It's All About Zone 2 Baby! (Part 2)

In my last post, I went over why I started training using heart rate zones based on maximum heart rate. I wanted to build a good solid “base” so I could continue to improve throughout the year and long term. I also wanted to be very efficient at burning fat. In 2013, for both the bike and run, I trained almost exclusively in Zone 2. I was in the process of becoming fat adapted so I did very little speed work. However, looking back, I should have done some interval or speed work.

So what the heck is training zones anyway?

It's All About Zone 2 Baby! (Part 1)

The title of a recent post says it all about my past training methods, Training Like A Dummy... At the time, I did not know any better. I pushed hard each and every session. Over the next two to three years, I improved my training methods. On November 3rd, 2012, I signed up for Ironman Florida. Therefore, I had to figure out the best way to train quickly. I only had one year to go from a nervous newbie triathlete to a confident well-trained triathlete by November 2nd 2013. I wanted to not only survive Ironman Florida training but to also comfortably finish the 140.6 miles on race day. In order to keep this blog post from being overwhelming long, I broke it up into two posts. This post provides a little history as to why I trained in Zone 2. The next post will cover more detailed information about determining heart rate training zones.

Training Like A Dummy...

In my previous post, I mentioned how I landed in the emergency room not long after I completed a 10K road race. It was an expensive lesson on how NOT to train. I learned a ton from the experience and it made me change my training methods. However, it still took a couple of years after the lesson for me to figure out how best to train.

First, a little background about how I only knew to training one way - train hard all of the time.  In mid-2008 at age 42, I started working out at the gym for the first time in my life. I was enjoying the pains (muscle soreness) and seeing the gains I was making from working out several days a week. By the end of 2008 and early 2009, I was starting to" look in shape" due to weight loss and working out. Although I was being told I looked in shape, I did not feel like I was in shape because I would be exhausted after running a mere mile. So I set a goal to be in shape and to feel like I was in shape. Back then I did not train using a heart rate monitor as I do today. I did not know a thing about heart rate training, not even my maximum heart rate.

Hello World!

I created this blog to start documenting the journey I am currently experiencing.  I want to share the lessons, struggles, and surprises I have learned going from being a 6' 1" out-of-shape, overweight, middle age man to a fit endurance freak.  I was 265 pounds in mid-2007. By November 2013, I was racing Ironman Florida at 172 pounds.  Since then, my weight has settled into a range between 180 to 185 pounds; however, I am leaner, stronger, and faster than when I weighed 172!

July 2007

The start of my story is probably not much different than many of you out there.  Each year, I gained a little weight even when I tried to eat healthy -- well, I thought I was eating healthy.  As I gained weight, I always thought I could lose weight easily and achieve the mental picture I always had of myself - lean, toned, and fit. But yet, each year I continued to get fatter and fatter and I always lied to myself saying I was just a little overweight!  I was wearing size 40 and 42 pants and XL or XXL shirts. By the way, I now wear size 34 pants and Medium shirts!

I was unhappy about life in general. Then my 15-year marriage fell apart at the end of 2007. Due to stress and lack of appetite, I quickly lost 20 pounds. I looked in the mirror and was thinking I could quickly and easily achieve the body of my self-image.  Well, I have to say, it took significantly longer than I had anticipated.  Looking back, I like how it panned out since I learned so much during this time. Believe it or not, I still had to adjust my brain. Even though I was working hard to becoming fit and getting toned, I kept acting as if I was that shy overweight guy I had been for so many years!