really quite amazing what can be achieved doing HIIT 3x a week.

[@kingmuhu]

​@@paulgrimshaw8334hiit is supposed to be not done more then twice a week cus of the stresslevels it produces on your body (and stress hormones that decrease anabolic state)

[@socopower]

Excellent video Connor! Tips go beyond zone 2, you just explained how a training plan needs to be designed. And what a whopper of a telly mate…….

[@sebjak76]

Awesome material!

[@suisinghoraceho2403]

For time strapped, increase volume of Z2 is pretty difficult. The other approach is to ride low Z3, high Z2. Initially, you would still get heart rate drifting up. In time, your Z2 would creep up to engulf this low Z3 power and you can ride it without heart rate drift.

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Sure you'll still get fitter than doing nothing but you won't get more metabolically efficient. The intensity you're refering to isn't hard enough to really improve and not low enough to recover, be more efficient and stimulate the slow twitch muscle fibers which can use pyruvate as fuel and delay lactate build up, meaning you can go harder for longer. The power of doing zone 2 training is incredible but it has to be done correctly, you can't just go harder because you don't have the time and expect to get the same results.

[@percyveer2355]

its different than zone 2. the training you are suggesting will give you less efficient gains. read inigo san milan (think thats how its spelt), or Peter Attias words on z2, very helpful.

[@suisinghoraceho2403]

My apologies, probably shouldn’t use the phrase low zone 3. It’s not accurate and gives the impression that I am talking about riding tempo. But the fact is that your zone 2 energy system doesn’t suddenly switch off at 75% FTP. Equally, at the beginning of the season with low fitness, you might even get heart rate separation (HR goes up despite keeping same power) at 66% FTP or lower. Also, the best validation of whether you are in Z2 is the talk test. And your Z2 upper bound may progress without your FTP progress for the same amount of Watts. So for your Z2 training, best start off with a mid Z2 power (60~65% FTP) and check that you can still hold a conversation while doing it. Aim for a 60 minute session and see if there is heart rate separation before the end. Repeat, until you don’t get any heart rate separation till a full 60 minutes ride. The next progression would be gradually extend the session to about 90 minutes mark (if you are in door). Once you can ride 90 minutes without HR drift, the next progression could be to up the power. This could be a bit of an Art in regard to how much you up your power. Bottomline, you still want to make sure you can pass the talk test 5 minutes into your session, and your final goal would be holding 90 minutes without heart rate drift at this power. You can rinse & repeat, until your starting power is so high you can’t pass the talk test. By this point, your Zone 2 power (defined as able to pass talk test 5~10 minutes in and able to hold over 90 minutes without heart rate drift) could well be above 75% FTP ( even if that FTP is newly tested). Or take the view that once your Z2 session power are getting past 75% of known FTP, you probably have built a solid enough base to get serious into intensive intervals.

[@jkmacie]

Concentrated on higher volume lower intensity in comparison to last year. could sustain power for longer and didn't dread getting on the turbo. Gotta have the time to do it though.

[@bannie28]

if you live in a hilly area and you want to keep in zone 2, just get an ebike it's the best thing for zone 2 training. the steeper the hill just press for more assistance. this is obviously aimed at the lesser fit people. last week I did a 100km ride and I'm fat adapted, no feeding and my average bpm was 132 and did it just over 4 hrs. and I also weigh 132kgs. the route had a few hills but a very bad headwind on the way back

[@richardmiddleton7770]

You can also just get smaller chainrings or bigger cassettes. Your main issue though is weighing 132kg!

[@bannie28]

@@richardmiddleton7770 Yes I did get smaller chain rings and bigger cassette, and yes my weight is the issue, but the point I was making was that having an ebike helps to keep anybody in my position to stay in zone 2

[@MrBig617]

I spent all last winter doing zone 2 based off of my heart rate. It never felt like i was getting any workout and I saw minimal benefits. This winter i plan to do it again, but based off perceived exertion and the "conversation test."

[@DR_1_1]

True, HR is not always representative of the effort, sometimes the heart is pounding but at a slow pace. I'm doing some long climbs occasionally, category 1, HC... very slowly! and my HR is in zone... 1 ! During the descent my HR is faster! without pedalling. Go figure.

[@tan240sx]

I thought that I was fit until I did Z2 training seriously. It was humbling to keep my heart rate low and see other riders pass me. But I used my work commute for Z2 training and after half a year or so I can go at a decent clip with low cadence and low heart rate.

[@irondistance4313]

I’d like to learn more thx Ollie

[@bradwatts8871]

How about z2 based on HR. I did that all last winter and watched my power increase at a lower HR

[@davidryan4053]

That's what I'm doing this winter too.

[@Zwift]

🔥🔥🔥

[@JeyDeee89]

I mean for relative Beginners, Z2 changes every few month --> FTP goes from 100W to 130W --> new Z2 Training is also like 20W higher. And for Beginners every little hill is enough intensity added to training^^

[@SRK5227]

Third: Who exactly is this post for? Is it for beginners? Indoors, outdoors? And let's be real. Most people do not have hours to do riding in Zone 2. So how much time per day are you proposing, exactly? Further, what kind of recovery are you proposing for Zone 2? Put another way, who needs recovery from a Zone 2 ride? Overall, I think you need to be much, much more specific about your specific audience for this post. It's alright to do a piece targeted at beginners, but then say so, and make sure the whole thing aligns with that particular audience.

[@SutherlandBoswell]

"You look very nice today Zone 2 training," or did you mean complement?

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Ha ha. Well spotted, I think the complete sentence is actually “You looked very nice lounging at the coffee shop part way through your Zone 2 MAMIL matching colours group ride that you uploaded to Strava”.

[@misterill]

Came here to say that 😂😂

[@gcn]

Everyone keeps saying Zone 2 this, Zone 2 that, but no one asks, 'Zone 2, how are you?'

[@anthonyc4812]

Everyone just loves spelling and grammar nazis. Superior and popular people.

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

@@anthonyc4812 Wow. Was Herr Himmler put in charge of grammar or are some people merely exercising their powers of literacy?

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Zone 2 trains your slow twitch aerobic muscle fibers which act like a vacuum cleaner to remove/use pyruvate/lactate produced by the fast twitch glycolitic fibers when intensity increases. In other words, you can go harder for longer! Like attacking with 100km to go and winning!

[@bmp713]

The "engine" is the heart which by far accounts most for VO2 max. The blood vessels are basically the fuel injection and mitochondria the spark plugs.

[@loud479]

I get a 2 hour 2x20 work out done 2s a week and do Z2 pretty much everywhere else: commute, group rides or just moving about on the bike its pads out a 4 hour week to nearer 10 when I'm working and nearer 20 of I'm not working

[@P4P5]

When im doing zone 2 training im aiming for 5h @ 320-340W

[@salvatoretalarico325]

Hey Tadej! 😂😂😂

[@lfk53]

😂😂😂

[@kenrodriguez3067]

Whatever happened to "dialing it back" come Fall/Winter? I plan my year with 3 peaks. The last one coming in September. At this point of the year I'm looking at mid-distance rides (50-70 miles) in Zone 2 with some efforts thrown in. No more Tempo rides, intervals or hill repeats. Enjoy the rides, take in the scenery and don't go into the New Year hating the bike. BTW I'm 63yo and so far have 6,700 miles in for the year. Just saying...

[@finn_niko]

I've heard some cycling coaches recommend doing zone 2 fasted as it forces your body to better tap into those fat stores. I sounds logical so I wonder if there's something to it and better yet, would doing zone 2 carbed up be less effective in fat utilisation standpoint 🤔

[@HofiMovie]

Which Canyon bike is it?

[@Typhoon0627]

Being pressed for time, I usually do 20mi Z2 monday and wednesday, 10mi Z2 tuesday and thursday, friday off, a 10mi max effort ride on saturday with interval sprints, and take sunday off. I started doing this in late April and have continued to get stronger/faster. My average power on my Z2 rides has gradually gone up just over 40w in the last 5 months. No idea if this is the right way to be doing things, but it seems to be working out alright. Unless it could be even better? For context, I'm 46 and sit on my ass (or arse as you guys say it) all day at work... I'm not trying to win races or crush KOM's on strava... I'm just the guy out there wearing "baggies" trying to stay in shape and ward off the excess weight gain that comes with age while subsidizing my affinity for craft beer and gin martinis 😉. On a side note, Zwift was absolute trash when I tried it. Buggy as hell, crashes, and my favorite, selecting a 22mi ride and 28 miles later I still haven't "finished" the ride (really great for people riding on a time crunch). I could change the color of my socks, but I couldn't see distance remaining for the entire ride or even a climb? How are you supposed to know how to pace yourself? So many upgrades and bug fixes were needed for it to be worth $15/mo, and now they've raised it to $20/mo! Hopefully they've fixed some of these issues since then, but they're still way over valuing their product. I imagine they're taking pretty good care of GCN to promote it.

[@Emtbtoday]

Is there a video on these energy gels n other things? Im back out cycling alot just now just started with the new bike? I'm using my Samsung watch 7 ultra and the health app for the cycling and have to admit im very impressed with what it offers I'm trying this Zone 2 on it this week I've set it to not much difference from an expensive computer it connects to the ebike screen but i keep the motor off most the time's for the training. Samsungs health app is alot better than apples! Its actually got the real zones etc

[@davidkay7201]

No suggestion for extended threshold sessions?

[@wspmjw]

Reliance on an indoor training system to establish zone 2 begs the question, can you determine zone 2 outdoors (no access to an indoor training suite)? Thanks for the knowledge.

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Easy. Buy a heart rate monitor. Chest straps are the most accurate but a wrist or arm version will suffice for Z2, 3, 4 workouts. I’d stick to chest strap versions for Z5 and maximal workouts though.

[@philstang1054]

Good option in to get HR monitor then determine your HR zones using max hr and resting hr. A watch is good but strap is much better. As per the video, you can estimate Zone 2 by the talking test. See the GCN video that Simon Richardson did for more info. Note that as you get fitter the highest HR that you can maintain while still in Z2 increases (until you have good Z2 fitness).

[@TimLange-lh6nq]

I have followed the advice of Peter Attia (who in my understanding has based his method on San Millan’s approach) and used the MAF formula to find my heart rate zone and used the talk test to validate the intensity. I did a lactate test right after my zone 2 ride yesterday and was right in the sweet spot. So at least in my case this has worked perfectly for finding my zone 2 range.

[@J_NASH]

Has anyone used the Precision Fuel products shown in the video?

[@JustMikeH]

I don’t have a trainer or power meter. To measure my performance I have a zone-2 route and hill-clime route that I try to do weekly. Then I use my average speed to gauge my improvement. If I am training I will see a slight improvement every 3-4 weeks, with a more obvious improvements over 6 weeks. It’s not the best measure, but it works.

[@SergioCristancho]

Even here in this very vídeo never aim the bullet points... 1. Don't worry about power is about the cardio zones and then the power you can sustain on it. 2. Is easy to burn the ships and get carried on strong efforts but you must maintain the cardio Z2 80 under your ride. 3. You must be constant you have to do multiple hours in a row and several days in a row and weeks to see the results... Extra tip try to get other activities run swin weight lifting in the same ratio z2 .. it does not men you can't train z3 or 5 ... But then the rule of thumb is 80 20 this 20 the other zones out of Z2 if you have to go beyond the zone to tackle climbs efforts to maintain pace in your workouts.

[@erlendsteren9466]

You have some good points, but we dont have to step up to zone 3 in the climbs if we have light enough gears to go slow, we dont need to keep up the pace. I some days go slow in early climbs on long rides. I do try to get in a lot of zone 1 and 2 long rides, but also get some rides in the hard zones, or maybe finish off some slow rides in the hard zones.

[@cityslacker6221]

Ok, since yall are currently getting support from Zwift, how come there isn’t a specific workout labelled Zone 2? why bring up the SST program?

[@raymondrichardson538]

I do all my Zone 2 with the pacer bots. Find the one that's a good zone 2 w/kg for you, and they'll keep you right where you need to be. I do prefer the flatter routes, however, as the bots surge a bit on climbs and if you're near the top of your zone 2, the climbs can push you above it.

[@bmatt23420]

No use of Heart rate? MAF method

[@marcelv.9918]

what about riding 2 times a week only for VO2max - at above 160bpm

[@andygaras]

Why carb load if your training your fat energy systems?

[@nathancook5627]

Because even riding at Z2 you also burn carbs not just fat, which is why any ride over an hour or two you should take on around 40 to 60 g of carbs per hour (for a three hour Z2 ride I take on around this per hour), like sugar mixed with water and some salt + lemon etc for taste.

[@richardmiddleton7770]

@@nathancook5627 Only a very small amount of carbs though unless you're aerobically deficient. Getting a lab lactate test is the only way to know for sure. Glycogen depletion is shown to improve the aerobic system.

[@ru40342]

Question: when I ride at zone 2 (both power and breath test methods to get my zone 2), my heart rate is way higher than the supposed zone 2 heart rate that i read from online articles (my heart rate at high zone 2 power is at around 77 - 80% of my max heart rate and 90% of my threshold heart rate). Should i just ignore the heart rate and continue with zone 2 power or follow the heart rate and lower my power for zone 2?

[@mikeb.9341]

I have the same question. I ride quite at a good pace (average 30km/h) in what seems to me Z2, based on this kind of method. However, my heart rate is considerably high (between 150 and 160). I can have a conversation during these rides, which is strange considering the heart rate (I use garmin hrm pro plus).

[@guitsynthcw]

Similar question. Strava calculates Z2 heart rate and power. Is this more accurate that the conversation technique?

[@paulgrimshaw8334]

Use heart rate… always. Best done with a HR monitor. Even the good ones are inexpensive. Perceived rates of exertion, breathing thru nose, saying words, and talking in complete sentences are highly subjective and practically useless. You’ll find this when embarking on a serious training plan… at first you’re sweating inZ2, finding it harder to talk in Z3, feeling stressed in Z4, and totally spent in Z5. As conditioning and fitness improves, you’re able to carry on a full conversation in Z4 and feel a sense of normal, but challenging, routine in Z5.

[@kingmuhu]

​@@mikeb.9341depends on age aswell. Pogaçars zone 2 is at 155 :p. Garmin shows also your zone 2 in watts. (I hold on to that) my heartrate is around 130-140bpm in zone 2. But the higher your fitness level is, the higher your heartrate can be while still maintaining optimal fat burning mechanism. The gap between aeroob and anaëroob gets smaller. (Sorry for the typos)

[@oldanslo]

Everyone is different but calculations are made based on the 'average' person. If you're not average, then your personal numbers will differ.

[@SRK5227]

Some comments: First, 379 FTP? Impressive for a non-pro (or maybe ex-pro). In any event, I find it impressive.

[@uknowbass]

Need to do an FTP test….on Rouvy

[@davidhughson189]

What’s the ideal HR zone for zone Two training?

[@davidhughson189]

Is it zone 2 HR Training or Zone 2 Power training, presented by GCN?

[@gcn]

How the heart rate in zone 2 varies depends on the person and other factors. We talk a bit about it in this video in case it’s useful for you. 👉kzbin.info/www/bejne/eHa8oYulpbWrgacsi=vKNsBUTbwVdshSBE

[@seascape]

What is the minimum percentage of time in zone 2 for it to be considered a zone 2 ride? I live in a hilly area with lots of short steep climbs, and I have to ride in zones 3 and 4 to get to the top of the hills, and then coast down in zone 1, so I’m in zone 2 for maybe 1/3 of the time - is that a zone 2 ride?

[@Commanderfoxenjoyer]

Unfortunately no, If you switch to zone 3/4 your body will also switch his consumption mode (to the glucose one) and you won’t get any of the expected positives outcomes of zone 2. You pretty much have to stay in zone 2 the whole begging of the training (1h30-2h) if you want to benefit from it. Zone 2 only works if it’s only zone 2. You can of course do 2h in zone 2 to start off and then switch to an intensity training if you want. But I recommend to do your zone 2 training entirely in zone 2 to get the most of it

[@richardmiddleton7770]

It is difficult, especially down steep decents with corners. What I do is use a modified 54/34 chainset (Dura ace 54/40 with a 34 inner ring installed) and an 11-32 cassette. I can then pedal at around 40 mph downhill and down to around 4mph on steep climbs at around 50 rpm or lower if standing.

[@joemckenna7680]

How much time do you need to spend at zone 2 per week for it to be beneficial?

[@TimLange-lh6nq]

According to San Millan 300-400min per week to really see substantial improvements.

[@raymondrichardson538]

That being said, I've heard Stephen Seiler argue that it's worth including even for time-crunched cyclists like myself that are only riding ~6 hours a week in total. I usually do 5 rides per week, three of which are ~1hr at Z2, one is a hard interval-type effort, and one is my weekend group ride (that usually gets spicy in stretches). Seems to work well for me.

[@TimLange-lh6nq]

At the end of the day this is what really matters. If you keep improving in your zone 2, i.e. your power output at a given heart rate is increasing, then stick to it.

[@clubstew]

The Grade sucks for FTP, IMO. It levels out midway making it too easy to drop your output even for a bit, and the inclinations change frequently not only pushing you out of the saddle but varying your output. I still prefer the ERG mode FTP tests.

[@denis4tuna]

Is 1.5h/ride of Z2 enough?

[@djbattledmv]

My man FTP is 379!! Im not even sure why I'm still cycling and trying to get better with my 240 FTP 😂.

[@notmyrealname6272]

I’m injured and not allowed outside zone two for now and it’s driving me maaaaaaaad. I always do it anyway but not having efforts to look forward to is depressing.

[@brannmacfinnchad9056]

You talk about doing a FTP test as often as every couple of weeks. To the best of my knowledge, you should be well rested in order to do so. Are you essentially doing one after every rest week?

[@StephenMarkTurner]

"Zone 2, you look Mahhh-velous"

[@gcn]

[@JFomo]

I tried doing a Z2 ride this morning and failed spectacularly. How do people stay in Z2 and a high cadence? And also during a climb?

[@ofeykalakar1]

Small ring

[@erlendsteren9466]

I managed to climb 8,5 % steep 400 heightmeters in zone 2, but the cadence wasnt high (guessing it was between 40 and 75). My cogs are superlight gear with 36 teeth behind and 30 teeth on the chainring. My speed was 5 km/h.

[@paulm433]

Yep gearing and stick at it, don't get disheartened if you can't stick to z2 on the hills to start with, this will improve over time (quite quickly for me, but still sometimes struggle to stay in z2 up hills even at 5mph).

[@theflyingbohunk]

Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.

[@bikesavvy3654]

I hate it when riders say it’s going to be a zone 2 ride then smash everyone with everyone pretending they are just in Zone 2. I say zone 2 best done solo

[@vILLmatic24]

One riders zone 2 might be another riders zone 5.

[@TheAgingCyclist-bk9wt]

I’ve been doing 80 20…. 80% zone 2, 20% hard or higher….

[@bobwatson3178]

Those Zwift numbers are simultaneously impressive and depressing!

[@DollyLaurel-j6l]

McDermott Shores

[@marty197666]

I find z2 works best when my dr puts me on a strict regime of EPO, GH and testosterone.

[@seanreilly6618]

379, not bad

[@DanePapenfuss-h9s]

Vance Mission

[@erlendsteren9466]

What about zone 1? Very few people talks about it, and I think its underestimated. I like to go all over the zones , not forgetting any of them. The classic long easy ride is a mix of zone 1 and 2 and history tells that it has been good for many people. I cant go zone 2 for 4 hours without getting very exhausted, but if I dilute it with a lot zone 1, I arrive home a lot fresher and not so exhausted that I cant take a ride tomorrow. I disagree with the 80% zone 2 idea and believe its too hard. It should be diluted with some zone 1. The week before Road World Championship I was passed by an Arcea B&B Hotels pro-rider (Embret Svestad-Baardseng?) and a Coop-rider, and they were definitively going no harder than zone 1. My guess is that the Pro-riders spend a lot time in zone 1. Zone 1 is also a very much used zone for commuting. The worlds best skier in 1966, Gjermund Eggen, did mostly zone 1 in the summer, walking in the mountain looking after his sheeps.

[@TriconPOE]

In essence, spend a lot of time on your bike and you get better at it.

[@rodstevens7452]

Connor…. Rugby 👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀

[@DuBChillor]

how to upload the same video every few days

[@kalleandersson916]

I❤Z2 watching South park and having a gag on the trainer

[@justliberty4072]

Zone 2: The maximum PERCENTAGE of fat burning.

[@erlendsteren9466]

Maybe zone 2 is the fastet way to burn fat, but we can burn more fat in zone 1 because we are able to do more miles in zone 1. But zone 1 takes more time to burn it.

[@petef15]

I describe zone 2 as being able to breathe through your nose, and sustain the effort but you'd rather not.

[@MacDonaldTiffany-w1f]

Blake Branch

[@nack1389]

Me watching this vid after having done 4 days in a row of intervals on accident😅

[@Pastamistic]

I can breathe through my nose into zone 4. So still not a good metric to use for some people.

[@DeanStowers-r4v]

Purdy Parkway

[@peterdobos1606]

Here is how to actually "compliment" zone 2 training: "Z2 is really fun." "Z2 is the best training." "Z2 is the perfect workout." "Z2 is my favourite." This comment brought to you by the Pedantic Grammar-ist. #complement

[@gcn]

Thank you for sharing your list with us!

[@peterdobos1606]

@@gcn well now you've gone and completely changed the title. that's no fun.

[@mmaciek163]

Is it only for me pure ad of zwift?

[@taylorh267]

pretty much no zone two here lol

[@dul22]

Guess it's growing popular because it's easy but easy is not enough...

[@bobp5523]

Z2 being easy is a misconception. If it feels that easy, it’s probably Z1. I go by the rule of thumb that I can carry on a conversation, but I don’t really want to because it’s uncomfortable.

[@nealm1814]

"Wherever you are on your training journey consistent zone 2 will make you fitter" Well guess what, consistent any zone training will make you fitter! Unless you are Tadej Pogacar and your zone 2 is 320-340 watts then staying in zone 2 for a wholes ride is miserably boring. For those of us who aren't pros and just like to enjoy our rides just get out there and ride consistently to whatever zones you like and I guarantee you will improve.

[@erlendsteren9466]

You have a good point! There are good coaches claiming that consistency is the key, and if you have a trainingregime that you can hold for years and decades without getting to much interruptions like sickness and injuries, you will have very good results. I very much agree in that fun is better than boring and myself I go all over the zones. Listening to what my body wants to do gives me some sprints, some chasing of backwheels, but also some easy days in zone 1 and 2.

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Not exactly. If you just go out everyday without a plan you'll go too hard too often and burn out which will ruin your consistency taking time off and you'll never improve.

[@LisaBrooks-n4j]

Guy Centers

[@BorisWitry-l2e]

Jackson Robert Gonzalez Ruth Allen Cynthia

[@tomorigin1980]

The body doesn't work like this. It doesn't flip between fat and glycogen for energy. Your muscles store glycogen and will use that 1st

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Not at low intensity when you're more fat adapted and aerobically efficient. Fat usage will shut off after a certain intensity and you'll only burn glycogen. Where that intensity lies is trainable through lots of low intensity, it is not trainable at any other intensity.

[@johnduddy2359]

It appears to me that the cycling training punlic discussion is a bit like the fashion industry.... Trands and fashion dictates a lot of it Z2 and its benefits are not new, anyone whos been atound has seen it cone and go from the discussion Pretty boring

[@glennicol1361]

I prefer sweet spot training... Good for riders who to be strong but train 8 hours or less...

[@jcwu1531]

First 😘

[@gcn]

well done

[@Evankaspar]

*Complement

[@SRK5227]

Second, if you're going to show a Zwift screen, for god's sake, fill out the HUD. An empty spot on the HUD indicates you don't regularly use Zwift.

[@jockdoc07]

Typical!

[@jurajskubak8925]

Zone 2? If you're not doing 320 watts for 5 hours, you're doing it wrong.

[@gcn]

only the🐐