I started zone training a couple of months ago, I found the easiest way has been to walk on a treadmill with a heart rate strap that the treadmill can read. I can adjust the speed and incline to keep from going over the max for zone two. I’m currently at a brisk walking speed of 3.7mph for an hour two or three times a week. It fits in well with my training schedule as I do judo which is exhausting and full on cardio for two hours a week and weights every day for 1/2 an hour
Great video! It’s quite amazing how your body gets used to certain activities and when you veer off it can throw you. I’ve felt like I’ve built some great endurance rowing, but I try running and my heart rate spikes like crazy really quickly.
I guess my cardio base is still pretty poor (I’ve only been rowing since mid March) because no matter how lightly I row I cannot stay in zone 2. Even walking faster than a leisurely stroll I end up in zone 3. Basically any exercise at all takes me to zone 3 within 10 minutes or so. 49 years old, rowing almost daily for 5 months.
It sounds like you need to learn how to dial back on the pacing IF you want to achieve Zone 2. The hardest part honestly is the early stages where it feels like you're at a snails pace to get down that low. It comes quickly but the first couple weeks can be frustrating going that slow.
I am a runner and biker for over 30 years. I have the same issue. 65 yrs old.. trying to stay in zone 2 well I might as well just fast walk cause any running will bump me to 3. Of course it makes me wonder if I actually have a true max HR for me. The 220 - age is not accurate for most people who are active. Yrs ago I did a formal VO2max test at a lab and my Max HR was much higher than the 220-age.
@@chairmankaga101 Just wanted to suggest considering letting your body (specifically heart rate, breathing, etc.) tell you whether it's work or not. I.e. via the 'talk test', if you can't comfortably talk without people being able to tell in your breath patterns that you're exercising, it is *definitely* work.
Great episode! Been alternating zone 3/4 and zone 2 days on bike and rower then doing one max effort day on each. Great summary you provided on zone 2 - thanks.
Great stuff Shane! I hadn’t heard of z2 training before, but I’ll download your guide plus look up other resources on it to get educated. I’m 55 and am learning that I can’t push myself like I used to without injuring myself. Zone 2 seems like a safe place to focus as it’s likely not gonna cause any injuries due to the lack of intensity. However, I still like to get the HR climbing once in a while. 😅
Two things, a question and an observation. 1) any advice on where/how to find a coach? 2) 220-age underestimates max HR significantly as you age, being off quite a bit by 40. A better fit for the general population is 211 - 0.64 * age. I haven’t seen a fit for trained populations but imagine it skews quite a bit higher. I’m not very trained and at 53 the updated calculation still underestimates by at least 10 bpm.
220 - age is very rough estimate. Relative perceived effort might be a better way to estimate zone. There are lots of videos about that. In my case when my RPE is about 7 out of 10 my heart rate is about between 20 and 30 over 220 - age.
Thank you for the great video! Im dealing with the overthinking and overuse of zone 2 and forgetting the other zones that help build that pyramid foundation! Great advise!
Some great info Shane. I've only just started rowing but have run consistently for just under 2 years. My running problem (if you want to call it that) is staying in zone 2 while running and not giving in to the temptation of drifting upward and running faster than prescribed. I am working on it. But when I row, it is the exact opposite - i feel like i have to go "full-send" (generally >28 strokes /min) to not drop DOWN into my zone 1. Clearly i am doing something wrong, or my magnetic rower doesn't have a high enough tension setting. Or something.
It usually means your body hasn’t figured out how to out power in to the stroke which comes down to a mechanics and technique issues so I’d work on going to some of my mechanics and technique videos to help learn that part
Your description of energy types used is mistaken. All muscular activity requires ATP. The different energy systems use different methods for producing ATP, which prodcues ATP at different rates using different molecules and with or without oxygen.
Dr.. Attia says . . . . you raise the peak of you pyramid with 4 x 4 x 4 intervals to exhaustion 4 minutes on / 4 minutes rest x 4 each work portion till you fail at the 4 min mark...
I row 2 , 1 hour zone 2 sessions and 1 30/40 minute Vo2 max intervals weekly combined with one free weights session. I am based in UK . I’ve run the fan dance in the Brecon Beacons several times over the last few years. The fan dance makes the dipsea look like a walk in the park , it’s brutal . Look it up it’s an initiative test for the SAS. I strongly believe that zone 2 has helped bring my time down on this route to 5 hours flat . I am 63 and my vo2 max is 43.5.
is it possible to do Z2 in rowing? I think that would be interesting if you can draw out, as rowing is always seen as an intensive exercise. Thanks, Shane.
I think if you row long enough, you can do zone 2 most if not the entire time. I can breathe through my nose and/or talk even at S28 toward the end. If I'm on water at a similar speed, it is heavier. But I'm in the upper northeast and we have heavy chop.
So I recently fell into this UA-cam rabbit hole. A prime day deal featured a rowing machine. I haven't bought, but I started to research rowing as an exercise and rowing machines. Im 55 and have been doing strength training and running for many years. Fitness level is OK for guy my age, but could be better. Rowing seems like it would be a great addition to my regimen, plus my hope is to get my wife involved in this exercise, as she currently does not exercise at all and never has. She does have mobility issues or major health issues now, but I'm very concerned for her long term and mobility as we age together. She also doesn't take kindly to my suggestions, but didn't slam the door on the possibly of trying out rowing. Any thoughts / advice for a guy in my situation?
Hi, what is the difference between the heart rate zone ranges in the Garmin app for the fields labeled ‘Zones’ and ‘Sport heart rate’? In my case, it shows a range of 104-120 bpm for Zone 2 and 123-136 bpm for running in Zone 2, which is a bit confusing. Shouldn't these numbers be the same for walking, running, and cycling?
I alternate a couple of your intermediate row workouts with HIIT zone 2 treadmill. Definitely different muscle groups but I seem to be more worn out after rowing for a shorter period. Perhaps because the intervals of walking are a natural motion as opposed to rowing. Or my sunny belt rower is trash and I'm doing it wrong by going full send on the resistance. Great vid, ty sir
Think about the issue with trying to do HIIT and Zone 2 together, they’re fundamentally opposed to each other so if you go over Zone 2 at any point then the workout is no longer Zone 2 it’s priority becomes whatever the highest intensity you reach is. So you need to pick one or the other rather than trying to combine the efforts.
@@DarkHorseRowingthe thing is, I try to remain higher than Zone 2 but get dialed back due to a recent heart attack and the nurses that monitor my workouts during my cardiac rehab don't allow me to stay at the elevated HR for obvious reasons. Heart attack was genetic and it's been frustrating not being able to go the way I used to but you're absolutely correct, it's diametrically opposed to a true Z2
You shouldn’t be producing much power in Zone 2 at first. It’s going to be slow and that’s the whole point. You just have to be there for a while to it to add value
@@DarkHorseRowing Just wanted to second this. I really strongly recommend focusing on what's happening to your body (heart-rate, breathing pattern, etc) rather than how slow it feels. If you invest enough time in it, your zone 2 will gradually get better.
Easily the best explanation of Zone 2. The illustration slides helped a lot. I do have a question ; there is this Norwegian method that combines zone 2 with HIIT training. Attia describes this a 4 minutes zone 2 followed by 4 minutes of rest and doing this for 4 reps. I’ll check out your training guide! Thanks Shane for demystifying zone 2!
Can you post a link to that Attia video or article? I seriously doubt there is an effective training method like that. By definition it would not HIIT (hi-intensity interval training), since Z2 is low-intensity. Also a total of 16 minutes of Z2 will have next to no effect on anything.
You are referring to the Norwegian 4x4 method. It is definitely not Zone 2 training! Rather it helps build VO2 max, or the peak of the fitness triangle. The method is simple - 4 minutes straight of the hardest you can go that you can maintain at that level for the entire 4 minute work interval. Follow that with 4 minutes of very light movement. Repeat 3 more times for the 4x4. Basically this is similar to the Zone 2 concept, but the goal is to max out your oxygen usage over a prolonged period of time. It takes a bit of practice to gauge how hard to push when starting so that you can make it thru the whole 4 minutes without slowing down.
@@ScottCorbett-k5u100% we’ll explained. I use my C2 for the 4x4, it did take a few sessions to dial my intensity in. I often find the first interval the “hardest” to get my heart rate up high enough. It hurts, a lot, especially that last 60-90 seconds. Intervals 2-4 actually get easier in terms of effort for me to maintain the 85-95% HR range. It’s still very hard, but not like that first interval. Sauna afterwards, sometimes ice bath for contrast therapy and some electrolytes and I feel amazing. Sleep like a baby and my HRV recovery score is always super high the next morning. Which is somewhat surprising given the max effort of 4x4.
Age-based formulas are just an average. There's a lot of individual variation in true max HR. And threshold region (zone 3 of 5) isn't a fixed percentage of max HR but varies with fitness and fiber type distribution.
Am I right that broadly saying (bearing in mind different people, different strength and fitness levels) zone 2 would be training on 22-24 strokes per minute on C2?
You can’t really equate the two. Zone 2 is a HR based zone and measure. Stroke rate is a non-physiological measure so it’s really and apples to oranges discussion
I,m 47 and not normal......if i get clean stay sober, ride my bike and row my @ss off , after about 3 weeks my resting heart rate first thing in morning is 35- 37 bpm. ...genetics???
In addition to the answer above, keep in mind that until you tell the software what your max HR is, it will use your age. That may be inaccurate. I’ve seen software try and infer max HR by updating as you work out, but the best way is to do a test and directly input it. Your typical workout probably does not induce max HR very frequently or maybe at all. The age methodology is a reasonable approximation, but like everything there is variance. My max HR empirically is somewhere between 187 and 192, and I’m 53 - software that just uses my age will think I’m in Zone 3 when I’m really in Zone 2.
I'm going to respectfully disagree with the advice given. Attia etc. were referenced here in the video, and they teach that heart rate is not a good measure. Attia has a video where he demonstrates what Zone 2 is. Lactate, which most people don't monitor, is the best measure; secondarily, the 'talk test' - not whether you can breathe through your nostrils and talk, but if you can talk comfortably to the point where you could hold a phone conversation without the other person knowing you were exercising. If your breathing is more labored than that, you're in Zone 2 regardless of what the HR is (Zone 2 HR can vary day to day for this purpose).
The percentage of your max HR is just an indication. Its not accurate. Have a lactate physics test done, thats the only way to correctly know your zones. You zone's are not someonne else's zone's. Period.
Not that important to know for sure……. I know when I’m in zone 2 at all times……… Don’t need any test. 70yo and have done endurance training for 54 years
Thanks Shane. That is great stuff once again. I just had a look at your training guide and I will give it a go in my rowing training🙂
Hope it helps!
I started zone training a couple of months ago, I found the easiest way has been to walk on a treadmill with a heart rate strap that the treadmill can read. I can adjust the speed and incline to keep from going over the max for zone two. I’m currently at a brisk walking speed of 3.7mph for an hour two or three times a week. It fits in well with my training schedule as I do judo which is exhausting and full on cardio for two hours a week and weights every day for 1/2 an hour
Zone 2 improvement takes lots and lots of time, persistence. Most people quit or don’t put in enough time to see the benefits
Yeah, consistent, long pieces across time makes the difference but that takes TIME for sure.
Great video! It’s quite amazing how your body gets used to certain activities and when you veer off it can throw you. I’ve felt like I’ve built some great endurance rowing, but I try running and my heart rate spikes like crazy really quickly.
So true! Running used to get me there almost immediately until I started training for Dipsea.
I guess my cardio base is still pretty poor (I’ve only been rowing since mid March) because no matter how lightly I row I cannot stay in zone 2. Even walking faster than a leisurely stroll I end up in zone 3. Basically any exercise at all takes me to zone 3 within 10 minutes or so. 49 years old, rowing almost daily for 5 months.
It sounds like you need to learn how to dial back on the pacing IF you want to achieve Zone 2. The hardest part honestly is the early stages where it feels like you're at a snails pace to get down that low. It comes quickly but the first couple weeks can be frustrating going that slow.
@@DarkHorseRowing that’s precisely the problem. It doesn’t feel like work.
@@chairmankaga101 that’s ok. But the only person who can make that change is you.
I am a runner and biker for over 30 years. I have the same issue. 65 yrs old.. trying to stay in zone 2 well I might as well just fast walk cause any running will bump me to 3. Of course it makes me wonder if I actually have a true max HR for me. The 220 - age is not accurate for most people who are active. Yrs ago I did a formal VO2max test at a lab and my Max HR was much higher than the 220-age.
@@chairmankaga101 Just wanted to suggest considering letting your body (specifically heart rate, breathing, etc.) tell you whether it's work or not. I.e. via the 'talk test', if you can't comfortably talk without people being able to tell in your breath patterns that you're exercising, it is *definitely* work.
Great episode! Been alternating zone 3/4 and zone 2 days on bike and rower then doing one max effort day on each. Great summary you provided on zone 2 - thanks.
Love the commitment there and sounds like a good balance!
Great stuff Shane! I hadn’t heard of z2 training before, but I’ll download your guide plus look up other resources on it to get educated. I’m 55 and am learning that I can’t push myself like I used to without injuring myself. Zone 2 seems like a safe place to focus as it’s likely not gonna cause any injuries due to the lack of intensity. However, I still like to get the HR climbing once in a while. 😅
Absolutely! Spending time here is a great place to be able to build your body without the intensity and risk for injury.
Thank you Shane for the video and training plan. Just what I needed. 👍🏻👏👏👏👏
I got you!
@@DarkHorseRowing ❤️
Two things, a question and an observation. 1) any advice on where/how to find a coach? 2) 220-age underestimates max HR significantly as you age, being off quite a bit by 40. A better fit for the general population is 211 - 0.64 * age. I haven’t seen a fit for trained populations but imagine it skews quite a bit higher. I’m not very trained and at 53 the updated calculation still underestimates by at least 10 bpm.
You’re spot on 👍I’m 62 and my max HR is 180
Thank you for this.
220 - age is very rough estimate. Relative perceived effort might be a better way to estimate zone. There are lots of videos about that. In my case when my RPE is about 7 out of 10 my heart rate is about between 20 and 30 over 220 - age.
Thank you for the great video! Im dealing with the overthinking and overuse of zone 2 and forgetting the other zones that help build that pyramid foundation! Great advise!
So great that you recognize that. As long as you know it, it means you can adjust.
Some great info Shane. I've only just started rowing but have run consistently for just under 2 years. My running problem (if you want to call it that) is staying in zone 2 while running and not giving in to the temptation of drifting upward and running faster than prescribed. I am working on it. But when I row, it is the exact opposite - i feel like i have to go "full-send" (generally >28 strokes /min) to not drop DOWN into my zone 1. Clearly i am doing something wrong, or my magnetic rower doesn't have a high enough tension setting. Or something.
It usually means your body hasn’t figured out how to out power in to the stroke which comes down to a mechanics and technique issues so I’d work on going to some of my mechanics and technique videos to help learn that part
What camera are you filming with, it’s so clear!
@DarkhorseRowing yes… please tell us “real info on Zone2”😊
Doing my best!
Your description of energy types used is mistaken. All muscular activity requires ATP. The different energy systems use different methods for producing ATP, which prodcues ATP at different rates using different molecules and with or without oxygen.
Dr.. Attia says . . . . you raise the peak of you pyramid with 4 x 4 x 4 intervals to exhaustion
4 minutes on / 4 minutes rest x 4 each work portion till you fail at the 4 min mark...
True. Lay the foundation wide and build the peak high.
Shane, please make a zone 2 row along video!
Great video
Thanks!
I row 2 , 1 hour zone 2 sessions and 1 30/40 minute Vo2 max intervals weekly combined with one free weights session. I am based in UK . I’ve run the fan dance in the Brecon Beacons several times over the last few years. The fan dance makes the dipsea look like a walk in the park , it’s brutal . Look it up it’s an initiative test for the SAS. I strongly believe that zone 2 has helped bring my time down on this route to 5 hours flat . I am 63 and my vo2 max is 43.5.
Wow, I do all my level 2 & HIIT exercise on the rower.
Great! That’s the beauty of the machine. It’s gives you that flexibility
is it possible to do Z2 in rowing? I think that would be interesting if you can draw out, as rowing is always seen as an intensive exercise. Thanks, Shane.
100% you can hit Zone 2 rowing. You just have to dial back the intensity.
I think if you row long enough, you can do zone 2 most if not the entire time. I can breathe through my nose and/or talk even at S28 toward the end. If I'm on water at a similar speed, it is heavier. But I'm in the upper northeast and we have heavy chop.
Good info! Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
Why cannot you train zone 2 training with rowing only? Why running to kill your knees?
So I recently fell into this UA-cam rabbit hole. A prime day deal featured a rowing machine. I haven't bought, but I started to research rowing as an exercise and rowing machines. Im 55 and have been doing strength training and running for many years. Fitness level is OK for guy my age, but could be better. Rowing seems like it would be a great addition to my regimen, plus my hope is to get my wife involved in this exercise, as she currently does not exercise at all and never has. She does have mobility issues or major health issues now, but I'm very concerned for her long term and mobility as we age together. She also doesn't take kindly to my suggestions, but didn't slam the door on the possibly of trying out rowing. Any thoughts / advice for a guy in my situation?
Hi, what is the difference between the heart rate zone ranges in the Garmin app for the fields labeled ‘Zones’ and ‘Sport heart rate’? In my case, it shows a range of 104-120 bpm for Zone 2 and 123-136 bpm for running in Zone 2, which is a bit confusing. Shouldn't these numbers be the same for walking, running, and cycling?
The zone 2 you're talking about is not the zone 2 Peter Attia is talking about
I alternate a couple of your intermediate row workouts with HIIT zone 2 treadmill. Definitely different muscle groups but I seem to be more worn out after rowing for a shorter period. Perhaps because the intervals of walking are a natural motion as opposed to rowing. Or my sunny belt rower is trash and I'm doing it wrong by going full send on the resistance. Great vid, ty sir
Think about the issue with trying to do HIIT and Zone 2 together, they’re fundamentally opposed to each other so if you go over Zone 2 at any point then the workout is no longer Zone 2 it’s priority becomes whatever the highest intensity you reach is. So you need to pick one or the other rather than trying to combine the efforts.
@@DarkHorseRowingthe thing is, I try to remain higher than Zone 2 but get dialed back due to a recent heart attack and the nurses that monitor my workouts during my cardiac rehab don't allow me to stay at the elevated HR for obvious reasons. Heart attack was genetic and it's been frustrating not being able to go the way I used to but you're absolutely correct, it's diametrically opposed to a true Z2
Thanks Shane! Does a low resting heart rate (42) effect the Zone 2 calculation?
A power pod like Stryd can give you an average effort for your challenge as well.
Yeah, adding a device is always going to make this easier.
I produce very little power at 2/3 max heart rate, and gas out quickly much higher. Is there an easy button to remedy that?
You shouldn’t be producing much power in Zone 2 at first. It’s going to be slow and that’s the whole point. You just have to be there for a while to it to add value
@@DarkHorseRowing Just wanted to second this. I really strongly recommend focusing on what's happening to your body (heart-rate, breathing pattern, etc) rather than how slow it feels. If you invest enough time in it, your zone 2 will gradually get better.
@@DarkHorseRowing Shane what is you're personal average Z2 power/ pace in relation to you're 2k power/pace. Just curious
Easily the best explanation of Zone 2. The illustration slides helped a lot. I do have a question ; there is this Norwegian method that combines zone 2 with HIIT training. Attia describes this a 4 minutes zone 2 followed by 4 minutes of rest and doing this for 4 reps. I’ll check out your training guide! Thanks Shane for demystifying zone 2!
Can you post a link to that Attia video or article? I seriously doubt there is an effective training method like that. By definition it would not HIIT (hi-intensity interval training), since Z2 is low-intensity. Also a total of 16 minutes of Z2 will have next to no effect on anything.
You are referring to the Norwegian 4x4 method. It is definitely not Zone 2 training! Rather it helps build VO2 max, or the peak of the fitness triangle. The method is simple - 4 minutes straight of the hardest you can go that you can maintain at that level for the entire 4 minute work interval. Follow that with 4 minutes of very light movement. Repeat 3 more times for the 4x4. Basically this is similar to the Zone 2 concept, but the goal is to max out your oxygen usage over a prolonged period of time. It takes a bit of practice to gauge how hard to push when starting so that you can make it thru the whole 4 minutes without slowing down.
@@ScottCorbett-k5u100% we’ll explained. I use my C2 for the 4x4, it did take a few sessions to dial my intensity in.
I often find the first interval the “hardest” to get my heart rate up high enough. It hurts, a lot, especially that last 60-90 seconds.
Intervals 2-4 actually get easier in terms of effort for me to maintain the 85-95% HR range. It’s still very hard, but not like that first interval.
Sauna afterwards, sometimes ice bath for contrast therapy and some electrolytes and I feel amazing. Sleep like a baby and my HRV recovery score is always super high the next morning. Which is somewhat surprising given the max effort of 4x4.
Age-based formulas are just an average. There's a lot of individual variation in true max HR. And threshold region (zone 3 of 5) isn't a fixed percentage of max HR but varies with fitness and fiber type distribution.
100%, but that discussion starts to get complex quickly so this was aimed at introducing people to the concept.
Am I right that broadly saying (bearing in mind different people, different strength and fitness levels) zone 2 would be training on 22-24 strokes per minute on C2?
You can’t really equate the two. Zone 2 is a HR based zone and measure. Stroke rate is a non-physiological measure so it’s really and apples to oranges discussion
Rowing doesn’t train your legs?
100% it trains your legs! More than anything else.
I,m 47 and not normal......if i get clean stay sober, ride my bike and row my @ss off , after about 3 weeks my resting heart rate first thing in morning is 35- 37 bpm.
...genetics???
Every body is built differently. As with most things, they fall on a bell curve but there are always outliers.
What if your HR monitor shows a higher HR zone than 2, but you can still breathe through your nostrils and talk?
Then you are out of Zone 2. The HR monitor is what you go off as it’s more accurate.
In addition to the answer above, keep in mind that until you tell the software what your max HR is, it will use your age. That may be inaccurate. I’ve seen software try and infer max HR by updating as you work out, but the best way is to do a test and directly input it. Your typical workout probably does not induce max HR very frequently or maybe at all. The age methodology is a reasonable approximation, but like everything there is variance. My max HR empirically is somewhere between 187 and 192, and I’m 53 - software that just uses my age will think I’m in Zone 3 when I’m really in Zone 2.
@@jwaldrop2011 💯
I'm going to respectfully disagree with the advice given. Attia etc. were referenced here in the video, and they teach that heart rate is not a good measure. Attia has a video where he demonstrates what Zone 2 is. Lactate, which most people don't monitor, is the best measure; secondarily, the 'talk test' - not whether you can breathe through your nostrils and talk, but if you can talk comfortably to the point where you could hold a phone conversation without the other person knowing you were exercising. If your breathing is more labored than that, you're in Zone 2 regardless of what the HR is (Zone 2 HR can vary day to day for this purpose).
The percentage of your max HR is just an indication. Its not accurate. Have a lactate physics test done, thats the only way to correctly know your zones. You zone's are not someonne else's zone's. Period.
Not that important to know for sure……. I know when I’m in zone 2 at all times……… Don’t need any test. 70yo and have done endurance training for 54 years