mitochondria and zone 2 training

 

it's true that even after many, many years, despite a steadily decreasing knowledge, i retain (and why wouldn't you!) a deep affection and interest for cell biology and energy metabolism generally.

last year i finally decided to accept that i wanted to change the way i was training on the bike, partly due to a training injury, but mostly because i'm getting older, my body is responding differently and, while i might do the odd race, i really just want to be fit enough to have a decent day out whenever i want to.

initially i was doing a fair amount of zone 3 sessions interspersed with a couple of more intense sessions a week coupled with gym work. then, just as the restrictions were eased and after two years of everyday exposure, along comes covid. naturally it hasn't come alone and i've had some lasting cardiac effects since.

as a result i've eased way back on training (nothing for a month!) with a timely, and immensely fortunate for him, example in sonny colbrelli who, it appears his doctors are now thinking irritated his heart post viral infection. as such it's been zone 2 all the way with one longer ride outside which, although lovely, was a great example of why i should continue to take it easy and train inside.

that said, although zone 2 training at first was astonishingly boring i've found i've got quite into it. i saw great gains with the zone 3 training, a strange degree of remodelling in my legs, but, likely down to incoming covid, i was very tired. with zone 2 i'm able to better listen to a podcast, focus on how my body feels in order to cycle to heart rate and know my power, look at my pedaling technique.

and then i discover that zone 2 training is a thing. not only that tadej pogacar is doing it. this here then is a very long and rambling podcast ostensibly about zone 2 training but which grounds itself thoroughly in cell biology, mentions all manner of energy production processes, and is very interesting re diabetes. it's true that peter attia could've made it shorter by reining in his need to talk about himself and his numbers but, while this can be grating, i think it's just his enthusiasm showing. and inigo san millan is just a wizard!

i'm not going to lie, it goes on. but, for me, this is one of the most interesting podcasts i've ever heard, particularly if you've an interest in the metabolic component of training and specifically if you're a wee bit older and you're loking at some theory upon which to base your practice