Zone 2 Exercise
If you have been following any health or wellness experts out there in the last few years you are probably well aware of the high intensity interval training circuits that are beneficial for weight loss and conditioning and that when mixed with strength training, whether with body weight resistance or dumbbells, the key to boosting muscle and building your metabolic fat burning machine can be found. But what about the cardio? Cardiovascular exercise is still important for your cardiovascular health, and it is abundantly clear that some is better than none but how much? Many of us are under the impression that all out cardio like running or biking at high speed is what is best for us. However, newer research is showing that this might not give us the best “bang for our buck.” For those who are interested in improving their cardiovascular outcomes with efficiency and efficacy, there is something that can help you reap the exercise perks without wiping yourself out and it’s called Zone 2 exercise.
Zone 2 exercise is more of a slow and steady cardiovascular exercise that can vary a little for everyone. Basically, zone 2 is when your heart rate is between 60% and 70% of your overall maximum heart rate. It could be running, cycling, walking, swimming, or anything you can do at a pace that keeps your heart rate in this “zone”. Most research points to getting at least 20-30 minutes of this 5 days per week or more to maximize health benefits. Unlike all out cardio effort that most of us have applied into practice in the past, this will be a speed that you could potentially do for a long time if needed, which makes this form of exercise more achievable for more people. Many experts believe that this is actually the best form of exercise for optimal overall health outcomes.
Zone 2 gives you all the health benefits of exercise such as improving the efficiency of your cardiac function, lowering risk for chronic disease, and reducing blood pressure but also will help with metabolic flexibility and improve insulin sensitivity. This is part of why walking after a big meal can help to slow and reduce blood sugar spikes. It increases the number of mitochondria (powerhouses of the cell that convert glucose and fats into ATP, the chemical used by cells for energy), and improves overall oxygen capacity. According to the CDC, exercising for 150 minutes a week in zone two is associated with reduced risk for heart disease, diabetes, and certain cancers. Zone 2 exercise, like all cardiovascular exercise, improves VO2 Max (the maximum oxygen consumption an individual can use during intense exercise and a strong indicator of fitness and cardiovascular health). In fact, one study from 2018 in the Journal of the American Medical Association that looked that more than 120,000 people found that those with a higher VO2 Max had lower all-cause mortality and lived longer.
So how do you determine if you're exercising in Zone 2? There are a few different ways. First, is perceived exertion. This is a rough estimate based on a scale where 0 is no exertion at all and 10 is maximum. Zone 2 should be around an exertion level of 3-4. Another method is to use a fitness tracker or watch such as an Apple watch or Garmin like device that has a heart rate monitor and determines your maximum heart rate and then do the math to figure out your heart rate at Zone 2 by calculating 60%-70% of your maximum heart rate. Some fitness trackers will even tell you which zone you are in although this is often based on an age formula which is not quite as accurate. Another rough guide and maybe the easiest way to get quick answers is something called the “talk test”. The talk test is when you say a 15-word sentence out loud. The goal is to start your exercise when this sentence is easy to say and slowly increase effort until it cannot be said without slowing down or having to catch your breath. Once you reach this point, check your heart rate and pace and that is your Zone 2.
As you get in better physical shape, the effort required to reach Zone 2 will change and become a bit more challenging. You may have to walk a bit faster to reach your zone two heart rate, however the heart rate number will mostly remain the same. What is unlikely to remain the same however is your healthspan and overall health outcomes which are sure to improve. To learn more about how you can optimize your health and reduce your risk for chronic disease, follow me on Instagram or subscribe for free at the bottom of any of my website pages (thehealthandwellnessnp.com) to receive weekly blog posts and upcoming exciting news and information. Together, let’s transform your health!