THE RESURGENCE OF AEROBIC BASE BUILDING
A recent Telegraph article was entitled “The lazy workout with big health benefits”. Trends come and go in the health industry. The last 5 years have been the rise of high-intensity exercise however, it appears slow aerobic base building is having a resurgence which I have to say I’m pleased about.
What is Zone 2 training?
The article itself sings the praises of ‘zone 2 training’. Zone 2 is one of five heart rate training zones with zone 1 being the easiest and zone 5 being the hardest (see picture below).
You can estimate your training zones using a percentage of maximum heart rate however, the most accurate way to work them out is using a CPET test like we do during our assessment.
Zone 2 is the intensity when your body is starting to work slightly harder but you are continuing to work predominantly aerobically with fat as a fuel. You’ll feel like you’re breathing heavier, but you can maintain a conversation without pausing.
This is in contrast to zones 4 and 5 which are predominantly anaerobic in nature and use carbohydrates as a fuel. The key here is your body’s carbohydrate stores are finite while your fat stores are practically endless.
My favourite analogy here is a hybrid car. You want to be really good at using your hybrid engine (think aerobic and using fat), as this is sustainable and spares your petrol engine (anaerobic / carbohydrate). Every now and then you may need to use the petrol engine to accelerate, or in a life situation; to go up a flight of stairs, however the more tasks you can use your hybrid engine / aerobic system for the better.
What are the benefits?
In zone 2, you are improving your body’s ability to work aerobically and use fat as a fuel. You spend 99% of your day working aerobically so it makes sense to improve that system as much as possible rather than your anaerobic (zones 4 and 5) system.
Generally, people tend to have poor ‘metabolic flexibility’ which is the technical name meaning your body struggles to use fat as a fuel and instead uses carbohydrates.
Training your body to efficiently use fat as a fuel optimises metabolism which in turn will stabilise blood sugars, help manage body fat and boost energy levels.
Take-homes:
Zone 2 training is also extremely effective in improving performance. Zones 1 and 2 are the base that all other zones are built on. Having the ability to use fat, and therefore spare your much more finite carbohydrate stores, is a massive advantage. The podcast recommendation today outlines how Eliud Kipchoge spends nearly all of his training in this zone and if it’s good enough for the greater marathon runner of all time, then it’s good enough for me!
