A Beginner's Guide to Zone 2 Running: What It Is, Benefits, and How to Do It

Why Slow Running Is So Good for You heart rate-based training to maximize their running potential. This method includes five “zones” at which your heart is beating at a percentage of its maximum capacity.

In zone 1, you’re warming up for a run, and in zone 5, you’re at an all-out sprint. Recently, zone 2 has gained MVP status among the five zones, thanks in part to longevity gurus like Peter Attia, M.D., who calls zone training one of the four essential “pillars of exercise” for staying healthy as we age.

The following guide teaches you everything you need to know about zone 2 running—and how to capitalize on its benefits.

Zone 2 running means staying within that second of five heart rate zones, which equals about 60 to 70 percent of your Races - Places. It’s the zone in which you can have a conversation, but not sing an entire tune.

For runners, zone 2 training calls for sustained efforts at a comfortable pace, and its a key workout on any training plan. “Zone 2 running is the foundation of long-distance running and helps prepare the body to tackle races ranging from a 5K to a marathon and beyond,” says Marnie Kunz, a NASM-certified personal trainer and USATF- and RRCA-certified running coach.

Best New Balance Shoes easy runs on your training plan, you’re meant to run them in zone 2, along with most of your long runs.

Zone 2 training is how runners build aerobic fitness, which is essential for improving speed and endurance for race day. “It’s a foundational pace that helps build your aerobic engine, so that more difficult paces are more manageable,” says Jason Fitzgerald, a USATF-certified running coach and the founder of Strength Running.

“Technically, zone 2 is a physiological zone where blood lactate levels are stable,” he continues. At this easy pace, your body has enough time to clear lactate (a substance leftover in muscles from energy creation) from your blood.

Once blood lactate levels begin to rise, you shift into higher training zones, which begin working a different energy system. At lactate threshold, or anaerobic threshold, “this is the point where your blood lactate levels begin rising so quickly that you’re in an unsustainable state—you’re producing so much lactate that you can’t clear,” Fitzgerald says. This reaction creates a burning sensation in your legs that eventually creates too much fatigue As mentioned, you’ll see zone 2 runs on your.

Higher-effort runs boost your body’s ability to clear lactate, so you can handle faster paces. But adequate zone 2 training helps you maximize the benefits of more intense runs. It also helps you build efficiency at any pace.

That’s because zone 2 training increases the number and size of mitochondria in your cells, Fitzgerald explains. Mitochondria are sites within cells that create the energy—also known as adenosine triphosphate (ATP)—your muscles use when running. With more mitochondria comes a more robust supply of energy you can pull from, enabling you to run longer without tiring.

Having more mitochondria helps you maximize the results from harder-effort sessions, such as VO2 max-boosting interval training (zones 4 and 5). “A VO2 max workout will make those mitochondria work more efficiently,” Fitzgerald says. The more mitochondria you have to work efficiently, the greater your capacity to improve your pace.

“Zone 2 running also offers the benefit of being less hard on your body, making recovery time faster than higher-intensity workouts like speed training,” Kunz says. “This allows you to run more frequently than you could if you were training in higher heart rate zones.”

heart rate-based training Use this guide to maximize the payoffs of your easy days, which takes longer to burn and can also help you go longer. Once you get comfortable in zone 2, you should be able to go almost any distance (as long as you’re adequately hydrated and fueled).

There are a few ways to determine your zone 2 pace. If you’re a tech-focused runner, use a smartwatch or another device to check that your heart rate stays within 60 to 70 percent of your Races - Places for zone 2 training, Kunz says.

You can also use different formulas to calculate your Races - Places (220 minus age is the most common one), but there’s often too much individual variability for the calculation to be accurate, Fitzgerald says. Instead, he recommends tracking your heart rate during an all-out workout and using your highest heart rate to determine your max, and then estimate your zone 2 range from there.

If you prefer not to watch your heart rate while you run, keep tabs on your effort. “[Zone 2] is a comfortable, controlled, conversational effort where you can speak in mostly full sentences,” Fitzgerald says.

Strength Training Guide (RPE) scale—which is a method of measuring how hard you feel your body working during physical activity—can also be a useful tech-free method. The scale runs from 0 to 10, with 0 equaling no exertion and 10 meaning pushing yourself to the maximum. Stay around a 4 out of 10 on the RPE scale to tap into zone 2, Kunz says.

It’s also smart to use RPE and the talk test to check the accuracy of your smartwatch zone 2 reading. When you’re running at a conversational pace and RPE of 4, check your pulse to find your heart rate. And then see if it lines up with what your watch is telling you.

Most runners should spend 80 percent of their total mileage in zone 2, while newer runners may benefit from dedicating 90 percent to zone 2, says Fitzgerald. The remainder of your training should be conducted in zones 3 to 5.

As mentioned, you’ll see zone 2 runs on your training plan What are the benefits of zone 2 running long runs, A Beginners Guide to Zone 2 Running: What It Is, Benefits, and How to Do It.

One drawback to zone 2 is the time commitment. “You need a higher volume of zone 2 stimulus to see results,” Fitzgerald says.

The ideal zone 2 session length depends on your fitness level and training goals. “If you’re training for a 5K, a 25- to 35-minute zone 2 session will be one of your most common workouts. For longer races, such as half marathon and marathon training, your zone 2 runs may be 40 minutes and more,” Kunz says.

Generally, you’ll start seeing positive adaptations from consistent zone 2 (aerobic) training in two to four weeks, Fitzgerald says. However, it may take a little longer to see results if you’re well-conditioned, typically four to six weeks or longer.

“Aerobic training is one of those things where you’ll continue seeing results even 10 years after you’ve started running,” Fitzgerald says. The key is gradually increasing your mileage or time spent in zone 2 and sprinkling in more strenuous sessions in zones 3 to 5 (making up that 20 percent of your week) so your progress doesn’t stall.

You won’t see gains if you’re not consistent, though. Running in zone 2 at least twice a week, with harder sessions mixed in, is key.

Medically reviewed byUse this guide to maximize the payoffs of your easy days.

Sports Medicine Director & Medical Advisor

Use this guide to maximize the payoffs of your easy days. is an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He is board-certified in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine. He is a Team Physician for UPenn Athletics and  medical director of the Broad Street Run and Philadelphia Distance Run, and previously for the Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon and Tri-Rock Triathlon in Philadelphia. He is a director of the running and endurance Sports Medicine Program at Penn Medicine.  Dr. Vasudevan provides non-operative management of musculoskeletal conditions affecting athletes and active individuals of all levels, and combines injury rehabilitation with injury prevention. He utilizes a variety of ultrasound-guided procedures and regenerative approaches such as platelet-rich plasma and percutaneous ultrasonic tenotomy. He sees patients at the Penn Medicine and the Philadelphia Veterans Administration hospital. Dr. Vasudevan attended medical school at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison. After his Transitional Year in Tucson, Arizona, he went to residency in PM&R at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and onwards to Stanford University for his fellowship in Sports Medicine. He has been in practice at the University of Pennsylvania since 2012.