Everyone’s telling you that you should run in Zone 2, but here’s why that’s terrible advice if you’re a beginner runner—and what you should do instead.
If you’re just starting your running journey and feeling frustrated that you can’t seem to stay in Zone 2 no matter how slow you go, I want you to know: you’re not broken, and there’s nothing wrong with you. The problem isn’t you—it’s the advice you’re getting.
Let me break down why running in zones as a beginner runner is actually hurting you more than it’s helping you, and what to focus on instead.
If you’re unfamiliar with running zones, people are typically talking about a five-zone running model:
You can relate these zones back to your heart rate because your heart rate is an indirect measure of how hard you’re working during cardiovascular exercise.
The Issue: While everybody has a Zone 2, 3, 4, or 5, the issue when you’re a beginner is that your Zone 2 is really small.
This means that sometimes as soon as you start exercising, running, or even running a little bit faster than walking pace, your heart rate immediately jumps into Zone 3 or 4. That Zone 2 space is so small that any stress or stimulus from cardiovascular activity like running immediately shifts you into the higher heart rate zones.
Does that mean you’re doomed? That your fitness is hopeless if you can’t stay in Zone 2?
Absolutely not.
Your heart rate is probably going to be higher during your running efforts and paces while you start to get better at the skill of running. And that’s completely normal.
As a beginner runner, your main goal with running is to:
Over time, as you gain that fitness and get better at running, you’ll notice that your heart rate at whatever effort or pace you’re running will start to slowly drop down.
As you continue to gain fitness, you’ll start to improve and widen that Zone 2 and build more of what we call an aerobic base. You’ll get better at using oxygen while you’re exercising to turn it into energy metabolism. Your body won’t have to work as hard, and your heart rate won’t have to be as high to do the same amount of work, output, pace, or effort when you’re running.
There may come a time long-term with your running where you might need to intentionally spend more time running in Zone 2, truly running easy, or doing something like run-walk to improve that or get better at exercising at a lower heart rate.
But if you’re just beginning, I really want to encourage you to ignore your running zones.
That doesn’t mean they don’t exist. It doesn’t mean they don’t matter. But for most of you, you’re either:
You just need to give your body time to adapt. Unfortunately, aerobic exercise adaptations like running just take a long, long time for our body to respond to. And that’s okay. That doesn’t mean you’re broken. It means your body’s adapting.
RPE is a tool in exercise science and coaching that’s essentially a scale of 1 through 10 where you rate how hard an effort was.
When you first start running, the idea of running easy might seem impossible. All of your runs might feel like a 6, 7, or even 8 out of 10 because running is hard when you start—and that’s totally normal.
But the goal when you’re running easy or doing your easy runs should be to try to get that RPE lower. Aim for maybe a 5, 4, or 3 effort out of 10—making it truly easy.
Key Focus: The biggest thing you can focus on as a beginner runner is not the perfect pace, effort, or heart rate zone—it’s trying to make running itself feel easier or slowing down to where it feels more sustainable.
You don’t need to be redlining, sprinting, or running super hard on all your runs. Even if your heart rate is higher, try to make your effort lower. Using RPE can be really helpful for this.
Keep in mind that if you’re totally new and running is hard, it might be okay that your RPE is a little higher for a bit. It will get easier over time. Try to aim for that 3-5 range if you can, or even up to 6 as you get started—just try to keep it sustainable so you can keep going.
When we think about what Zone 2 actually is physiologically, it’s this threshold in your body where you start to need to breathe more rapidly (known as the ventilatory threshold) or you start to accumulate more lactate in your blood, which can eventually lead to your lactate threshold (which is between Zone 3 and Zone 4).
From Zone 2 to Zone 3 is this physiological time point where exercise goes from being really easy and aerobic—where oxygen is readily available to meet all the demands of your body—to being just hard enough that it starts to be more fatiguing. You start breathing more rapidly and you notice that your respiration rate starts to increase.
The Talk Test: It helps you indirectly identify, regardless of your heart rate or pace, whether you can have a conversation.
Could you call up a family member or friend on the phone while you’re going for your jog or run? If you’re running with a friend, can you say 15-30 words? Can you lightly sing? Can you nasal breathe with your mouth closed?
Now, I’m a mouth breather, so I know that’s not easy for everyone. But thinking about whether you can hold a conversation is a great tool for asking yourself, “Hey, am I truly going easy enough?”
For beginners, running might be so hard that this is difficult or impossible at first. Maybe you’re not there yet. Maybe you’re just trying to run to run. But eventually, ask yourself: “Can I talk a little bit? Can I hold this conversation? Or am I so out of breath and winded after my intervals or bouts that I need to pull back that effort and intensity a little bit?”
You have a Zone 2, like I mentioned earlier—it’s just smaller. You cross the threshold between Zone 2 and 3 and 4 sooner because you don’t have the fitness there yet.
If you’re a beginner looking to complement or do some cross-training to support your running goals, do more cardio, or specifically work on Zone 2, I encourage you to do this on something like a bike, the elliptical, or incline walking in the gym—or any other mode of cardio where you can pull back your intensity to a lower effort that’s sustainable and actually meets you and stays in your actual Zone 2 effort.
Remember: Being a beginner runner means the most important thing you can be doing is learning to get more comfortable at running.
You’re probably running for maybe a few minutes at a time, doing run-walk intervals, or running what feels impossibly slow. And that’s okay and normal. That doesn’t mean you’re broken or bad. It means you’re learning, trying, and your body is adapting.
I want you to tape your watches. Forget your zones. Don’t look at your heart rate. Don’t obsess over it. Simply focus on getting better at running.
If you need a program that helps you get started in a sustainable way that actually feels realistic, doesn’t burn you out, and doesn’t lead to injuries, pain, and feeling like you’re not made to be a runner, The Lyss Method can help.
We have programs specifically designed for beginner runners:
| Program | Best For |
|---|---|
| Beginner Runner Program | Complete beginners who are just starting their running journey |
| 5K Beginner Program | Ideal if you have a specific 5K goal in mind |
| Base Build Programs | People slightly past the beginner stage who are ready to dial in Zone 2 training |
If you need help figuring out if we’re right for you or finding the program that’s right for your goals, email us anytime at hello@thelyssmethod.com to chat with a coach.
I’m Exercise Physiologist, sports nutritionist, weight lifter, and ultra runner. I am here to bring science to your training in a no-nonsense way. I have helped thousands of women crush big lifting goals, cross race finish lines, and even do both. I’m here to help you do the same!
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