Originally Posted by
terrymorse
I've heard some claims bandied about (rymes with "Dr. Fan Fill-On") that doing a hard effort will <mumbo jumbo about metabolic triggers or hormones or some other woo woo>, thus reducing the benefit of a low intensity workout.
I think that's silly. I ascribe to the "all roads lead to Rome" school of training, and the only concern with a hard effort is added fatigue, which requires more recovery time.
Yeah I remember that. It makes sense if you are a pro training 20+ hours per week where you really have to manage your harder efforts. But for amateurs I doubt it matters. Most of my zone 2 rides are not 5 hours long like the pros do either. I’m often short of time, so I might ride in zone 2 for an hour or 90 mins and put in some harder efforts toward the end to get more out of the session.