The average speed of the winner of the first TDF in 1903 on potholed rural dirt roads with almost three times the distance of the current TDF, without any support or team, was 16.7 mph on a very heavy single speed bike without brakes while cycling in suits, drinking wine and smoking. The average speed of the winner of the 2024 TDF on perfectly paved roads over shorter distances with huge support, gears, carbon fiber frames, Lycra, perfect diets, performance enhancing drugs, and brakes was about 25.7 mph. If you put a TDF winning cyclist on a $100 single speed cruiser brake bike from Walmart, he will effectively do more than HALF the speed of a $30K TDF winning bike. Average speed is linear but costs are exponential. 💔
The point of training in Zone 2 is because it is faster to recover from it, meaning you can train more. More aerobic training, better VO2 Max. Training Zone 2 also makes your Zone 2 stronger so that you can be faster while doing Zone 2, therefore you can go fast with less fatigue. When your Zone 2 pace is as fast as other people's Zone 3 pace, you outlast them.
It also gradually lowers your lactate turn point, which results in what you’ve described above. Your zone 2 could be someone else’s Zone 4. :) It’s all about putting in the time and doing the equivalent of eating loads of broccoli day after day.
@@putrid.p You’ll see some short term gains, but it caps overall performance if the base training isn’t there. Basically of a person can plan out a six month period, and have those first two months be 6-8 hours per week of zone 2 with one day of minor maintenance intensity (Zone3/4) then that person would be faster than most in the bunch toward the end of that 6 month period. That’s nit including layering in strength training, as well as periodizing the overall plan to gradually increase intensity and lower overall volume when getting closer to the end, and reaching peak fitness.
When strapped for time threshold is king. Additionally you can mix and mash training methods. If you have no time than plan a week of 1 or 2 threshold training days. If you have a lot of time….plan for a week of periodized training. It is not an exact science. The majority of people aren’t pro and cannot fully dedicate time to a training schedule. Key is to maximize the intensity whilst maintaining recovery.
The question now is, how many people can train 15-20 hours a week? That zone is not the answer. You need all the zones to improve fitness. I can guarantee you will get drop training only in zone 2 with 3-5 hours a week of riding!
I race on Zwift, my best results have always come after a large block of Z2 riding. Z2 builds that strong base, which enables longer periods in Z5/6 before blowing up.
I don't train z2 because the internet tells me to, I do it because science and the best coaches in the world tell me to. And after years of doing it, I can say it unequivocally it is not a "scam".
@@michael1 The problem with this is that zone 2 is free and nobody is making any money from selling the idea of zone 2, only training it but because its open source its not like you have to pay to get zone 2 vs other training methods. If all training methods are available why are paid coaches recommending it? I can tell you if you hardly train then you have to train hard. But as someone who likes to exercise a lot and I blew up overtraining two years in a row the last couple years I am a strong proponent of zone 2 and ride mostly in this range. For the first year since I've done group rides, centuries and all kinds of madness I have not actually had to take months off the bike losing all my progress and keep going back to zero. It really does work if you have any significant volume of training and exercise.
It's great what you are doing. At the moment I struggle with longer bike sessions (due to skin condition and weight), but I know where I am going and steadily work on myself. What you haven't mentioned is the old idea to program your nervous system with small gears to hit hardest gears in a race; automatically you know when your cadence runs over 110 RPM this gear is too light (most people prefer to grind their joints with a hillarious boxy coordination without achiving 60 km/h - the speed their gear ratio (e.g. 52:12) was designed for). For me was always a reference a gear ratio of 42/16 or 42/18 (in the 70's/80's in Germany I did up to 80 Criterium Races + CX a year) - in training (80 people in a group) nobody would go to the big chainring. Now I am quite old and vary my training due to crippling myself in the office (40 kg more than necessary): Commute on a bike or walk to work (3 km), using a rowing machine with a main goal of coordination of the movement (2% with sprint efforts, 10% Zone 3 to control breath and posture), furthermore I balance on a rope (Slack Rack) and do daily deep squads (for flexibility of my body/skin tissue).
I started. Zone two after having a heart Issue from doing intervals non stop. It took about a year To build up the fitness required. This season i've had more podiums than any year prior. Then I just turned fifty nine. Plus the scottish f bombs are awesome.
hah, you hooked me with that title, I must admit. 80% Z2 for the last 2.5 years (~10 hrs/week) and now I'm completely addicted to it. Never thought I could feel so fit!
I tried zone 2 training and it was a total waste of time, my fitness level dropped. I went back to fartlek ( broken tempo ) training, which I do 3 times a week, and the gains were so different, that's what works for me.
@jacklauren9359 I still do 90/100+ km rides, and have found that my fitness has improved, and working at whats known as zone 2 is much more natural. You need to shock your body, so that it can react to demands.
Yeah, there’s so much science on HIIT, fartlek, etc. that the only thing that Z2 “sells” to are people who shy away from serious exertion. Granted, Z2 recovery rides are great… but expecting gains on Z2 without signing up to 20 hours of riding a week is nonsense.
@paulgrimshaw8334 if you look up the National Strength and Conditioning Association you will find d a nice PDF to download and read the science behind Fartlek training. But at the end of the day we are all different and respond to different types of training.
@@ToOldToTurnProcycling most do zone 2 too low intensity. Zone 2 is really tempo riding. With a max at 185 mine is around 150 hr which is my lactate threshold 1. At this intensity I push around 4 watts per kilo. Doing that up a big climb for hours on end and you will soon see it’s definitely not noodling around wasting time in zone 1. It also isn’t at high breathing intensity that leaves you feeling smashed after 2 hours. Gains are big this way when coupled with vo2 max intensity later in the week.
Did enough warrior stuff in the Marines (and have the scars from) that I am not a 'warrior' on the bike. In fact, I have had riders in our weekly pelapalooza-thingie literally come up behind me and put their hand on my back and push, so I had to increase my RPM to hang with them. I don't have a bike doohickey to measure my smegmazillaspoogeawatters or whatever those things are, so I just try and keep up. Now I know what 'zones' are and I'm going to continue to ignore them and just have fun. I'm 68 and lost 80 lbs in 9 months, no pills needed for ANYTHING, perfect BP and veins like garden hoses because of a life not drinking alcohol or smoking. But I love your videos. I'm learning things. Keeps the mind elastic, learning. Stay safe! I've decided to keep donuts in my food.
You and I are in the same age cohort. And both of us are Marines. Where we diverge is , I served peacetime only, and I still chase the finish line . lol Keep the journey going Brother. Semper Fi.
@@RickSanchez1000 Semper Fi' Brother! Working out 4-5 days a week now. Weight training. Getting in shape but still not doing an Ironman. :D Want a laugh? Have you seen the 'casually explained:cycling?' Had enough of that running the hills of Pendleton! Stay safe! Stay hard!
Coach here is a question for you.. I have used coaches in the past.. Some use pure power, some have used Max HR to predict Z2 others have used my LTHR to predict Z2. If using HR what is the correct one? The ranges are drastically different at least 15 BPM in either direction between the 2.
A clearer, more defined Zone 2 would have been helpful. And explaining that there's lots of different Zone 2s and how the fat-oxidative Zone 2 differs from a heart rate Zone 2, a power Zone 2, and RPE Zone 2 would make it easier to grasp the concept advocated here. And it's a very good concept, so kudos for that!
Most people don't follow the any part of the entire range of Z2 (low, high, fatmax, etc). If they did, it wouldn't matter which is most efficient, it will be fairly effective at training aerobic capacity. The problems are usually not following the described durations or they're usually in Z3 or super easy Z1. Even though every serious explanation tells them to avoid Z3 for Z2 work, the Ego is stronger than logic for most
@@philipsangalang5077 I dont believe avoiding zone 3 is important. If I should avoid zone 3 I would have to buy an e-bike or avoid routes with big climbs. The problem with going too much in zone 3 is that you will burn less fat and more carbohydrates for the remaining part of the ride, but so what? If you have got more than an hour zone 2, then you have cashed in a big zone 2 trainingchunk before going into carbohydrateburningmode. Going several miles in zone 1 is also good training. Lots of kilometers makes my form increase a lot, and going more than 3 hours in zone 2 is too hard for me.
@@erlendsteren9466 i hope i can make it in a nutshell: -as a professional you race in zone 1-2 or +Z4; Zone 3 brings you nowhere in most cases -Z2 stumulates very good fat burning aerobic system - +Z4 stimulates carb burning system very good -Z3 hits both systems, but non of them very good. studys indicate that too. if you are non-pro, train the way you want and are happy with. and in the end train the way that works for you. (for me it seems barbell squats and Legpress are way more better for my cycling then anything else, but i have to validate it) if you plateau, you still can try other trainingplans.
You mentioned in a previous vid upper end of zone two to get the HR up. What % HR should we shoot for. Nothing but hills in neighborhood so it’s all on the trainer.
2:28 this is why I joined the Bulletproof Cycling Club. I’ve proved to myself that I can concentrate and train for 12 weeks. Now I want to sustain that training until I can’t anymore.
Its a great feeling to see the level and time of being well inside stable aerobic and that boarder of aerobic/anaerobic increase as well as recovery from max decrease even when I still consider myself quite out of condition. Well done vid
I’ve heard that to get maximum stimulus you need to go 2.5+ hours. Where does frequency fit into this equation? What about riding a shorter distance every day? Which is better and is frequency and volume equal? In other words is 7 hours a week at 1 hour a day better than 7hours a week at 2 days with 3.5 hours?
@@MaxHeadspace9mm i believe the common knowledge is that some adaptations only come from longer rides but 2 3.5h rides per week doesn't seem like a good balance. Maybe something like 3h long ride, 2h with higher intensity intervals, 2h foundation ride would be a better split imo
My problem with Zone 2 is not going up hill, when I can just use easier gears, but steep downhills, because I need to stop pedaling otherwise I'd go to fast. Is that ok or is it going to hinder my training?
I dont think its a problem getting a bit rest now and then, and the downhill usually doesnt take very much time. The best riders in the world goes down hill a lot, and they are the best.
Install bigger front chainrings set, 52-36 should be fine. If you've got more power go with 53-39. But put bigger cassette on the back - like 32-11 or 34-11 to compensate.
If go for a ride from my door, one direction is up an 8% hill, and the other is down a 11% hill. which I will climb on my return. I run a 50/34 on the front and 11/32 on the back. There's no way for me to climb either of those hills in zone 2. All of my zone 2 work has to be on the trianer.
I’m already in Z2 when I’m getting the bike out of the garage. Riding within Z2 will involve a lot of freewheeling and my lowest gears. Is it ok to do Z2 work in the form of walking and use the bike just for the higher intensity work?
Hi, great content. Is it possible to do RPE test with breathing and determine the HR that seems is corelating with the exertion during the test? After that i try to stay in this HR zone. After progress I could reset the HR zone with new findings. What do you think? Greetings from Czech Republic.
Wasted 6 months of training on a zone 2 only experiment … definitely unquestionably good for longevity and healthy aging …. But for competitive athletes it has depleted my top end power and ability …. Needs to be mixed with intervals to maintain top end intensities if you want to get performance values imo
Everywhere I've read about Z2 they all say 80% max of your time should be in it while the rest should include race pace and/or intervals. Z2 builds base not top end.
Serious question are you related in any way to spud out of trainspotting 🤔. Love the channel 🤩 doing lap of the Lough on Sunday crapping myself only been getting out once a week for the past 4 weeks 😩 hope to god I can finish it 🙏
Another underrated issue is perhaps iron supplementation. At short term it helps to generate red blood cells and at long term myoglobin whithin the muscles. In 2017 I started with running and was stuck to a 5km distance for a month, and when supplemented iron for two weeks I went to 10, 15 and 20 the next month and also cycling performance skyrocketed again. Regrettably I had only few years in life which I was training consistantly but from 2007 to 2011 I was cycling a lot but also only zone 3 and 4😂🎉 I could do 100km in 3:10h as pb, including some small hills. With polarized training I would have made a better progress and better pb.... But I was stuck to warrior mode always.😅
Here in New Zealand, Coach could be the Prime Minister, He's so straight up!! As I have no fat, mostly ride at Threshold or more, and are an old dog, it's hard for me to change my in built ways, But I did win a silver and bronze at the age group Hill climb and Road race so I'll just keep chasing those KOMs, at 57 years old. But I know you are right 👍👍
Thanks for a good video. I have found an extra long road to work thats 2,5 hours going up and behind the hills from tarmac to gravel to tarmac. I have done this ride six times this year with different pacing and zonestrategy. One day I went half-easy in hard zone 2 (I have high zone 2, because of high lactatethreshold) for 1 hour and 15 minutes, then i spent 23 minutes in zone 3 going 8% uphill. Then it was easy zone two and one slight downhill for 25 minutes, 10 minutes hard zone 2, 7 minutes hard zone 2 or 3 climb, 9 minutes easy zone 2 and a final minute hard uphill in zone 4. I think this was a good workout that gave me much zone 2 but also some taste of some other zones. Do you think this kind of zone two rides that is contaminated with limited parts of several other zones is a nice way to train? (My goal is not competetion, only getting more fit and having a good time).
@@billeterk I guess my ride was efficient zone 2 training only for the first half, but the rest, 25 minutes zone 3 or treshold and easier after that must have been efficient in another way. Problem is that such hard zone 3 should probably not be done more than twice a week. I think its smart to have three or four days a week avoiding high zones (ride light or rest), and pedaling smooth in exclusively zone 1 and 2. I did a slow zone 1 yesterday .
ive been riding road bike since may this year, i can do 0.57km hilly KOM on strava with 434watts of power, in july i started taking supplements, before i could do 275w for 20 seconds, now like i said, i can do 434watts for 51 seconds Ps sry for my english
lol :) bulletproof advise. indeed its hard to go slow. that's why I spend a lot of time Backpacking no racing there mostly. But question loads of Z2 wen I am backpacking hours on end. will this also count for my bicycle base level. ?
i have just found this ..( laughed my arse off too ) i want to lose wieght , i love riding my bike , i ride my bike to work (3days) im 60 im trying to ride every day when not at work , i did it this week , but my rides are no where near 4 hrs and my bike is a canal towpath monster ,(not a sleek bianchi. i still love it though ) although i ride it along country lanes similar to that one you just went up
Here's my problem with Z2, and unfortunately this falls directly into this fallacy. There is never an appropriate counter factual. People say Z2 because it allows you to increase volume. Fine. But what if you could increase volume at a greater intensity? How much better would you be? That's the real comparison that matters. Not Z2 for 20 hours a week or SST for 10.
@MMichiganSalveRegina Well, human bodies are adaption machines. We get better at stuff we do. With zone2, you enhance your bodys ability for fat oxidation since that's what's mostly utilised while in zone2. When you go higher in intensity, fat oxidation is decreased, and more carbs are utilised, hence your body doesn't have a need to push the limits of fat oxidation.
The idea is to maximize training stimulus from the aerobic and anaerobic systems. There is a limit to how much high intensity training you can recover from, and going beyond this is detrimental. Aerobic training increases your ability to stay in and recover from higher intensities. Therefore, to increase volume at higher intensity, you need to increase volume at lower intensities as well. Studies typically show that the optimal training load for most people is ~80% aerobic and ~20% anaerobic. People who train with more intensity , percentage wise, typically perform worse (assuming more than 5+ hours per week).
"With zone2, you enhance your bodys ability for fat oxidation since that's what's mostly utilised while in zone2. When you go higher in intensity, fat oxidation is decreased," This is not true, in zone 2 a greater proportion of fat is metabolised than in zone 3 or 4 but in the higher zones more is metabolised so even though a greater proportion is glucose you still in absolute terms burn more fat at the higher zones.
@andyedwards7800 Sorry, that is not true. With higher intensity and, therefore, higher heart rate, the increase in glycogen utilisation vastly outpaces the increase in calorie demand. Therefore, when exceeding zone2, the calories from fat actually DECREASE. Seperated from that, for the effects on body composition, e.g. the decrease in body fat, the caloric deficit is way more important than the storage the calories were drained from during exercise. Is this maybe what you're referring to?
Seems his audience isn’t very bright. They don’t understand what z2 is. It needs to be called gold zone for them to understand 🧐…… my ego wouldn’t let me push the subscribe button…. Or the like. Click bait….. dude gettin mosh up pon di ride 💪🏾👊🏾
at the end person will stuck to where nature gave them. not all person are special. some just got what they have even they work out it. it does not give more leverage as elite pro rider. they just cannot.
Watched the video, read the comments and replies and I’m as confused as ever. Also Coach, begging for subscribers is not cool as on the Tube you gotta earn it.
I’m assuming most avid cyclists will already have a reasonably developed aerobic fitness from their long rides. I personally see improvements only with HIITs and climb repeats.
to be fair, for the average joe who cant train enough to put in other zone work around this, zone 2 is just a BS excuse to slack off and let yourself go while continuously giving your self a license to pat your self on the back because society says so. Way better just going pretty hard for some duration that makes you feel like you're not a complete lazy fu#$ avoiding the pain cave.
Lmao of course the guy wearing an old fashioned club fit jersey has something to say about gender politics. I'll just go back to Dylan Johnson for the same info and more detailed scientific background, at least he's not gonna try make me sign up to his website Btw you're wondering why your not converting views into subs - hint: it's the clickbait titles
Zone 2 is useless to me. I ride three times per week, for a total of between five and six hours. Those training rides are sweet spot, vo2 max and a hard threshold workout. My FTP hovers around 290 and I'm always engaged. I do not believe that if I took my five or six hours and split them into a typical 80/20 polarised split that I would be anywhere even close to as strong on the bike.
I can't subscribe because you curse and I got small kids that watch RUclips and I can't have you in my history or suggestions. Otherwise I'll still watch when they are not around
I went through all this zone 2 heart rate crap when i started running. Train slow race slow. What will happen is you will blow through your zone 2 training in a race in about 400m straight in to zone 5. Rpe as mentioned is a much better way, and as long as you cover all the efforts you will gain endurance and speed endurance. At the end of the day you race in zone 3 and 4 most of the time so why wouldn't you train those zones more often. Right where is that how to run/ cycle without getting tired video at. 😂
Not everybody races; actually, most cyclists don't race. Some of us ride just to improve fitness, both mentally and physically - particularly as we get older. Some just ride as a way of transportation from point A to B, or for recreation. A combination of mostly medium aerobic activity interspersed with intervals of maximum intensity seems to strike a balance for gaining fitness without injury. Racing is another possible goal, in which case, perhaps a different training routine would be better. Racing is mostly appealing to folks under 40 years of age, and even they are likely a minority of younger cyclists. My impression is that Mr. Bulletproof Cycling is offering advice for the non- or rarely-racing crowd.
@curtvaughan2836 I never claimed everyone did race. I was just pointing out my experience with zone 2 training. But at no point was it mentioned that this video wasn't for everyone not just over 40's who didnt race.
Zone 2 is a scam, it's just riding your bike more and obviously if you increase volume you need to lower intensity. Ride your bike more, you'll get fitter.
But if you lower intensity by too much it's very time inefficient trying to get fatigue for a stimulus... I guess there could be an optimal zone to aim for.... 😜
A rant combined with academic dogma. Coach, you need a coach because you've gone down the same metabolic rabbit hole that 99% of people go down and missed the other half of the equation of sustained power. Have a wee think about what that is, because I can see your own ego is too proud to listen to what I have to tell you.
Don't forget to join my 5 Day Bulletproof Cyclist Challenge. Hope to see you there 😉
challenge.bulletproofcycling.com/xQEz
The average speed of the winner of the first TDF in 1903 on potholed rural dirt roads with almost three times the distance of the current TDF, without any support or team, was 16.7 mph on a very heavy single speed bike without brakes while cycling in suits, drinking wine and smoking. The average speed of the winner of the 2024 TDF on perfectly paved roads over shorter distances with huge support, gears, carbon fiber frames, Lycra, perfect diets, performance enhancing drugs, and brakes was about 25.7 mph. If you put a TDF winning cyclist on a $100 single speed cruiser brake bike from Walmart, he will effectively do more than HALF the speed of a $30K TDF winning bike. Average speed is linear but costs are exponential. 💔
If I don’t ride it over 170 BPM I feel like I’m just lollygagging. What’s the point of riding slow. Every day is race day!
The point of training in Zone 2 is because it is faster to recover from it, meaning you can train more. More aerobic training, better VO2 Max. Training Zone 2 also makes your Zone 2 stronger so that you can be faster while doing Zone 2, therefore you can go fast with less fatigue.
When your Zone 2 pace is as fast as other people's Zone 3 pace, you outlast them.
It also gradually lowers your lactate turn point, which results in what you’ve described above. Your zone 2 could be someone else’s Zone 4. :) It’s all about putting in the time and doing the equivalent of eating loads of broccoli day after day.
Quite. But what if someone isn't getting sufficient volume because of other time-pressures, such that more intense rides can be recovered from?
@@putrid.p You’ll see some short term gains, but it caps overall performance if the base training isn’t there. Basically of a person can plan out a six month period, and have those first two months be 6-8 hours per week of zone 2 with one day of minor maintenance intensity (Zone3/4) then that person would be faster than most in the bunch toward the end of that 6 month period. That’s nit including layering in strength training, as well as periodizing the overall plan to gradually increase intensity and lower overall volume when getting closer to the end, and reaching peak fitness.
When strapped for time threshold is king. Additionally you can mix and mash training methods. If you have no time than plan a week of 1 or 2 threshold training days. If you have a lot of time….plan for a week of periodized training.
It is not an exact science. The majority of people aren’t pro and cannot fully dedicate time to a training schedule. Key is to maximize the intensity whilst maintaining recovery.
The question now is, how many people can train 15-20 hours a week? That zone is not the answer. You need all the zones to improve fitness. I can guarantee you will get drop training only in zone 2 with 3-5 hours a week of riding!
I race on Zwift, my best results have always come after a large block of Z2 riding. Z2 builds that strong base, which enables longer periods in Z5/6 before blowing up.
Thanks
I don't train z2 because the internet tells me to, I do it because science and the best coaches in the world tell me to. And after years of doing it, I can say it unequivocally it is not a "scam".
These scientists and coaches are visiting your shed are they?
@@michael1 The problem with this is that zone 2 is free and nobody is making any money from selling the idea of zone 2, only training it but because its open source its not like you have to pay to get zone 2 vs other training methods. If all training methods are available why are paid coaches recommending it?
I can tell you if you hardly train then you have to train hard. But as someone who likes to exercise a lot and I blew up overtraining two years in a row the last couple years I am a strong proponent of zone 2 and ride mostly in this range. For the first year since I've done group rides, centuries and all kinds of madness I have not actually had to take months off the bike losing all my progress and keep going back to zero. It really does work if you have any significant volume of training and exercise.
@@ryancraig999 tell me you didn't watch the video without telling me you didn't watch the video.
Absolutely brilliant, " breathing out your arse"... finally someone who says it as it is.....
i watch just to hear the scottish f bombs 🤣🤣
I believe my language is getting better now!! 🤪
@@BulletproofCycling don't change.....the rawness is authentic and entertaining
@@tampafoxx 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I only watch to hear him call me a fanny. No luck today. Sad.
Please don't change Scott@@BulletproofCycling
It's great what you are doing.
At the moment I struggle with longer bike sessions (due to skin condition and weight), but I know where I am going and steadily work on myself.
What you haven't mentioned is the old idea to program your nervous system with small gears to hit hardest gears in a race; automatically you know when your cadence runs over 110 RPM this gear is too light (most people prefer to grind their joints with a hillarious boxy coordination without achiving 60 km/h - the speed their gear ratio (e.g. 52:12) was designed for).
For me was always a reference a gear ratio of 42/16 or 42/18 (in the 70's/80's in Germany I did up to 80 Criterium Races + CX a year) - in training (80 people in a group) nobody would go to the big chainring. Now I am quite old and vary my training due to crippling myself in the office (40 kg more than necessary): Commute on a bike or walk to work (3 km), using a rowing machine with a main goal of coordination of the movement (2% with sprint efforts, 10% Zone 3 to control breath and posture), furthermore I balance on a rope (Slack Rack) and do daily deep squads (for flexibility of my body/skin tissue).
I started.
Zone two after having a heart Issue from doing intervals non stop. It took about a year To build up the fitness required. This season i've had more podiums than any year prior. Then I just turned fifty nine. Plus the scottish f bombs are awesome.
Love this honest advice coach, thanks for the guidance! 🚴🏻
hah, you hooked me with that title, I must admit. 80% Z2 for the last 2.5 years (~10 hrs/week) and now I'm completely addicted to it. Never thought I could feel so fit!
Great video with a great accent on top. well done Coach 😊
I tried zone 2 training and it was a total waste of time, my fitness level dropped. I went back to fartlek ( broken tempo ) training, which I do 3 times a week, and the gains were so different, that's what works for me.
What if you’re doing 90km time trial then? Still do tempo efforts for 3 hours?
@jacklauren9359 I still do 90/100+ km rides, and have found that my fitness has improved, and working at whats known as zone 2 is much more natural. You need to shock your body, so that it can react to demands.
Yeah, there’s so much science on HIIT, fartlek, etc. that the only thing that Z2 “sells” to are people who shy away from serious exertion. Granted, Z2 recovery rides are great… but expecting gains on Z2 without signing up to 20 hours of riding a week is nonsense.
@paulgrimshaw8334 if you look up the National Strength and Conditioning Association you will find d a nice PDF to download and read the science behind Fartlek training. But at the end of the day we are all different and respond to different types of training.
@@ToOldToTurnProcycling most do zone 2 too low intensity. Zone 2 is really tempo riding. With a max at 185 mine is around 150 hr which is my lactate threshold 1. At this intensity I push around 4 watts per kilo. Doing that up a big climb for hours on end and you will soon see it’s definitely not noodling around wasting time in zone 1. It also isn’t at high breathing intensity that leaves you feeling smashed after 2 hours. Gains are big this way when coupled with vo2 max intensity later in the week.
I love going slow, you get to see, feel and smell more of the landscape.
what RPE should be target, Coach?
Cannot find the link to basecamp mentioned?
Did enough warrior stuff in the Marines (and have the scars from) that I am not a 'warrior' on the bike. In fact, I have had riders in our weekly pelapalooza-thingie literally come up behind me and put their hand on my back and push, so I had to increase my RPM to hang with them. I don't have a bike doohickey to measure my smegmazillaspoogeawatters or whatever those things are, so I just try and keep up. Now I know what 'zones' are and I'm going to continue to ignore them and just have fun. I'm 68 and lost 80 lbs in 9 months, no pills needed for ANYTHING, perfect BP and veins like garden hoses because of a life not drinking alcohol or smoking. But I love your videos. I'm learning things. Keeps the mind elastic, learning. Stay safe!
I've decided to keep donuts in my food.
You and I are in the same age cohort. And both of us are Marines. Where we diverge is , I served peacetime only, and I still chase the finish line . lol Keep the journey going Brother. Semper Fi.
@@RickSanchez1000
Semper Fi' Brother! Working out 4-5 days a week now. Weight training. Getting in shape but still not doing an Ironman. :D Want a laugh? Have you seen the 'casually explained:cycling?'
Had enough of that running the hills of Pendleton! Stay safe! Stay hard!
@@WanderingOldGuy OohRah Brother Be blessed and enjoy the ride!
Choose Life. Choose carbon bikes and zone two breathing. Choose life.
good video good edits good coach, this is just good
Coach here is a question for you.. I have used coaches in the past.. Some use pure power, some have used Max HR to predict Z2 others have used my LTHR to predict Z2. If using HR what is the correct one? The ranges are drastically different at least 15 BPM in either direction between the 2.
Love your passion brother 🤘
How long do you recommend to train in the Z2 in one session? 1h? 2h?
Yes I think you are right. Its this ego that gets us habituated to using the indecent (f- like) words.
A clearer, more defined Zone 2 would have been helpful. And explaining that there's lots of different Zone 2s and how the fat-oxidative Zone 2 differs from a heart rate Zone 2, a power Zone 2, and RPE Zone 2 would make it easier to grasp the concept advocated here. And it's a very good concept, so kudos for that!
Most people don't follow the any part of the entire range of Z2 (low, high, fatmax, etc). If they did, it wouldn't matter which is most efficient, it will be fairly effective at training aerobic capacity. The problems are usually not following the described durations or they're usually in Z3 or super easy Z1. Even though every serious explanation tells them to avoid Z3 for Z2 work, the Ego is stronger than logic for most
@@philipsangalang5077 I dont believe avoiding zone 3 is important. If I should avoid zone 3 I would have to buy an e-bike or avoid routes with big climbs. The problem with going too much in zone 3 is that you will burn less fat and more carbohydrates for the remaining part of the ride, but so what? If you have got more than an hour zone 2, then you have cashed in a big zone 2 trainingchunk before going into carbohydrateburningmode. Going several miles in zone 1 is also good training. Lots of kilometers makes my form increase a lot, and going more than 3 hours in zone 2 is too hard for me.
@@philipsangalang5077zone 2 gives you discipline- added benefits more mitochondria and more capillaries for oxygen transport
@@erlendsteren9466 i hope i can make it in a nutshell:
-as a professional you race in zone 1-2 or +Z4; Zone 3 brings you nowhere in most cases
-Z2 stumulates very good fat burning aerobic system
- +Z4 stimulates carb burning system very good
-Z3 hits both systems, but non of them very good. studys indicate that too.
if you are non-pro, train the way you want and are happy with.
and in the end train the way that works for you. (for me it seems barbell squats and Legpress are way more better for my cycling then anything else, but i have to validate it)
if you plateau, you still can try other trainingplans.
You mentioned in a previous vid upper end of zone two to get the HR up. What % HR should we shoot for. Nothing but hills in neighborhood so it’s all on the trainer.
2:28 this is why I joined the Bulletproof Cycling Club. I’ve proved to myself that I can concentrate and train for 12 weeks. Now I want to sustain that training until I can’t anymore.
Long time subscriber here, liked the video allowing me to continue watching and learning, thanks coach.
10% hill in the rain into a head wind, sounds like a holiday. In my day........
Good stuff coach!
Remember Poggi spends 80% in Z2.
Indeed..but his zone 2 is around 400W.
@@FoobsTon there is absolutely no way that his zone 2 is anywhere close to 6W/kg lol don't make up numbers.
@@spicyspicyhot
And there is absolutely no way that you have a sense of humour..
Great comeback.
@@FoobsTon Pretty hard to tell you were joking.
Great advice 😊
I must not be much of a warrior because I’ve never wanted to climb a 10% hill, into a headwind, in a pissing rain. 😅
I never thought that Zone 2 as a physiological subject would be a way for RUclips creators to waste viewers time with endless drivel.
Its a great feeling to see the level and time of being well inside stable aerobic and that boarder of aerobic/anaerobic increase as well as recovery from max decrease even when I still consider myself quite out of condition. Well done vid
Excellent John
I’ve heard that to get maximum stimulus you need to go 2.5+ hours. Where does frequency fit into this equation? What about riding a shorter distance every day? Which is better and is frequency and volume equal? In other words is 7 hours a week at 1 hour a day better than 7hours a week at 2 days with 3.5 hours?
@@MaxHeadspace9mm i believe the common knowledge is that some adaptations only come from longer rides but 2 3.5h rides per week doesn't seem like a good balance. Maybe something like 3h long ride, 2h with higher intensity intervals, 2h foundation ride would be a better split imo
@@miguelfigueira1719 thanks!
My problem with Zone 2 is not going up hill, when I can just use easier gears, but steep downhills, because I need to stop pedaling otherwise I'd go to fast.
Is that ok or is it going to hinder my training?
I dont think its a problem getting a bit rest now and then, and the downhill usually doesnt take very much time. The best riders in the world goes down hill a lot, and they are the best.
Install bigger front chainrings set, 52-36 should be fine. If you've got more power go with 53-39. But put bigger cassette on the back - like 32-11 or 34-11 to compensate.
If go for a ride from my door, one direction is up an 8% hill, and the other is down a 11% hill. which I will climb on my return. I run a 50/34 on the front and 11/32 on the back. There's no way for me to climb either of those hills in zone 2. All of my zone 2 work has to be on the trianer.
I f****ing love this video coach! I’ve dropped chain gang nights for Zone 2 now.
I’m already in Z2 when I’m getting the bike out of the garage. Riding within Z2 will involve a lot of freewheeling and my lowest gears. Is it ok to do Z2 work in the form of walking and use the bike just for the higher intensity work?
Hi, great content. Is it possible to do RPE test with breathing and determine the HR that seems is corelating with the exertion during the test? After that i try to stay in this HR zone. After progress I could reset the HR zone with new findings. What do you think?
Greetings from Czech Republic.
Wasted 6 months of training on a zone 2 only experiment … definitely unquestionably good for longevity and healthy aging …. But for competitive athletes it has depleted my top end power and ability …. Needs to be mixed with intervals to maintain top end intensities if you want to get performance values imo
Everywhere I've read about Z2 they all say 80% max of your time should be in it while the rest should include race pace and/or intervals. Z2 builds base not top end.
Good Advice From a Genuine Channel 👍
I forgot my Cold Irn Bru while I was watching 🤙
Serious question are you related in any way to spud out of trainspotting 🤔. Love the channel 🤩 doing lap of the Lough on Sunday crapping myself only been getting out once a week for the past 4 weeks 😩 hope to god I can finish it 🙏
@@Simon-yl5jd Everyone from Scotland is related my man 😂
@@dpacc88 🤣👍😎
@@dpacc88 yup, lots of incest over there😂
Another underrated issue is perhaps iron supplementation. At short term it helps to generate red blood cells and at long term myoglobin whithin the muscles.
In 2017 I started with running and was stuck to a 5km distance for a month, and when supplemented iron for two weeks I went to 10, 15 and 20 the next month and also cycling performance skyrocketed again.
Regrettably I had only few years in life which I was training consistantly but from 2007 to 2011 I was cycling a lot but also only zone 3 and 4😂🎉 I could do 100km in 3:10h as pb, including some small hills.
With polarized training I would have made a better progress and better pb.... But I was stuck to warrior mode always.😅
20 what? 20mg?
@RevoltingRudi km
I train in zone 2 to allow my body to flush the EPO effectively.
Here in New Zealand, Coach could be the Prime Minister, He's so straight up!! As I have no fat, mostly ride at Threshold or more, and are an old dog, it's hard for me to change my in built ways, But I did win a silver and bronze at the age group Hill climb and Road race so I'll just keep chasing those KOMs, at 57 years old. But I know you are right 👍👍
Thanks for a good video. I have found an extra long road to work thats 2,5 hours going up and behind the hills from tarmac to gravel to tarmac. I have done this ride six times this year with different pacing and zonestrategy. One day I went half-easy in hard zone 2 (I have high zone 2, because of high lactatethreshold) for 1 hour and 15 minutes, then i spent 23 minutes in zone 3 going 8% uphill. Then it was easy zone two and one slight downhill for 25 minutes, 10 minutes hard zone 2, 7 minutes hard zone 2 or 3 climb, 9 minutes easy zone 2 and a final minute hard uphill in zone 4. I think this was a good workout that gave me much zone 2 but also some taste of some other zones. Do you think this kind of zone two rides that is contaminated with limited parts of several other zones is a nice way to train? (My goal is not competetion, only getting more fit and having a good time).
良いと思いますよ． 74歳のサイクリストですが，上りは数分ぐらいのコース獲得標高476で3時間15分ぐらいのコースで，ほぼ毎日サイクリング．
調子が良い日 Z2 28分 Z3 1時間5分 Z4 1時間3分 調子悪い日 Z2 1時間20分 Z3 54分 Z4 19分でサイクリングしていますが，まだ衰えることはありません．
終わった後に疲れは感じるようになりました．
人生残り少ない中，張り切って生きるようにしてます．
It all pays :-). I seem to recall Iñigo San Millan saying after an extended effort it takes 20-30mins to get back into effective z2 though.
@@billeterk I guess my ride was efficient zone 2 training only for the first half, but the rest, 25 minutes zone 3 or treshold and easier after that must have been efficient in another way. Problem is that such hard zone 3 should probably not be done more than twice a week. I think its smart to have three or four days a week avoiding high zones (ride light or rest), and pedaling smooth in exclusively zone 1 and 2. I did a slow zone 1 yesterday .
I take all your advice and knowledge as the cycling gospel. When i go hard i think of one video of yours, are ya really going as hard as ya can.
ive been riding road bike since may this year, i can do 0.57km hilly KOM on strava with 434watts of power, in july i started taking supplements, before i could do 275w for 20 seconds, now like i said, i can do 434watts for 51 seconds
Ps sry for my english
sry for my english
Zone 2, or as Les Woodland coined it in his 1986 book Cycle Racing: Training to win "The gossip threshold".
Thanks for sheerin’ those teps mate, spot on. ;)
Thanks refreshing stuff ! Kippers and sardines a good fat source a few times a week !
Love the information!
I subscribed for the awesomeness.
Consistence Z2 is the WAY -> Jedi handmove! :)
I love that Planet X bike
lol :) bulletproof advise. indeed its hard to go slow. that's why I spend a lot of time Backpacking no racing there mostly. But question loads of Z2 wen I am backpacking hours on end. will this also count for my bicycle base level. ?
It will, yes.
choose life. choose zone 2. Choose good health, low cholesterol, and dental insurance
i have just found this ..( laughed my arse off too )
i want to lose wieght , i love riding my bike , i ride my bike to work (3days) im 60 im trying to ride every day when not at work , i did it this week , but my rides are no where near 4 hrs and my bike is a canal towpath monster ,(not a sleek bianchi. i still love it though ) although i ride it along country lanes similar to that one you just went up
The mitochondria is the powerplant of the cell.
*The sex zone* in your glorious Scottish accent, I bloody love it!!! 😂😅
Happy now😅
Me zone 1 only 😅
Choose life 🏴
The best riders in the world use zone two training . Not sure if you know more then them 😊
I ned to send this link to my older brother.. over and over 😛
Drive it home coach!!
Tell Tadej that!
Brilliant, I wish it was true
Wasn't Mitochondria how Liam Neeson explained The Force to Anakin Skywalker ?
@@FoobsTon mediclorians I think 🤔 🤣😂
@@garethbutton
Either way, well call you the Yoda of cycling!
Zone 2 or not Zone 2, there is no try. 🤣
@@FoobsTonthere is no tri
Here's my problem with Z2, and unfortunately this falls directly into this fallacy. There is never an appropriate counter factual. People say Z2 because it allows you to increase volume. Fine. But what if you could increase volume at a greater intensity? How much better would you be? That's the real comparison that matters. Not Z2 for 20 hours a week or SST for 10.
@MMichiganSalveRegina
Well, human bodies are adaption machines.
We get better at stuff we do.
With zone2, you enhance your bodys ability for fat oxidation since that's what's mostly utilised while in zone2.
When you go higher in intensity, fat oxidation is decreased, and more carbs are utilised, hence your body doesn't have a need to push the limits of fat oxidation.
The idea is to maximize training stimulus from the aerobic and anaerobic systems. There is a limit to how much high intensity training you can recover from, and going beyond this is detrimental. Aerobic training increases your ability to stay in and recover from higher intensities. Therefore, to increase volume at higher intensity, you need to increase volume at lower intensities as well. Studies typically show that the optimal training load for most people is ~80% aerobic and ~20% anaerobic. People who train with more intensity , percentage wise, typically perform worse (assuming more than 5+ hours per week).
"With zone2, you enhance your bodys ability for fat oxidation since that's what's mostly utilised while in zone2.
When you go higher in intensity, fat oxidation is decreased,"
This is not true, in zone 2 a greater proportion of fat is metabolised than in zone 3 or 4 but in the higher zones more is metabolised so even though a greater proportion is glucose you still in absolute terms burn more fat at the higher zones.
@andyedwards7800
Sorry, that is not true.
With higher intensity and, therefore, higher heart rate, the increase in glycogen utilisation vastly outpaces the increase in calorie demand.
Therefore, when exceeding zone2, the calories from fat actually DECREASE.
Seperated from that, for the effects on body composition, e.g. the decrease in body fat, the caloric deficit is way more important than the storage the calories were drained from during exercise.
Is this maybe what you're referring to?
I thought it was to do with signalling. AMPK vs mTOR.
Pretty sure 121%+ is actually anaerobic not vo2 max
Depends on one’s MMP curve
Coach be dropping 💎
Zone 2 is so boring. It’s harder staying at Z2 for 2-3 hours than hammering Z4 for an hour.
Choose mitochondria... choose life ;)
Seems his audience isn’t very bright. They don’t understand what z2 is. It needs to be called gold zone for them to understand 🧐…… my ego wouldn’t let me push the subscribe button…. Or the like. Click bait….. dude gettin mosh up pon di ride 💪🏾👊🏾
at the end person will stuck to where nature gave them. not all person are special. some just got what they have even they work out it. it does not give more leverage as elite pro rider. they just cannot.
Training is more complicated than this based around how much time you have to train. See: Dylan Johnson & Chris Carmichael.
I discovered that riding zone 2 in a fasting state in the morning does wonders.
I ride in my zone 2 and other ride in zone 4. So this is a scam? Hahaha
How many TdF cyclists have you trained?
He’s done a few 🎉❤
@@adammillsindustries. Has he trained any winners? Pogacar used this training method.
@@johnverrios3944Anyone riding in the pro peleton has won a LOT of races.
@@adammillsindustries. ruclips.net/video/dBbK-0vh-d8/видео.html
Watched the video, read the comments and replies and I’m as confused as ever. Also Coach, begging for subscribers is not cool as on the Tube you gotta earn it.
What’s the scam? It’s certainly helped me lol.
Couldve saved the long intro
Forgwt all that garbage unless you are training for the olympics forget all the tech just ride for the love of it.
You can’t handle the truth!
I’m assuming most avid cyclists will already have a reasonably developed aerobic fitness from their long rides. I personally see improvements only with HIITs and climb repeats.
to be fair, for the average joe who cant train enough to put in other zone work around this, zone 2 is just a BS excuse to slack off and let yourself go while continuously giving your self a license to pat your self on the back because society says so. Way better just going pretty hard for some duration that makes you feel like you're not a complete lazy fu#$ avoiding the pain cave.
I would subscribe and watch more if it wasn’t for this stupid click bait headline which contradicts your content.. All the best with it. Cheerio
Talk to me when you’re 55yo.
well.... Pogi stopped training with dr. San-Millan (father of Z2 training?) this year and look when he finished....
And that has 0 to do with zone 2 training. Also. Didn't he win 2 tours with the guy?
A new coach with special potions
@@Foxtrottangoabc 😂
See what a few _years_ of z2 does? ;-)
Lmao of course the guy wearing an old fashioned club fit jersey has something to say about gender politics.
I'll just go back to Dylan Johnson for the same info and more detailed scientific background, at least he's not gonna try make me sign up to his website
Btw you're wondering why your not converting views into subs - hint: it's the clickbait titles
Zone 2 is useless to me.
I ride three times per week, for a total of between five and six hours. Those training rides are sweet spot, vo2 max and a hard threshold workout.
My FTP hovers around 290 and I'm always engaged. I do not believe that if I took my five or six hours and split them into a typical 80/20 polarised split that I would be anywhere even close to as strong on the bike.
Great advice but please don't beg for likes it's really painful to watch
I can't subscribe because you curse and I got small kids that watch RUclips and I can't have you in my history or suggestions. Otherwise I'll still watch when they are not around
I went through all this zone 2 heart rate crap when i started running. Train slow race slow. What will happen is you will blow through your zone 2 training in a race in about 400m straight in to zone 5.
Rpe as mentioned is a much better way, and as long as you cover all the efforts you will gain endurance and speed endurance. At the end of the day you race in zone 3 and 4 most of the time so why wouldn't you train those zones more often.
Right where is that how to run/ cycle without getting tired video at. 😂
Not everybody races; actually, most cyclists don't race. Some of us ride just to improve fitness, both mentally and physically - particularly as we get older. Some just ride as a way of transportation from point A to B, or for recreation. A combination of mostly medium aerobic activity interspersed with intervals of maximum intensity seems to strike a balance for gaining fitness without injury. Racing is another possible goal, in which case, perhaps a different training routine would be better. Racing is mostly appealing to folks under 40 years of age, and even they are likely a minority of younger cyclists. My impression is that Mr. Bulletproof Cycling is offering advice for the non- or rarely-racing crowd.
@curtvaughan2836 I never claimed everyone did race. I was just pointing out my experience with zone 2 training. But at no point was it mentioned that this video wasn't for everyone not just over 40's who didnt race.
I think you're misunderstanding the zone 2 / zone 5 training model. Training is in zone 2. Racing obviously isn't.
@bobkatanga I don't misunderstand it at all. I'm well aware of each zones benefits. It's even explained during this video. 🙈
@@kevinclark5086that’s why you do a couple HIT days and the rest are Z2.
Zone 2 is a scam, it's just riding your bike more and obviously if you increase volume you need to lower intensity. Ride your bike more, you'll get fitter.
You just contradicted yourself into a corner.
@@andyedwards7800 Any scientific proof of your statement? Please provide it. Thanks
Zone 2 is just a way of making a simple thing complicated to sell heart rate monitors and power meters.
But if you lower intensity by too much it's very time inefficient trying to get fatigue for a stimulus... I guess there could be an optimal zone to aim for.... 😜
So ride slowly but not too slowly, chatting pace? There's nothing magical about a heart rate zone or power zone, just ride your bike.
Choose life. Choose a fuckin TV set
Both.
A rant combined with academic dogma. Coach, you need a coach because you've gone down the same metabolic rabbit hole that 99% of people go down and missed the other half of the equation of sustained power. Have a wee think about what that is, because I can see your own ego is too proud to listen to what I have to tell you.
As a middle-aged, multicultural, neurodivergent non-binary person, I've never had a problem understanding zone 2. It feels like it's in my nature.