This is why I did 1 day intensity as part of my 100hrs z2 block (7 weeks) prior to Xmas. I would recommend this to others to avoid feeling flat coming out the other end. Volume works absolutely, but you need to keep a bit of other stimulus in the mix I feel at the same time.
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Donât know about workouts above FTP but after 5 weeks of 60-63% FTP rides (13-16h/week), I went SweetSpot PL 2.8 â 9.2 in 2 workouts 
Probably could have done it in single session but did not expect such improvement 
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Yep, the gains off pretty much pure z2 work for me I could not believe. I came out 10w and 10min off peak power and TTE from previous season. The 1 day intensity I referred to was very sporadic in the form of a weekly Zwift ZRL race so no consecutive TiZ or anything just fly and die type stuff to keep it fun etc.
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How has it helped/hurt?
I wasnât racing competitively, just taking part in mass participation events. My endurance was excellent, so speed on the flatter courses made it easy to keep up (drafting others).
Running was all about holding a set pace. And thatâs about it⌠nothing else benefitted.
The âgoalâ was to get through the full year without missing a day, so staying fresh(ish) was important.
Hereâs the PMC. The big week in October was a 4-day tour (700km), so a rather big overload. And then the Festive500 at the end of the year also gave the fitness (CTL) a boost.
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How did it help?
- 278 hours (out of 325) of endurance added to the hundreds of hours each year.
- Second half of 2019 up to covid lockdown was fantastic.
- It was fun
- Doing it again this year, but not the same way. Iâm still doing 30-mins or more every day, but walking has been included on the very easy days when I would normally rest. So far, so good.
How has it hurt?
- Racing in 2018 wasnât competitive
- Racing in early 2019 also suffered because of the lack of high intensity training
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As poor second bests, your low resolution chart shows lots of Z1/2 over the years
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I was thinking more in the line of how hard it is (for me at least) to stay in Z2 outside, with the quite rolling landscape i have around here, and stops for traffic.
Low gearing is the key, stops for traffic a non issue.
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Thanks! I did a 2 to 3 month block leading into a 70.3 ironman of almost exclusively upper zone 2 training last year. I PRâd. I felt like it could surge up hills and pass perfectly fine, but a longer distance triathlon doesnât really have hard, punchy efforts. I donât think that style of training would work the same for shorter Olympic or sprint triathlon races.
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Thanks for the feedback. After reading everyoneâs comments for commonality I think Iâll do the following for March:
Monday: Off
Tuesday: ISM Zone2
Wednesday: Zone 2
Thursday: ISM Zone 2
Friday: Zone 2
Saturday: Intensity, either Vo2 or Threshold
Sunday: Zone 2
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@jmlowery3489 , If I may ask, - whatâs the difference between ISM Zone 2 and Zone 2?
That looks like a solid plan imho, should be good for you in a holistic manner, not just physical. Best of luck to you, and please do let us know how it goes.
Well I guess itâs more up to me not being good enough on the bike then, at sticking to a set power. Hopefully that skill will develop over time as I would LOVE to do all (or at least most of) my rides outdoors.
And that he was coming back to the level he was at before, not that long ago.
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Indeed, as Jesse himself points out in the video, at around 7:40.
And also, in regards to the title of this thread, âTaking a month and riding zone 2 every day?â it should be mentioned that he (Jesse) did NOT do just Zone 2 riding every day for the first 10 weeks. He added a couple of hard sessions every week as well, still keeping his overall training polarized though.
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Yes, lots of z1, not so much z2. Only about 1 to 1.5 hours a week of z2 at her peak. Less than 10% of endurance work.
Your notion about poor second bests is not based on the evidence we have from biopsies collected during intervention trials. High intensity is a very potent stimulus towards aerobic metabolism of carbohydrates.
As was mentioned by crosshair, it does not replace specificity or periodization.
Do share your peer reviewed research paper outputs on these intervention studies across Z1 to Z5.
Cheers
This is a review article, so just the door to the rabbit hole. You can always read the referenced articles as well.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-0838.2010.01184.x
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Variation on a thene:
âWhile the potent influence that a short-term dose of high-intensity interval training has on intense and prolonged endurance performance is well known,â
Short term dose, and the influence measured was on 150% of PPO. Great if you want to develop your sprint, says nothing about improving your endurance. Not targeting the same abilities as the Z1/2 sessions and itâs only short term not long term.
âA polarized approach to training, whereby âź75% of total training volume is performed at low intensities, and 10â15% is performed at very high intensities, has been suggested as an optimal training intensity distribution for elite athletes who perform intense exercise eventsâ
Suggests Polarised the way to go
â Nevertheless, the synthesis of this information reveals a pattern highlighting the importance of applying periods of both high-intensity training and high-volume training at the appropriate time in a training program, in order to elicit an optimal intense exercise performance. â
Just what the OP is proposing doing