Zone 2 endurance training helps build aerobic resilience and supports long-term metabolic health. For most athletes, especially masters, it's best to anchor your weekly routine with consistent, easy endurance rides and add occasional higher-intensity sessions for balance. Consistency is more effective than sporadic big rides and mixing easy volume with some intensity leads to better durability and performance.

In endurance cycling, two numbers do most of the heavy lifting: FTP—the hardest steady power you can sustain for roughly an hour—and VO₂max—the size of your aerobic “engine.” Together, they describe both your day-to-day sustainable pace and your top-end aerobic ceiling. For master’s athletes, both remain highly trainable when intensity is targeted and recovery is respected, and newer power‑duration and critical power approaches can provide a more reliable picture than any single test effort.