By Zencalcy Editorial TeamLast reviewed About us
Turn your functional threshold power into seven training zones, each given as a watt range. The zones follow the widely used Coggan-style model, which expresses each band as a percentage of FTP. Use them to set targets for recovery, endurance, tempo, threshold, and higher intensity sessions.
Turn your FTP into seven training zones in watts.
Z1 recovery under 55% · Z2 endurance 56 to 75% · Z3 tempo 76 to 90% · Z4 threshold 91 to 105% · Z5 VO2max 106 to 120% · Z6 anaerobic 121 to 150% · Z7 neuromuscular over 150% of FTP
Zone boundaries are conventions, not sharp physiological lines, and they assume an up to date FTP. A stale FTP shifts every range, so retest periodically and adjust the numbers.
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| FTP | Your functional threshold power in watts, the anchor for every zone. |
With an FTP of 250 W, Z4 threshold runs from about 228 to 263 W, and Z5 VO2max from about 265 to 300 W. Z1 recovery is anything under about 138 W.
Power zones divide your effort into bands defined as percentages of threshold power, so they scale with fitness. In the widely used Coggan scheme, active recovery sits below about fifty-five percent of FTP, endurance from fifty-six to seventy-five, tempo from seventy-six to ninety, threshold from ninety-one to one hundred and five, and VO2 max from one hundred and six to one hundred and twenty percent.
Above those, anaerobic capacity runs from roughly one hundred and twenty-one to one hundred and fifty percent, and neuromuscular power covers short maximal efforts. Each zone corresponds to a physiological state and to a purpose in training, from recovery to building aerobic base to sharpening race fitness.
Because the boundaries are fractions of FTP, a rider with a higher threshold has higher absolute wattage in every zone. This lets training plans be shared between riders while remaining personal in watts, and it makes it easy to see whether an easy day is genuinely easy or has drifted into a moderate effort.
Zone boundaries are conventions rather than sharp physiological switches, and FTP itself is an estimate with error. Use the zones to organise intensity, but judge hard sessions by how they feel and by whether you recover, rather than treating a single watt boundary as a wall.
Continue with the Cycling Time Calculator, FTP Calculator, or the Gear Inches Calculator — or browse more cycling tools and all sports calculators.
Each zone targets a different intensity and adaptation. Lower zones build endurance and aid recovery, while higher zones stress threshold and above-threshold systems.
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Last reviewed: September 2026. See how we build and check every tool on the about page.
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Content updated: September 2026