Top or Bottom? How to Maximise Your Zone 2 Running

[@lindenellefson8558]

I love running fast, speedy 10k’s and what not… but zone 2 runs just feel so good!

[@drwilloconnor]

It's a constent battle ⚖️

[@SixStarShane]

Dr Will my friend, this is fabulous timing… I spent the entirety of my Zone 2 run this evening pondering this exact question. Will be dialling the Zone 2 work down a heartbeat or 10 in the future. Thanks for the gold dust brother 👊

[@drwilloconnor]

Is that one of those situations where you think Google must be listening to you 😂. Glad I could help.

[@ibrahimhaizel6856]

Funnily had the same thoughts myself today and this video popped up

[@pyrkol]

​@@drwilloconnor😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@TolunayOrkun]

Hi, I recently found your channel and, as an engineer, I like well reasoned and science backed training approach. A minor comment regarding Garmin HR zones: If you base your Garmin zones on LTHR the percentages that are setup is 80-89% which is not too different than your Zone 2 (this is using Garmin Forerunner 955). However, I remember 70-80 (or similar even number were used with my previous Garmin (Forerunner 645) when one chose zones based on maxHR. I guess they updated the zone setup sometime in the last couple of years. Here are current Garmin zones %LTHR: Z5: >100% Z4: 95-100% Z3: 89-95% Z2: 80-89% Z1: 65-80% %Max HR: Z5: 92-100% Z4: 87-92% Z3: 82-87% Z2: 74-82% Z1: 60-74%

[@lachlancaudwell5819]

Super informative! Will definitely use this for my patients. Such an important part for people who are just getting started with their running to grasp

[@drwilloconnor]

Cheers Lachie!

[@markjohnson4237]

Noice. New subscriber here. Love the detailed level of your content and I feel I'm at a point in my journey where digging in to the why a little more will be helpful. I've been running for about 15 years, on and off but this last year has been a real deep dive in to tweaking almost every aspect of what I do. Its really paid off and at 56 I just PB-ed a half in 1:34:31, but I'm aware that getting faster is going to get harder. So these micro tweaks, based on the science should be just what I need to keep me running for longer and maybe still improving, even if only sightly for a few more years yet. Cheers, Mark

[@drwilloconnor]

I'm continuously amazed at the 50 y/o+ runners who have been commenting with times like yours. It blows my mind you're running that fast at 50 🤯.

[@prossi4216]

When years ago I switched my long runs toward the bottom of Z2 (I did not even know that thing existed, but I went by breathing and later by Karvonen 60-70 zone) instead of toward the top , I constantly improved my marathon times even while getting older. At 60, no more marathons for me, but I still run 10ks and shorter. I also took up cycling and some famous cycling trainer suggested to use the top of Z2--indeed for cycling it seems correct, I can go on for hours, while when running after 45 minutes at the top of Z2 I'm feeling exhausted. Congratulations for the precision of your calculators. Z2,Z3,Z4 HR, power and pace zones turned out to be perfectly in line with my personal experience of 20 years.

[@sldorse42]

Great video as always man. I have my sub 3 hour marathon next Saturday and am looking forward to leaving it all out there for race day. I wanted to thank you for helping me along the way and for all your tips here and on Strava!! Wish me luck

[@drwilloconnor]

Hey Steve, all good man. Start easy, finish fast 👊

[@1HappyBob]

Brilliantly explained 👏

[@cheenangng4050]

4:02 mentioned the biggest problem I have, however the rest of the video don’t seem to address the issue.

[@cristobal.palmero4919]

I base my zones off lactate threshold. Zone 1 Less than 85% of LTHR Zone 2 85% to 89% of LTHR Zone 3 90% to 94% of LTHR Zone 4 95% to 99% of LTHR Zone 5a 100% to 102% of LTHR Zone 5b 103% to 106% of LTHR Zone 5c More than 106% of LTHR

[@drwilloconnor]

Nice, those are Joe Friels' zones from memory. I make my zone 2 wider - 75-88%. I find that on the days when you're tired with heavy legs, it's much harder to get up to 85%, which is not the point of Z2. It's the same if you're running cooler temps.

[@cristobal.palmero4919]

@@drwilloconnor If I'm heavy in the legs I'll go into Zone 1, say after heavy Vo2max training

[@zacsborntorunrunningadvent3441]

Looking at physiologists breakdown of zone2 uses a similar fraction (80-88% lt2) thats 65-75% heartrate reserve (Karvonen). This would place Z2 as 144-159bpm (for myself) with my lt2 at 181 and true max at 199bpm. 85-89% lt2 is only a 7bpm window...is that meant to be such a tight band to you think? It's agreed Aerobic Metabolism starts at 60% hrr which would be 75% of lt2. I think for 45min Z2 sessions 80-88% is prob best as theres less time to allow the slower start.

[@bills6825]

Another great video. As a competitive person, it’s a good reminder that it’s ok, maybe preferred, to work out near the bottom of zone 2 and not always push to be at the top and potentially leak into zone 3. Thanks!

[@cristobal.palmero4919]

@@zacsborntorunrunningadvent3441 80-88% of?

[@mav3ric100]

My question about zone 2 has always been do you start your run in zone 1 and let it creep into zone 2 and keep it there or do you start your run at zone 2 meaning run slightly faster to get it at that bpm range and try to keep it there the whole time? I ask because I find if the first mile I force myself to stay at zone 1, the rest of my run I have no trouble staying at bottom zone 2 for 2 hours. If I rush to get into bottom of zone 2 before my 1st mile is done, I find it hard to stay whiting zone 2 and struggle to keep it at even top of zone 2.

[@drwilloconnor]

What you're doing is correct. On all of my workouts, I have a 5-minute zone 1 “warm-up” to stop people starting too fast.

[@GrassFedKao]

I worry about going so low in Zone 2 that I'm actually in Zone 1 and put my body in recovery instead of the aerobic zone. I don't have a HR monitor nor have tested my exact HR

[@drwilloconnor]

Running at any speed will produce a stimulus. I wouldn't worry about running too slow, but I would recommend measuring your HR. You can use the camera on your phone with some apps.

[@cristobal.ashton]

I did a 39 minute 10K but 32? Well done

[@User85306]

Thanks for the video!👌👍🏼 Attention at 05:45 At the Intensity of your max. fatoxidation most athletes burn already MORE CARBS then fat (for ex. measurements of 30-35min 10k Runners) And ALL athletes burn already a pretty high amount of carbs. So its not correct to say „…maximal fat oxidation zone, BEFORE carbs are needed! Why is this relevant? Because the higher your Training Volume and the higher your physiological power (lets say pace, allthought not 100% correct) at FatMax, the less it is possible to train all your LIT at this intensity, because the stress and strain is to high. Its a common missconception of amateurs, that they think that in Zone 2 / FatMax the fatoxidation is in relative terms maximal (compared to the other substrats). Its not. When talking about this intensity fatoxidation is in absolute terms maximal! Because Zone 2/FatMax is so individual a spiro test should be performed to determinate it. If not possible, perception is way more accurate then formulas.

[@andycounting2015]

Hi, thanks for the great content, on question though - in the PDF says "Last 20m average HR etc." while the website calculator says "Enter your peak 20min...". Is it peak or average?

[@drwilloconnor]

Good question. When you're using a 10km or 30-minute TT, it would be the last 20 minutes, which is typically the peak as well. But in a half marathon, if you blew up, your HR may drop as you slow. In which case, it's “peak”.

[@victorflores6349]

yeah.... got those percentages of lactate threshold to figure out my zone 2 thanks...but wait... what is my lactate threshold?

[@YokNg]

As a runner, is Zone 2 training on the bike similar in effect or do I have to train zone 2 with running only? Which is more effective?

[@drwilloconnor]

Your Z2 HR will be slightly lower on the bike since there's less muscle mass being used. You'll get a lot of benefit from Z2 cycling, but not all of it will translate to running fitness.

[@JackD87]

Is there any benefit in being in a fasted state for fat burning in zone 2? Morning before breakfast?

[@drwilloconnor]

Yep. Fasted training can help stimulate higher fat burning. It's a good alternative to low carb.

[@durew]

Garmin says my zone 2 is 134, zone 3 135-154. My max hr is 192, Garmin has my lactic threshold at 170bpm (z4 at 166), should i be aiming for a 140 z2 run, or try lower?

[@yousignify]

Hi doc. I just started running around 3 months and I run for 3-4x a week though there are time I dont get a lot of sleep. Im wordering why my Vo2 max when I started was 43 now its 39 Im using a huawei gt4 watch

[@drwilloconnor]

Most watch algorithms calculate VO2max based on your HR and pace relationship. For example, a high HR and slow pace would be interpreted as a low VO2max. If there are errors in your HR or Pace readings, which can often happen with wrist-based HR or treadmill running, then your Vo2max prediction (remember it's not an actual measurement) would be incorrect.

[@yousignify]

@@drwilloconnor Thanks doc for the explanation. I also change my running to a more zone 2 base compared to when I started I just ran faster not considering heartrate.

[@spacenfeld]

Based on my 30min TT my HR was 175 and time was 7min/mi. Based on your time zones my zone 2 pace should be between 8-9min/mi, but my HR spikes to the top of my z2 range at 10min/mi. Do I go by pace or by HR?

[@drwilloconnor]

HR for zone 2, and then pace for zone 3 and up. I go over this in my Training Zones ‘How-To’ guide, which you can get in the description.

[@spacenfeld]

Ahhhh I see that now thanks! @@drwilloconnor

[@MWinston]

I burn more fat calories per minute in high zone 2-zone 3 than fat calories in low zone 2, despite burning more fat calories as a ratio of total calories burned at the low end of zone 2

[@drwilloconnor]

That's true. Some people can operate at quite high intensities before carbohydrates influence their fat oxidation rates. Especially if you eat low-carb.

[@TheValonquar]

Recently got a Garmin watch. Is it sufficient enough to calculate zones based off max HR auto detection or is Chest strap necessary to determine precise zones? I'm a new runner so this a bit confusing...

[@TheValonquar]

@@merko3043 Chest strap is required to do lactate threshold test no?

[@merko3043]

If you have a watch, it should measure it, a strap is more precise.

[@drwilloconnor]

@TheValonquar, the wrist HR works ok for some people, but I always recommend a strap or, more recently, an armband. If you download my Training Zones ‘How-To’, which is linked in the description, you can get my test and recommendations.

[@conradburdekin722]

Garmin won’t do a lactate threshold test without heart strap

[@lindenellefson8558]

@@drwilloconnor are you finding the arm band is as accurate as the chest strap? On the chest straps are there typically 1 or 2 leads?

[@SuperTreybo]

Hey dr will i had a question im about 3 and half months out from myrtle beach marathon in march. My question is just 2 weeks ago i ran 14 miler at 8 21 average pace and it was around threshold pace 166 average heart rate. I keep hearing from others that i need do my long runs slower at 9 30 pace for 15-18 milers......do u think i need run my long runs slower? i always hear diff things run them faster or u wont get faster! or run them slower or u will burn out! im planning a 3 hour long run saturday u think i need do most my long runs slower at 145-150 average heart rate? or sprinkle in faster paces? i can run 15 miles at 830 to 820 paces but my heart rate be in zone 4

[@drwilloconnor]

Hey Mate, since you're over 3 months out. I'd be taking it easy on the long runs. Your goal now is to build aerobic fitness and muscular conditioning to prepare yourself for the strenuous marathon efforts that are to come. From three months out, you can start to test the waters with some progressive long runs building to Marathon effort (+/- 10sec/mile). From 8 weeks out, you're in the money zone, so everything you do now needs to be setting you up for that money zone. Running 3 hours in the grey zone now will probably have you tired and sore in a month and a half.

[@SuperTreybo]

Thank you Dr will ! Will do! So when I do my 18-20 milers u think I need do them at around 930 pace instead 820 or 830 and just do race pace last 4-5 miles training ?

[@drwilloconnor]

Yea mate, but keep it easy the next two weekends.

[@sizits]

Hi! Thanks for you video! According to your calculator my Zone2 is from 137-160, last two years or so I am doing majority of my runs around 135 beats per minute, this year I even try be around 130, usually I do around or close to 1 hour run at steady pace so my hear rate is flactauting only slightly, but I don't see any pace improvements while running slow. This year I started to incorporate VO2 max type workouts and specific leg exercises which gave me improvement by 2 minutes in 10km! My questions - does it matter that my slow runs are still slow (meaning that what matters is that I can run faster in races)? Or based on your calculator I am running to easy for majority of my runs? (I am using chest strap HR monitor) Thanks in advance :)

[@drwilloconnor]

Hey, you're spot on in saying, “What matters is I can run faster in races”. That's always our goal. If you're running right down the bottom of Z2 or in Z1 it's all good, so long as you're still doing the “hard” (interval) training.

[@edwinpepito1498]

My zone 2 is walking 😢

[@mckonal]

ty sir. two questions. 1)my lactate threshold is 4.35 pace per km with 170 bpm. my hrmax is 187, rhr is 55 and age is 34. where do you think my zone 2 ends? my garmin says it is 149 (lactate based) 2)aiming to run a marathon in a month (istanbul marathon) and target is sub 3.30 hours (with an average pace of ~4.55 per km). should the course be run at the lower end of z3 or somewhere close to z4? in terms of efficiency, where to try to stand? cheers from turkey.

[@drwilloconnor]

My calculator has top of Z2 at 150bpm and predicted marathon pace around 5min/km. For the race, aim to keep your HR mid-Z3 for the first hour. Watch the last bit of my recent video.

[@georgibg]

Why did he call out Garmin at 4:39?

[@drwilloconnor]

Because Garmin say that Zone 3 is 80 - 90% lactate threshold, which is super low for zone 3. Zone 3 is typically the "tempo" zone around 90-95% lactate threshold (VT1 or LT1). For Garmin to say that 90% is the top of Zone 3, and call their zone 3 "aerobic" is super confusing.

[@callummackenzie8937]

If you change Garmin's zone calculation from max HR to HR reserve for each device, the zone 2 range will more closely match that found from doing a LTHR test. It is still called easy rather than aerobic though. Not the best.

[@KeithEndre]

Garmin says zone 3 is 80-90% of max heart rate, this is way different than lactate threshold

[@karlbratby4349]

Awesome content… 🎉

[@drwilloconnor]

Cheers! Appreciate the support!!!

[@nicklyndparra702]

I've only very recently come cross your channel and I'm binging the content. You provide a great level of detail in a way that is understandable (although I admit I might have to watch a couple of the video more than once :) ). I ran a 3:05 marathon in February and I'm currently training with the aim of a sub 3 in December, and your videos have been a great help. I'm going to dial it back a bit on my easy runs on the basis of this video. Thank you!

[@drwilloconnor]

Appreciate the feedback! 3:05 is close. Don’t be afraid to start a little slower than goal pace in the beginning.

[@havaranis]

doesnt being in Ketosis change zone 2 in terms of HR? I notice that when in ketosis i have higher HR for the same pace. Should i lessenthe pace to be in HR zone 2?

[@drwilloconnor]

I did a video about why maxHR doesn't matter. It's all about cardiac output, which is a product of stroke volume and HR (CO = SV x HR). In ketosis, you may have a reduced stroke volume because of the water loss associated with carbohydrates (1g Carb + 3g H2O). If your stroke volume is reduced, you'll need to increase your HR to maintain the same cardiac output. Also, your metabolic crossover point will be higher because of an increase in the rate of fat oxidation. So, you should be fine to run at a higher Z2, but the point of the video was you dont always need to be at the 😉.

[@hikerJohn]

What would say our 2hr average HR on a moderately hard trail run tell us? My last trail run/walk for 8 miles in 2hrs was a 150bpm The last 3 miles of that 8 miles was all up hill in 55 minutes with an average HR of 162 Polar says my Aerobic Threshold (LT1?) is around 137. I probably should try and stay closer to 137 for 80% of the time(?)

[@carrotsandrunning]

Great video, I always pondered this question.

[@drwilloconnor]

Glad it was helpful!

[@NDYPHN]

Cant find the structured workouts, where can i download it?

[@drwilloconnor]

I haven't made any workouts available for download. But you can get the workout descriptions in my guide via the link, and then use my shorts to build your own.

[@NDYPHN]

@@drwilloconnor apologies if I misunderstood the video, you mentioned something available on all GPS devices on 06:19 My Tip For Dialing in Zone 2, I am looking for an app to monitor and notify me when my HR and/or Pace is over a specified number.

[@drwilloconnor]

Do you have a GPS watch or are you using your phone?

[@NDYPHN]

@@drwilloconnor I have a Samsung galaxy watch 4

[@drwilloconnor]

Looks like you can add an upper limit in setttings under Samsung Health