The Zone Offense
Weeks five through eight
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| The Zone Offense | ||||||||
| Zone 1 (z-1): Recovery 60 percent or less of your MHR |
Zone 2 (z-2): Aerobic 60-75 percent of your MHR |
Zone 3 (z-3): Lactate Threshold 75-90 percent or less of your MHR |
Zone 4 (z-4): Anaerobic 90-100 percent of you MHR |
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| MON. | TUES. | WED. | THURS. | FRI. | |
| (5 WEEK |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 30 to 35 minutes in Z-1. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 40 to 50 minutes in Z-1. |
STRENGTH One set of 10-12 reps: Group One exercises (next page). One set of 25 reps: Group Two exercises (next page). Finish with month one’s stretch routine. |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 35 to 40 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 45 to 55 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH One set of 10-12 reps: Group One exercises (next page). One set of 25 reps: Group Two exercises (next page). Finish with month one’s stretch routine. |
ENDURANCE 30 minutes running or 50 minutes cycling in Z-2. After ten minute intervals in Z-3 of three, five, and three minutes repspectively, with one-minute recovery in Z-2 between each. |
| (6 WEEK |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 30 to 35 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 40 to 45 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH One set of 10-12 reps: Group One exercises (next page). One set of 25 reps: Group Two exercises (next page). Finish with month one’s stretch routine. |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 35 to 40 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 45 to 55 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH One set of 10-12 reps: Group One exercises (next page). One set of 25 reps: Group Two exercises (next page). Finish with month one’s stretch routine. |
ENDURANCE 30 minutes running or 50 minutes cycling in Z-2. After ten minutes warming up, add three intervals in Z-3 of three, five, and three minutes respectively, with one-minute recovery in Z-2 between each. |
| (7 WEEK |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 40-45 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 50-60 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH Same as week 5 and 6, with the following optional changes: Do dumbbell pullovers sitting on a stability ball and bent-over rows on one foot. |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 45-50 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 55-65 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH Same as week 5 and 6, with the following optional changes: Do dumbbell pullovers sitting on a stability ball and bent-over rows on one foot. |
ENDURANCE 40 minutes running or 60 minutes cycling in Z-2. After ten minutes, add three intervals in Z-3 of five, eight, and five minutes respectively, with a one-minute recovery in Z-2 between each interval. |
| (8 WEEK |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 25-30 minutes in Z-2 or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 35-45 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH Same as week 5 and 6, with the following optional changes: Do dumbbell pullovers sitting on a stability ball and bent-over rows on one foot. |
ENDURANCE Running, stair machine, or hiking: 30-35 minutes in Z-2. or Cycling, rowing, or swimming: 40-50 minutes in Z-2. |
STRENGTH Same as week 5 and 6, with the following optional changes: Do dumbbell pullovers sitting on a stability ball and bent-over rows on one foot. |
BENCHMARK TEST On a flat route (ideally a track) after a warm-up, run one mile at five beats below the lactate threshold (LT) you determined last month. Mark your time. If you’ve raised your lactate threshold, this run will be faster than last month’s. Congratulations. |