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Podcast 285: Paul Laursen: How to Improve Your Health with Zone 2 Training

After a number of inquiries about heart rate zones and the best ways to train, we brought back a very popular episode featuring WHOOP Global Head of Human Performance, Principal Scientist, Kristen Holmes and endurance coach Paul Laursen.

Paul is a Zone 2 cardio expert and has competed in 17 Ironman triathlons. He is the Co-Founder and CEO of HIIT Science and co-host of the Training Science Podcast. He’s also published over 150 scientific manuscripts – and had his work cited more than 15,00 times.

Listen on:

Kristen and Paul discuss how Paul got started training and teaching, the relationship between the cardiovascular system and the nervous system, creating a weekly program with cardio zones, Paul’s paper on metabolism and burning fat, training for longevity and VO2 max, and how Paul thinks about sleep with his athletes.

Episode Chapters

  • 3:05 - 6:05 How Paul got started training and teaching
  • 6:13 - 10:10 The relationship between the cardiovascular system and nervous system
  • 10:48 - 24:51 Defining the different training zones
  • 25:38 - 28:06 Creating a weekly program with cardio zones
  • 29:08 - 34:43 Staying balanced with your training
  • 35:17 - 36:57 Autonomic Recovery and Zone 2 as an active recovery tool
  • 36:57 - 41:34 How Zone 2 can be linked to hormone levels
  • 41:51 - 47:33 Paul’s paper on metabolism and burning fat
  • 47:49 - 50:27 The best medium for Zone 2 training
  • 50:51 - 52:29 Training for longevity and VO2 max
  • 52:38 - 55:39 How Paul thinks about sleep with his athletes

Research Links

Paul's Website

Paul’s Twitter

HIIT Science