Timing Protocol
What researchers say about when, how and with what to take zone 2 exercise, and how strong the evidence is.
The verdict on Zone 2 Exercise overall
Strong consensus for
Zone 2 exercise is worth doing.
10 sources: 8 positive, 2 partly
Short answer
Sessions should last at least 45 minutes to reach metabolic steady state (Peter Attia). Beginners start at 20-30 minutes and build up. After 8-12 weeks, add sessions before adding length. Do cardio before strength in the same session to protect strength quality. Fasted Zone 2 may add mitochondrial adaptations, though the benefits are subtle (Andy Galpin, on FoundMyFitness).
One verdict, worked out from every counted mention. One dot is one source: a researcher or a study. Tap a dot to see its receipt.
positive partly neutral negative Each researcher and each study counts once per claim, however often they come up.
Doing Zone 2 fasted improves mitochondrial adaptations.
No counted mention yet.
Researchers say
No researcher counted yet.
Studies show
No study counted yet.
Built from every credited researcher and cited study on each claim.
Zone 2 exercise is worth doing.
Iñigo San-Millán, 2 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on The Drive, at 2:01:17 · positive
“you can accomplish very important matter Cal adaptations and very important um um metabolic adaptations by exercising one”
on The Drive, at 02:02 · positive
“this is the exercise intensity that um um achieves or stimulates that mitochondrial function”
Peter Attia, 15 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on The Drive, at 02:33 · positive
“I want to spend at least 3 hours a week in this Zone”
on The Drive, at 01:48 · positive
“most people spend too much time there and not enough time in zone 2”
on FoundMyFitness, at 3:49:21 · positive
“I'm still generally doing you know 4 hours of Zone 2 a week”
on FoundMyFitness, at 1:57:05 · positive
“it's 8020 80% of that will be Zone 2 20% of that will be V2 Max”
on The Drive, at 02:28 · positive
“i don't think you can do too much zone two frankly”
on The Drive, at 03:34 · positive
“i think that using both of these tools is optimal”
on The Drive, at 31:55 · positive
“I like to really start with Base building”
on The Drive, at 20:17 · positive
“i think zone 2 would definitely play a role in that”
on The Drive, at 29:19 · positive
“i notice that after a zone 2 my carbohydrate tolerance is really at its highest”
on The Drive, at 02:59 · positive
“it's my belief that this is the most important place to be training your mitochondria”
on The Drive, at 05:11 · positive
“for my patients i believe that three hours should be the target”
on The Drive, at 06:25 · positive
“certainly i would say you know striving to have as much time as you can is is reasonable”
on The Drive, at 09:56 · positive
“the more zone two you do the better you are able to do both glucose pardon me insulin sensitive”
on The Drive, at 11:46 · positive
“as we get older even certainly at my age”
on The Drive, at 14:05 · positive
“why should i do this instead of hit is a false equivalency right i would say instead think why can't i do both”
Dr. Richard Johnson, on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 50:12
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 50:12 →“you have to like do it like like 30 to 60 minutes of what we call zone 2 exercise”
Mark Hyman, 2 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 33:01 · positive
“at least about 150 minutes a week can help mitigate the effects of being sedentary”
on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 07:00 · positive
“you need to do both cardio right like zone two training”
George Papanicolaou, on The Dr. Hyman Show, at 27:44
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 27:44 →“zone two zone two is basically 60 to 70% of your maximal heart rate”
Vonda Wright, on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 1:19:04
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:19:04 →“80% of the time I am in lower heart rate base training heart rate zone which is very metabolically efficient.”
Brady Homer, 2 mentions on this claim
Positive Video
on FoundMyFitness, at 26:21 · positive
“that zone two train good for kind of building uh your aerobic base”
on FoundMyFitness, at 39:18 · positive
“you're not ruining your Zone 2 session by doing the hit at the end of it because you've already gained the benefits”
Bryan Johnson, on Bryan Johnson's channel, at 00:16
Positive Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 00:16 →“I'm trying to achieve being in zone 2 through four for my heart rate roughly 4 and 1 half hours per week”
Louisa Nicola, on The Diary Of A CEO, at 28:09
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 28:09 →“If you have time left over, then you can work in zone 2. Now, zone 2 is great.”
Dr. Stacy Sims, on Rangan Chatterjee's channel, at 1:40:20
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 1:40:20 →“It works well for men. Men should spend time doing it.”
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You know when to take Zone 2 Exercise. A free account opens the interaction warnings for your whole stack. Pro adds chat about your own situation, drawn from 3,700+ hours of recorded interviews with 380 researchers and doctors, plus 48,500+ research studies.
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