To not exercise

[Katywester]

I was reading another thread about a woman who didn't enjoy showering and the questions asking her 'don't you exercise' surprised me as if it was a given that everyone exercised!
Am I the minority mum of three full time work etc that just can't fit in exercise other than a quick dog walk every other day?

I had no idea what zone 5 cardio was so just looked it up.
90-100% of your max heart rate! I assume PP means a cardio session that includes a bit of zone 5, not a whole session.
Surely that's only really beneficial for athletes, competitive sports people who are in training.

Well anyone who is giving it a proper go at ParkRun will likely be in zone 5 the whole way round (unless there is a long downhill section). It’s not just competitive athletes. Unless you have a cardiac condition maxing your HR for extended periods is absolutely fine.

I disagree @Pharazon Maximum HR couldn’t be sustained for a whole Park Run, unless you’re completing it in less than 5 minutes! 90-100% HR is for short bursts of very high intensity, eg HIIT, sprinting, continuous burpees etc. It’s just not possible to sustain that for long periods- even for athletes. If you are able to sustain the effort over a longer period, then you can’t possibly be at your MHR.

Hmmm, maybe I've looked it up incorrectly.
I don't think running for 20 mins with your HR at 90-100% is either sustainable or wise. You're pushing your body to its absolute limit, something that can only be maintained for very short bursts.

I'd say the zone below for a 5K would be ideal, with a short zone 5 at the end.

What's the source of your information?

I am not in zone 5 when I work out and I wouldn’t try to be. I think this would increase my risk of injury too much. I’m not sure it’s recommended to do a 5k in zone 5? Maybe up a hill but not 30 mins. I’ve never seen it recommended to do zone 5 for long periods

Park Run would be more like zones 3 and 4, hopefully with some short bursts of zone 5

I don’t exercise at all. I hate it.

It's not about time. It's about the fact that exercise is unutterably tedious. I don't do it, and I'm much happier on the sofa with a book!

Personal experience - my HRmax is 165 (I'm very old) and if I'm working at threshold (e.g. at my FTP when cycling, or running a 5k) I will be sitting at around 150 (cycling) to 155 (running).

We're not talking about sustaining HRmax for the duration of a 5k though are we? Z5 is 90-100% of HRmax. If you are working at or just above your aerobic threshold (normal for a 5k) it's normal to be in that band. Paradoxically, you are unlikely to get into it on short anaerobic efforts like sprinting (ok, maybe on the 400, or HIIT) - they aren't long enough.

My Z5 HR is 148-165 and I can easily sit at 150 or so for the 20 or so minutes it takes to get round a ParkRun. I just went back and checked some data from (bike) races and found one where I spent 1hr03m at 155-168 (my HRmax was higher at the time) and 34m at 143-154.

Have you worked out your max HR from a field test or an equation?
Threshold is not the same as zone 5.
Do some Googling - it's not possible to run a 5K at zone 5.

When you say you are old, what do you mean?
I am 55 and don't consider myself old, so I've taken you to be 60.
A 60 yo running a 20 min pr is elite. You clearly know your own fitness and are doing well. Edited to say 20 mins as a female.

I stand by saying most people cannot not should not run 5K in zone 5.

I do some weights and some Pilates whilst watching Corrie. I follow Sally Gunnell and just do some basic routines. Also save Reels from FB and find them really useful in work for a quick couple of minutes. My weights and Pilates ball come from Amazon, the yoga mats been hanging around for years. But I’m watching telly whilst doing it.
i do swim twice a week in the evenings but only if I fancy it and not on Corrie nights. About 30 lengths of snailpace breaststroke.

Field test: hill sprints for running and ramp test on the bike. I do the ramp test every 6 weeks.

TBH, I don't put a great deal of stead in HR zones as I mostly use PE (running) and power zones (cycling), but averaging 90% of HRmax is for a 5K is perfectly normal and I'm surprised that people are arguing it is not.

Other runners appear to agree: https://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=9623425

So for the 34 min ride you have mentioned- you were at 143-148 for some of that- which is Zone 4. Doubtless you were in Zone 5 for some of the ride- but not 34 minutes.

I have a PT Diploma but because it was a while ago and I might be a bit rusty, I just double-checked a few different online sources. I checked an indoor cycling organisation, a running website and the Polar website- ALL say that even elite athletes are very unlikely to sustain Zone 5 for longer than 8 minutes, and for the rest of us mere mortals, it’s going to be significantly less than that.

So either you are underestimating how much of that 34 minute bike ride was actually spent in Zone 4; or your MHR is higher than you think it is (maybe the formula isn’t accurate for you); or whatever you’re using to monitor your HR during exercise is inaccurate, or….you are a bit superhuman!

I exercise as part of my lifestyle, started with Jillian Micheals when the kids were young and now I am able to go to the gym, it would feel strange for me not to. I don’t actually know that many people who exercise regularly though. I have three sisters and none of them do, none of my friends do, few of my colleagues.

'I hate it'

You're given one body in life and you have the choice to look after it or not.

Zone 5 for 6 or 7 minutes as part of a workout with other zones. The Zone 5 section is for brain health, the fight against dementia.

How do you get to this if you can't do impact or swimming?

I didn't know that! So that end of race bit when my eyeballs are on stalks and I’m questioning my life choices, is all good for my brain. Good to know.

I just checked - I spent 6 mins of a 10 mile race in zone 5. About 6% of the race. Sounds about right.

I spent 6 mins of a 10 mile race in zone 5. About 6% of the race. Sounds about right

Completely agree. Those who think they're spending a whole 5k at level 5 clearly haven't got their HR zones right.

I've just checked my last 10k, in which I ran a PB of just over 40 mins. I spent around 10% of that in zone 5, so not even a mile.

That's a great time - well done!
I'm off for a 5 mile run now. None of it should be zone 5 (unless I get giddy with excitement coming down the hill!)

Just back. No zone 5! It was about 60:30 zone 3 and 4 with a bit of 1 and 2 as I eased into things. That sounds about right for a training run using the first bit as a warm up. Ease in, then middle to hardish effort.

Really enjoying all the talk about zones!