That all depends on what you want.
Each Zone is understood to offer certain physiological adaptations. Each offers potential benefits to performance. Although not mutually exclusive a rough summary is shown below.
By working in and through the first 3 Zones, less recovery will be required compared with using Zones 4 and 5, which although produce their distinct advantages, do produce the vastly increased risk of injury.
In general terms, the individual would need to work through each Zone to reach the higher echelons of exertion and then back down again before ceasing activity. Metaphorically 'going through the gears'.
However, it is worth noting that there are specific adaptations that occur in the first Zone, which do not occur to the same extent in the other four.
Being guilty, as I certainly was at the beginning of my training, of neglecting this lower intensity area of training is akin to neglecting the pluming. By increasing capillary density we are proving a system to take blood to our muscles and just as importantly a system to remove waste and Lactic Acid when it is produced.
Not working to take advantage of this will hamper recovery following more intense efforts and reduce the ability to perform successive intervals of increased effort. I can vouch for this personally, at the beginning jumping on my bike and just pushing as hard as I could...
It would seem that this can be a common error without a coach or some guidance.
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Enjoy your cycling
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