How to Maintain Base Fitness (during a High Intensity Phase)

[@mohamadjamil3164]

This segment and those with the nutritionist are very insightful. Bravo and thank you

[@richardbush3593]

It's really reassuring to hear Ryan talk about genuinely constant zone 2 rides of 2 to 3 hours being fatiguing (approx 13 minutes in) as that's my experience. For me, "constant" means pedalling through corners and down hills with no free wheeling, ever. My riding pals get dropped after about 40 mins of this. Zone 2 is oftern described as your "all day pace". It's only my all day pace when, like most riders, I freewheel frequently!

[@maccaoutdoors2889]

Zone 2 recovery was a game changer for me. I highly reccomend fitting it in to anyones cycling training.

[@jean-paulchaudron3104]

He has such a wealth of knowledge. I really enjoy these video's. No BS just hard cold facts

[@christianemeiners9224]

Always great to listen to you two discussing training. Get a lot out of it; always something to learn. Keep it going. Cheers, Chrissi

[@MitchBoyer]

So much good info in one video 🔥 I feel really lucky to have Ryan as my coach!

[@adrianmijlin]

I liked this video a lot, important not to forget zone 2 during building phase. Looking forward to seeing more of these videos!!

[@alainpfammatter8224]

great video. Thank you for the great tipps.

[@JoeW71]

Thanks for more great information. Really enjoy your videos.

[@coreyreeder3549]

Love that coffee mug!

[@JibbaJabber]

Great info guys👍 BTW, @12:28 - hopping off your saddle 3 times: have you got fleas🤭 @Neil, get him booked in!!

[@ianlainchbury]

Really interested in hearing about z2 in an undulating environment.

[@paulhooper9278]

Was thinking, does that mean zone 2 rides should be as flat as possible (when outside)

[@robertcatuara5118]

I've got the train slow part.

[@Outrunner85]

Great Info, thanks for this.

[@philadams9254]

I can alternate long easy miles with hard days as long as the intensity stays below 110% of FTP. More than that and I just need to be at full freshness or it's not possible to do well. Some people are more sensitive and can't do proper intensity after an easy ride at all. I think it's because their base is lower than mine so it's more stressful for them. Some pro riders with a massive base seem to be able to still smash out huge numbers in our local races white tired. It's crazy

[@cornishalps9870]

Even though my 20 min test is 356w I struggle to maintain a zone 2 of 220-240w for more than 3 hours as I build up a lot of fatigue. I end up averaging around 180-200w on my zone 2 rides now for pretty much the same gains and it means I can do more volume.

[@n22pdf]

Excellent info guys 😊😊 shows that you need to keep a mix of the type of sessions you should do which I’ve been guilty of not doing and trying to hammer it all the time and then leading to overtraining can be a hard cycle to break. I find it difficult sticking to z2 outdoor so pick indoor to force me to stay in z2 👍👍😃🚴🏻🥇Pete

[@roadcyclingacademy]

Cheers Pete and well said.

[@nationsnumber1chump]

there are some people that I occasionally ride with. Their zone 2 is 300 watts apparently because they never ride slow. I have to skip the group ride because everybody wants to smash and dominate each other. Its actually unhealthy because its mostly older guys that I know don't recover at all

[@cornishalps9870]

I don't think unhealthy and old guys riding should be in the same sentence. Sure they might be overtrained but you adapt and while they won't reach their peak physiology using that method they can definitely get to a decent fitness level

[@MediumHalf]

@@cornishalps9870yeah, if you're on a bike you're killing it at a basic level. Going all out all the time obviously isn't ideal training, but who knows if the guys OP's talking about care about that.

[@timotius]

Wooow their zone 2 is 300 watts? Are they pro world tour riders?

[@scottbaker5851]

​@timotius Wonder what their FTP is. When I was racing, mine was 390 to 400. 300 was upper tempo lower sweetspot.

[@87togabito]

Nah. If their z2 was 300 W, they would be world tour level. I’m guessing there is a good amount of draft and freewheeling going on for those microseconds of rest.

[@diegoeleazar9154]

It's rest season!!!!!

[@chrism5433]

I live in a very hilly environment. Which I'm thankful. But Imagine 100 s of 15% hills lol. Not easy to go zone 2 lol As family man at 54, physical mechanic job .I'm thankful for just 90 min ride and getting out there .lol ☕🚲

[@sahasrangshuutube]

What is zone 2 and how to find that I am 48 but after little more ride and elevation my hr shoots to 140+

[@slowcyclist4324]

Thank goodness I don’t have friends to ride with….or friends at all… Gonna just go to a corner and cry

[@silitch]

I don't think I can ride zone 2 up a hill. I always seem to go above know matter how slow I am going...

[@NowIsee-NowIdont]

Hi, is he pertaining to zone 2 of HR or PWR?

[@JulianAndresKlode]

I last measured FTP at 200W but I'm really struggling to avoid 3s 180W spikes on the bike when aiming for 120W, they aren't noticeable, it's just very minor gradient changes you subconsciously push through. Or my crank based power meter is just reading them badly😅

[@jhl5303]

3 sec spike doesnt matter at all, your hr shouldn't react on that short period of spike. The common problem can be how to handle hills without overshooting. Ideal choose flat courses or swift.

[@troycollett8540]

Use a program like todays plan to see how long you spend in zone in these sessions

[@JFomo]

My area is all hills. I suck at Zone 2 and I also suck at hills 😔

[@jeanhernandezrodriguez4838]

this really gave me a laugh. hahahaha -- same bro XD,. just keep grinding and youll get better. when riding up hills try to maintain a moderate pace and build your torque more. it will help when you go fast on flats.

[@oldanslo]

Why do you call lactate threshold 1 (LT1) the inflection point in the lactate curve? Someone doesn't understand the definition of an inflection point on a curve.

[@robdrelich8563]

Im 62, living in a mountainous country. I try for zone 2 rides as training altho it's tough to maintain discipline of going slow (hr 115), when I'm doing a long ride including mountain passes more than 1000m climb, where should my HR be in general? I'm climbing between 1-2.5 hours at 34/34 gear ratio? Tnx

[@MediumHalf]

That kind of environment sounds like it might be difficult to stay in zone 2 on- might just want to get an indoor trainer for your zone 2 work

[@marcelsow5817]

Your endurance HR zone kind of depends on your max HR. It’s a percentage you can find online if you Google for it. My max HR is around 175, so my Garmin and Strava tell me I should be between 115-135 bpm, roughly, for z2. To stay in that range I can’t do more than 190-200 Watts of power at maybe 80-85 rpm cadence which is my upper z2 based on power. If you have 1000m climbs it depends on their gradient and your sustainable cadence whether you can stay in your z2 range. A 5% mountain is easier to climb in z2 than a 9% mountain. Inigo San Milan says as a rule of thumb if you can hold a slightly labored conversation during your ride, you are in z2. If you can only get out a few words before gasping for air, you are above it. (Liberally quoted)

[@robdrelich8563]

The gradients vary of course. They might 'average' 6-7% but there are sections 15% or higher. On these of course HR shoots up into z4, maybe dips into z5. I find myself often overlapping upper z2 lower z3 based on age and HR formula. I guess my bigger question is, train often in z2, but don't worry so much during touring ride? Or rather live for z2 plus periodic z4 heavy rides?

[@robdrelich8563]

I'm cycling in the Swiss Alps

[@marcelsow5817]

@@robdrelich8563 if you are in the Swiss Alps, I would just enjoy riding and seeing the views, forget about HR ;-) I would (and do) choose the former approach. I pick routes of maybe 2 hours that are flatter and I can do mainly in z1/ z2. I don’t live in the mountains but rather rolling hills so I usually get into z3/z4 for those hills but not for more than a few minutes. But then I also plan longer rides of 4-5 hours with maybe 1000-1500 total elevation gain and just care to be in z2/z3 on the flatter section and tackle the “climbs” based on perceived exertion. Whatever power i can sustain to get over it. That ranges from z3 to z5 sometimes. I won’t ride weeklong stage races in my lifetime so enjoyment of the ride is the main goal unless i want to make it a training ride. I also have an indoor trainer where I can spin in whatever zone I want for hours, so that helps get the specific zone training in, of course.

[@PedroPrego]

That's 4 hard day's out of 7. Ouch

[@andreopouloscoaching2250]

👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽

[@JulianAndresKlode]

Just aim for zone 1 get weirdly inconsistent and you stay in zone 2 automatically 🤣