Dismal skies and short days make Fall a good time for the cycling enthusiast to reflect on one’s fitness program. Here are some questions for you to consider:
• Are you exceedingly proud of the average speeds of your rides and do you gauge your training progress by the improvement of your average speed from one ride to another?
• Do you find group rides fairly easy, even when the pace picks up, yet you can’t seem to make that final acceleration or stay with the group over the steepest part of the climb?
• Do you have a maximum heart rate of 195, yet you haven’t seen it go above 180 since the season began?
• Does the thought of letting a rider pass you on the bike path make you ill, or do you pride yourself on the fact that no rider has ever passed you on a training ride, even on your recovery days?
• Do you often leave the house with one ride in mind but more often than not find yourself in the middle of the weekday morning world championships?
• Do you find it impossible to imagine that riding at 130 bpm could possibly be anything other than an utter waste of time?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might be suffering from the Zone 3 Syndrome.
“Zone 3” refers to high-level aerobic activity that is approximately 73-80% of your maximum heart rate. Don’t know your maximum heart rate? You need a heart rate monitor.
According to Josh Horowitz’s recent post on PezCycling News, the Zone 3 Syndrome is that rut some of us occaisionally fall into when the exercise is “not hard enough to cause a desired physical adaptation,” but “…is too hard to allow for proper recovery.”
If you aren’t a racer or don’t consider yourself a hammerhead, you are not immune from this trap. If you are one of those commuters who races through the streets of Seattle everyday, it’s likely you are are suffering from Zone 3 Syndrome. I know many riders who don’t consider themselves fast enough or good enough to justify purchasing a heart rate monitor, but when I ride with these folks, we spend the whole time working in Zone 3, which results in a stagnant state of fitness.
The way out of this rut is to incorporate a periodization strategy into your fitness program. The details will depend on your personal fitness goals, and age. The article quoted here is a good starting point, there are tons of resources available Online, and local trainers and coaches can help you to develop a program that meets your specific needs.
Take it easy, hammerhead.
