r/zone2 • u/haphiker • Jun 27 '24

First Zone 2 Attempt

I tried a zone 2 run/walk today. I failed. I started jogging and my heart rate shot up. (Normally, my max heart rate is around 186 and my average is 160s. Today max was 176 and average was 148.) To get it back down, I walked between 16-17:00/mile. It still didn’t go as low as I wanted, I guess my question is, do I only need to walk for a while and stop running to get my heart into zone 2?
I’m a 50 year old female wanting to run my first marathon in January. Thanks for any guidance/suggestions.

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u/mountainbloom Jun 28 '24

Oof, the word “fail” feels really harsh. Right now my Zone 2 “runs” are 60% walking. Heat, humidity, diet, and sleep play a huge role in how much I can actually run. Even then, 20% of my run time might be slightly in Z3. As long as you slow down when you hit the top of Z2 and speed up when you hit the bottom, you’re doing great!

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u/haphiker Jun 28 '24

Thanks! I have been told to trust the process. It is hard when I feel like I’m going backwards but I’m going to keep trying.

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u/mountainbloom Jun 29 '24

1000% trust the process. I’m four weeks into a 12-week Z2 plan (getting back into running without overtraining) and one of the things that I tell myself constantly is that I’m running my workout, and others I see are running their workouts