VO2 max might sound a bit like a soft drink, but it’s actually a great way to track your fitness, work out which workouts are working for you and learn if you should be pushing yourself harder or letting your body recover. Whether you’re kicking butt and taking names on the fitness front or just starting out, knowing your VO2 max is a great way to track how fit you are, compared to how fit you want to be.
What is your VO2 max?
Your VO2 max means the maximum volume of oxygen your body can absorb and use during fitness. It’s basically how efficiently your body converts oxygen into energy. The higher your VO2, the more oxygen your body consumes. This means you should be able to generate more energy to work out harder for longer.
How is your VO2 max measured?
There are several different ways to measure your VO2 max, depending on the level of accuracy you’re aiming for. Many smart watches, from brands like Apple and Garmin, offer a VO2 function. This feature calculates your VO2 based on your performance while wearing the watch. There are methods to estimate your VO2 max for yourself, or you can pay to have it taken at high performance running labs.
Is there a VO2 max test?
VO2 max testing can be done in a specialist running lab or testing centre. In this context, you are put through your paces using a stationary bike or treadmill. All the while, you must wear a mask hooked up to a machine that monitors your oxygen consumption. Alternatively, you can test yourself by running a select program on a treadmill whilst wearing a heart rate monitor. Either option involves running at maximum capacity until you feel the pain of extreme fatigue.
What does testing VO2 max involve?
Did we mention the pain? If you opt for the lab approach, you’ll be masked up or given a mouthpiece which measures the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide you’re breathing. Once you’ve warmed up, the exercise will begin. At first your intensity will be light to start with, but will increase in difficulty until you reach your point of fatigue or maximum effort.
A qualified technician will then monitor your heart rate, breathing rate and oxygen. Based on your age and gender, these numbers will be crunched in order to give you a VO2 max. If you decide to work out your VO2 max on your own, you’ll follow roughly the same formula with intensive bursts of energy, followed by recovery periods until the point of fatigue. Without access to heart rate and oxygen consumption data, your VO2 max is less likely to be accurate.
Why is VO2 max important?
VO2 max is important, not just as an indicator or your fitness, but of your health also. How high your VO2 max is a great indicator of your overall cardiovascular health, which is important for long term health. Being physically fit has also had a proven effect on improving mental health.
What impacts your VO2 max?
Age and gender are the most obvious things that impact your VO2 max, aside from how much exercise you’re doing of course. Men tend to post higher numbers than women, although not at an elite level, while our VO2 max often decreases with age.
While genetics play a part in determining your magic number, another factor affecting your VO2 max is body composition. The less fat you have, the more positive an impact this will have on your VO2 max. That said, it’s important to remember that a high VO2 doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be in good shape.
What is a good VO2?
Marathon megastar Eliud Kipchoge reportedly has a VO2 max of 90. But for lesser mortals, VO2 max is a little more relative.
What is a good number for one person isn’t necessarily so impressive for another due to the factors outlined above. As a rule of thumb, both men and women ideally need to see their VO2 max at higher than 40 until they hit their 40s, when a VO2 max in the late 30s would put you above average.
As with all exercise, these findings should be taken with a pinch of salt. A high VO2 isn’t the be all and end all and somebody will always invariably have a more impressive VO2 max than you. Even if it is Kipchoge.
How accurate are Apple/Garmin watches at testing VO2?
The newer smart watches have an improved accuracy when it comes to estimating the VO2 max of the wearer. Obviously, the more information they have about you - such as age, weight, and gender - the stronger analysis they can make. Anecdotally, however, fitness fanatics who have turned to their watches in the hope of a boosted ego and a boosted VO2 max have been disappointed. If you want a precision reading, it is worth seeking out a professional VO2 max testing.
How can you increase your VO2 max?
While there are some factors affecting your VO2 max that you can’t change - what do they say about not being able to choose your family, after all? - there are definitely ways to boost your VO2 max, and your health at the same time.
Can you improve your VO2 max through running?
Running is one of the best ways to boost your VO2 max, but if you want to see a positive impact, you need to exert yourself. Interval training or HIIT are both excellent ways to increase your VO2 max but exercisers need to be patient. Your VO2 max won’t change overnight; it should be part of a general fitness plan, rather than a target in its own right.
What is the benefit in boosting VO2?
Boosting your VO2 has the benefit of increasing your aerobic efficiency, which has benefits to your overall health and longevity. Because running at pace is the best way to improve your VO2 max, taking this path is likely to improve your overall fitness and make you a faster runner. It might also give you kudos at the gym or the office water cooler but we can’t guarantee it.
Does having a low VO2 mean you are unfit?
In a word, no. There are many components of being fit or unfit, including nutrition, mental status, lactate threshold and technique. While we all find metrics comforting and it’s nice to be able to rank ourselves against our friends - and ourselves - you can be ridiculously fit and have a ridiculously low VO2 max and vice versa. If all else fails, blame it on your genetics.
Which workouts can improve your VO2?
Intervals and sprint sessions on the treadmill are a great way to improve your VO2 max but strengthening and conditioning your body will also help. Developing your muscles and creating a strong base to avoid injury and burn fat through weight training and mat work is putting the foundations in place for solid progress on the VO2 max and fitness front.
We have a number of different treadmills and stores across Perth, Mandurah, and Bunbury, as well as offering Australia-wide delivery on our huge range of exercise equipment. We have a great selection of free weights and machines for those looking to build their base. We even have flexible payment options like Afterpay, to ensure reliable fitness equipment is affordable and accessible.
Explore our stores with the Orbit experts, or check out our online range. Chat with the team for more information about our products can help your health and fitness journey, or browse our FAQs.
