Part 1
How do you run? Do you go out the door and always do the same lap at about the same speed? Always nice and quiet, or always on the edge so that you are nice and tired when you're done? Or do you play with your tempos and run purposefully to train optimally?
In this blog we look at which zones there are, how they are divided and what the function is of each zone. We also look at how you know that you are training in a certain zone and at the relationship between the zones and the stress-adaptation cycle.
You can run fast or slow, but each speed has its own purpose. Actually, speed is not the right word, because speed is very individual. What is fast for me may be slow for someone else and vice versa. Therefore, intensity is a better word.
What is intensity?
The definition according to Wikipedia (1) is the amount of energy expended during exercise. The intensity influences which fuel is used and which adjustments the body makes after the effort.
Intensity is the amount of physical force the body uses to perform a particular activity and is expressed as a percentage of maximum oxygen consumption. Heart rate is usually used to make this measurable and to be able to convert it into practice, a good alternative is RPE (Click here for my Blog about RPE)
Intensity is the amount of energy expended during exercise.
What intensities are there?
Roughly there are 3 intensities, also called zones (2) (3). The table below shows the classic 3-zone model, which is also used in many studies.
VT 1 is the first ventilatory threshold, the point at which breathing begins to accelerate. When you get past VT 1, you can no longer carry on a conversation, but go to sentences and then have to breathe again. Less lactate is produced than can be broken down. This point is approximately equal to the Lactate Threshold (LT) (3).
VT 2 is the second ventilatory threshold, here you start to breathe heavily, you are no longer able to utter more than words. More lactate is produced here than is broken down. This point is also called the VO2Max (3).
MLSS stands for Maximum Lactate Steady State. This is the highest intensity at which as much lactate is broken down from the blood as is produced. This is exactly between VT 1 and VT 2 (3). How it exactly works with the production and breakdown of lactate is subject for another blog.
What do you train in the different zones?
Zone 1
Zone 1 is the zone in which work is done on improving cardiovascular endurance, the size of your engine. Running in this zone feels very comfortable, you can last for hours. It improves muscle endurance and more blood vessels are created in your muscles (capillary density), which improves the blood flow and thus the function of your muscles. Your body burns more fats than carbohydrates and there is enough oxygen for a clean combustion: little lactate, which is a by-product of a combustion with less oxygen. High in this zone you are about the intensity of a marathon.
This zone is also referred to as an aerobic zone, referring to the amount of oxygen available for combustion to release energy.
Zone 2
Zone 2 is located between the easy zone 1 and the difficult zone 3. You can keep this zone for a maximum of one hour. Lactate is built up in this zone, which gives a slightly uncomfortable feeling. In this zone, speed, power, efficiency and running economy (running as fast as possible with the lowest possible intensity) are improved. Training in this zone makes higher intensities feel less strenuous over a longer period of time. At the very bottom of this zone is about the intensity of a half marathon, at the very top is the intensity of a 10 km run.
Threshold zone is another name for this zone.
Zone 3
Zone 3 is tough. Talking is almost impossible. In this zone you work on developing strength and improving the fast-twitch mitochondria, the power plants of your fast muscle fibers that make you faster. Your body burns more carbohydrates than fats. There is no longer enough oxygen for clean combustion, so more lactate is released than the body can absorb again. This ensures that activity in this zone can only be sustained for a short time. In terms of intensity, you are here at the level of a 5 km run to the top of the sprint in this zone.
This zone is also referred to as anaerobic, which means "without oxygen" (which is not quite correct, oxygen is also used in this zone for combustion, but much less than in the other zones)
Are there more than 3 training zones?
The division into zones is not an exact science, so there are infinitely many divisions possible. There are coaches who maintain a 3 zone model as above, 5 zones seems the most common, but 6, 7 or 12 zones are also possible. Personally I find 6 zones very clear: the 3 zones as described above, but then all again divided in half, zone 1 low and zone 1 high (or 1A and 1B) and the same with zones 2 and 3.
Right click on the image to see more training zone distributions.
The division into zones is an indication, not a rule. In terms of heart rate, it can make a few beats whether you are still in zone 1 or already in zone 2. You can determine your zones with the help of field tests or laboratory research and meter, in practice you always depend on your own equipment and there is a larger chance of measurement errors.
The division into zones is not an exact science, so there are infinitely many divisions possible.
How do I know which zone I'm training in?
You can measure or estimate the intensity of a training. You can measure this with the help of a heart rate monitor, by means of a heart rate belt around the chest (reasonably reliable) or on the wrist (less reliable, can deviate by 5-10 beats).
Testing
To properly classify the zones, pre-testing the maximum heart rate and the VT 2 (VO2max test) is important to get reliable values. This is best done in a laboratory where you do a test run on a treadmill under the guidance of an expert. If you think this is too much trouble or too expensive, a field test is a good option, although the reliability is slightly less.
Calculating
Finally, a calculation is possible for a rough indication, there are different formulas to calculate the maximum heart rate and from this the VT 2. However, this is the least reliable (and even more unreliable for women than for men due to the complexity of the formula). For men, the most recent and validated calculation for maximum heart rate is as follows: 205.8-(0.685 x age) and for women 206-(0.88 x age).
The sports watches of the major brands (Garmin, Suunto, Coros) often have an automatic VO2max detection. This is still based on a calculation based on your data, and is therefore a good indication but not as good as an actual test.
Estimating
You can estimate the zones by means of RPE or a talk test. Can you still have a conversation with complete sentences? Zone 1. Can you still speak in short sentences, but do you really have to breathe after the sentence? Zone 2. The moment you can only utter single words or can no longer speak at all, then you are firmly in zone 3.
Does this always work?
When training at a higher intensity for a shorter duration, for example an interval, a heart rate monitor is less reliable. It always takes a while before your heart rate has worked its way up to the intensity you demand from your body. The moment your interval is between 30 and 60 seconds, your heart rate is probably only just at the level you want to train at, while your time is already up. In that case, relying on your heart rate to determine your zone is less useful and it is better to switch to RPE or talk test to know which zone you are in.
Why do I have to train in a zone
As can be read above, each zone has its own properties. By training in each zone, you will become a better runner. Think of it like a pie. You don't bake a tasty cake with only flour or only eggs. You need different ingredients in different proportions. And without those proportions (as much flour as eggs as salt) your pie won't be edible, any more than your training will be successful. A goal-oriented runner who wants to achieve something will have to alternate.
Stress
Exercise creates stress in the body. Your body makes no difference between stress from work, emotions or training. Stress is stress and the stress response causes the production of cortisol, which puts the body in a flight or fight response. That is not a problem during a training, you need the tension in your muscles, increased heart rate and increased breathing rhythm to perform, but after the training you have to give the body enough time to recover.
Stress-adaptation cycle
This is clearly visible in the images below. The first picture (4) shows that after an intensive training the body is tired and weak. Through a recovery period, the body improves, adaptation, to a level that is above the level of the “base level”, the level you started at before you started your training. If you start training again, you will get better and stronger.
However, if you take too little recovery time in relation to the intensity of your training (image 2, (4)), the recovery process is not yet complete and you break down more than you can build up. The risk of injury then increases and if this is the case over a longer period of time, it is referred to as overtraining.
The higher the intensity of your training, the more recovery time is needed. For a training in zone 1 this is an average of 24-36 hours, for a training in zone 3 this can be up to 72 hours. So if I train every other day in zone 3, I am mainly breaking down my body instead of building it up, while building up is the actual goal of training.
Through a recovery period, the body improves, adaptation, to a level that is above the level of the “base level”
Summary
In this first part of this blog we looked at which zones there are, how are they divided and what is the function of each zone? We also looked at how you know that you train in a certain zone and at the relationship between the zones and the stress-adaptation cycle.
In part two, we'll take a closer look at how much time you should train in each zone to get the most effect from your workout, and see what the science says about this. We also see how top athletes convert this into their training.
Do you need help with your own training, to organize it more efficiently? Then don't hesitate and contact me, then we can see if I can help you with this in a non-binding conversation
Sources
1. Wikipedia. Exercise Intensity. Wikipedia. [Online] 9 November 2021, at 15:01 (UTC). [Citaat van: 18 Augustus 2022.] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise_intensity.
2. Topsport en talentontwikkeling Nederlandse Triatlon Bond. Trainingszones zoals zij gebruikt worden binnen de NTB. Triatlonbond. [Online] [Citaat van: 18 Augustus 2022.] https://assets.triathlonbond.nl/app/assets/download-kennisbank-trainers-mop-gebruik-trainingszones-binnen-de-ntb.pdf.
3. Cerezuela-Espejo, Víctor , et al. The Relationship Between Lactate and Ventilatory Thresholds in Runners: Validity and Reliability of Exercise Test Performance Parameters. Front. Physiol. 2018.
4. Soligard, Torbjørn , et al. How much is too much? (Part 1) International Olympic Committee consensus statement on load in sport and risk of injury. British Journal of Sports Medicine . 2016, pp. 1030-1041.
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