Video summary

Training Zones Explained: What, Why & How?

Main summary

Key takeaways

Educational

Main ideas, concepts, and lessons

What training zones are

Training zones divide the full range of cycling effort from:

  • your absolute maximum effort
  • down to the lowest effort you can sustain while riding (not lounging on the sofa)

That effort range is split into levels (“zones”):

  • Lower zone = easier intensity
  • Higher zone = harder intensity

The purpose is to make training more precise and scientific, so your sessions have specific goals and you spend time only in intensities that drive the intended adaptations.

Why cyclists use zones

Cycling zones help you get better results by:

  • scheduling workouts to target particular goals,
  • spending time in the right zones (instead of wasting time in zones that won’t move you toward your outcome),
  • building progress over weeks/months toward bigger goals (e.g., long rides or racing).

How zones are measured (effort quantification)

Common tools to gauge how hard you’re going:

  • Heart rate monitor
  • Power meter (ideally, and best for precision)
  • Subjective feel, including:
    • breathing
    • how the effort feels

If you have no tech, the guidance suggests you can still locate key zones using breathing/feel.

Biological basis: metabolic states and lactate thresholds

The classic model is based on three zones:

  1. Endurance
  2. Threshold
  3. Above threshold

These correspond to lactate behavior in blood, with two key “inflection points” on a graph:

  • LT1 (first transition point)

    • Below LT1: lactate stays low/steady (Zone 1 / endurance)
    • Above LT1: lactate rises steadily but sustainably (Zone 2 / threshold region)

  • LT2 (second transition point)

    • Above LT2: the body shifts further toward borrowed time / more anaerobic contribution
    • Typically associated with hard intervals that can’t be sustained long

Additional concepts mentioned:

  • As intensity increases, energy systems shift:
    • endurance region: more fat use
    • threshold region: more carbohydrate
    • above thresholds: increasing anaerobic involvement

Why many people use more than 3 zones

The video argues the 3-zone model is overly broad, especially:

  • Zone 1 covering too wide a range
  • middle zones potentially feeling different depending on how close you are near LT1/LT2

More detailed models split the top end further. A common approach is a 5-, 6-, or 7-zone system.

Example: 7-zone model for cycling (time-based intensity ranges)

The video describes a practical 7-zone setup by splitting high-intensity work:

  • Zone 5 (VO2 max): roughly 10 minutes down to 5-minute intervals
  • Zone 6 (anaerobic capacity): roughly 30 seconds to 3 minutes
  • Zone 7 (max sprints): full-blown max sprint efforts

Key motivation: cycling races often hinge on upper-intensity durations, so breaking those down helps you train the intensities that match race demands.

Methodology / instruction-style steps (detailed)

A) Determine zones using available data (general workflow)

  • If you can test or have lab-quality lactate testing

    • Use lactate thresholds (LT1 and LT2) to set boundaries precisely.

  • If you have equipment

    • Use:
      • power meter (preferred accuracy),
      • and/or heart rate,
      • alongside how it feels.

  • If you have no tech

    • Use breathing rate and breathing pattern to locate key transitions near:
      • LT1
      • LT2

B) Use breathing to find LT1/LT2-type zones (as described)

  • Zone near/just below LT1

    • Goal breathing pattern:
      • you should be able to breathe through your nose
      • talk in complete sentences
    • Warning: it can feel like you’re “almost too hard,” even though it’s still conversational.

  • Zone near/just below LT2 (Zone 4 region)

    • Breathing becomes:
      • fast and deep
      • still controlled (not ragged)
    • You can likely get out a sentence, but you’ll need quite a few deep breaths after.

  • Above LT2

    • Efforts above this are treated as interval work done on time (e.g., “zone 5 interval of 10 minutes” pacing logic).

C) How to use heart rate effectively (per video guidance)

  • Calibrate heart rate against breathing

    • Once calibrated, heart rate becomes a:
      • visual cue that you’re going too hard or not hard enough,
      • tool you can record and analyze later,
      • indicator that helps you recognize when you’re fatigued/tired.

  • Important limitation

    • Heart rate alone can be inaccurate because HR can lag or drift depending on conditions and fitness state.

D) Training selection guidance (practical takeaway)

  • For most cyclists

    • Training in zones is beneficial even if exact boundaries aren’t perfect.

  • Only precision-critical for advanced “turning the screw tightly” athletes

    • Those who already train very precisely may care more about exact zone limits.

E) Getting started with a 7-zone system (starting requirements)

  • Start with an FTP test

    • FTP helps define the top of Zone 4.

  • Fine-tuning Zone 2

    • Zone 2 isn’t necessarily tightly linked to FTP alone.
    • Use breathing rate to refine it.

  • Upper-zone calibration

    • If you’re “explosive,” models may underestimate upper zones.
    • Options suggested:
      • Without a power meter: use duration of intervals (e.g., a 3-minute max effort is a 3-minute max effort).
      • With a power meter: use power curve data (e.g., training platform power profiles like Stryd/Strava-style data) to understand capability on short durations.

Key limitations and discrepancies explained

  • Zone models vary across platforms

    • Different apps (e.g., Apple Watch vs Zwift vs Garmin vs TrainerRoad) may assign different zone boundaries.
    • The video suggests this discrepancy usually doesn’t matter much because:
      • boundaries are not hard lines,
      • zones are only as accurate as the input data,
      • without lactate data, exactness is inherently limited.

  • Heart rate limitations

    • Heart rate zones can be inaccurate because:
      • short efforts may not allow HR to rise to the correct zone in time,
      • HR varies even at the same power across time,
      • HR-based models depend heavily on training history, genetics, etc.

Speakers / sources featured

  • Dr. Inigo San Milan (mentioned in context of knowledge about shifting metabolic systems)
  • Dr. Andrew Coggan (credited with the classic 7-zone model)
  • GCN (Global Cycling Network) / GCN videos (implied as the source/channel of the talk)

Original video