VO2MAX and how to Improve it
VO2MAX is a measure of the maximum amount of oxygen your body can absorb and use during exercise. It is a measure of your cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF).
The greater your VO2MAX, the more oxygen your body can consume and the more effectively your body can use that oxygen to generate energy.
In the past VO2MAX was only considered important for athletes, however in recent years it has gained significant attention as being an excellent measure of longevity and overall health.
“It tuns out that peak aerobic cardiorespiratory fitness, measured in terms of VO2MAX, is perhaps the single most powerful marker of longevity” (Outlive by Peter Attia, p220).
According to Dr Rhonda Patrick, every unit increase (~1 ml/kg/min) in VO2MAX roughly extends life expectancy by 45 days.
The higher your VO2MAX, the easier it will be to perform daily activities such as run for the train/bus, run after your kids, or climb a flight of stairs without getting winded.
However, as pointed out in Peter Attia’s book Outlive, your VO2MAX declines by roughly 10% per decade and up to 15% per decade after the age of 50.
If you have certain goals for when you retire, such as play tennis regularly, climb Mount Kilimanjaro, keeping up with your grandchildren, or trek the Inca Trial, then you need to prepare your fitness for those activities now!
The longer you wait, the harder it will be to achieve a certain level of fitness. In addition, as you get older, muscle mass and stability also decline, increasing your chances of falls and bone fractures which would lead to an even greater decline in aerobic fitness.
It is therefore vital to do what you can NOW to improve your VO2MAX so that when you are older it will still be at a high enough level to do what you love.
How to Assess Your VO2MAX
There are various ways to assess your cardiorespiratory fitness. The most accurate method is in a laboratory performing graded exercise testing (GXT) on a treadmill or a bike wearing an oxygen mask to directly measure VO2MAX. This is not feasible for most, however, VO2MAX can also be calculated, indirectly, using the following methods:
Cooper 1.5-mile run test: run 1.5 miles as fast as possible (6 laps around a track). Log the time to complete for an estimation of VO2MAX (https://www.trainermetrics.com/fitness-assessment-calculations/vo2max-one-and-half-mile-run/).
Rockport 1-mile walk test: walk and briskly as possible and measure heart rate and time of completion (https://exrx.net/Calculators/Rockport).
Cooper run test: run as far as possible in 12-minutes. The distance achieved is used to calculate an estimate of VO2MAX (https://www.brianmac.co.uk/gentest.htm).
2,000m row test: row for 2000m as fast as possible and log your time to provide an estimate of your VO2MAX (https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/training/calculators/vo2max-calculator)
In addition to the above tests, an Apple watch (and perhaps other wearable devices) will give you an estimated measure of your VO2MAX by measuring your heart rate response to exercise.
How to Improve Your VO2MAX
Before starting a cardiorespiratory fitness program, it is important to choose the right modalities for your body. If running hurts your knees or hips, then don’t do it. Choose exercise that feels good on your joints.
Fitness is exercise specific; therefore, it is important to vary the ways in which you train (i.e. running, swimming, cycling, rowing, sport, etc.). Performing multiple types of cardiovascular exercise regularly, at different intensities, will improve your VO2MAX.
If you haven’t done any cardio training for a while, then it is important to start off slow and build the habit gradually. Steady state zone 2 cardio (60-70% of your maximum heart rate; you can approximate your maximum heart rate by subtracting your age from 220.) for 40 minutes 2x per week will be a great start to get your body used to moving in this way and build some baseline fitness. This will also prepare your muscles for the activity at higher intensity and impact levels.
However, to significantly improve VO2MAX you will eventually need to start training at high intensity. This is where your heart rate reaches at least 80% or higher (Zone 3 to 5) of your maximum. This means pushing yourself and getting comfortable being uncomfortable.
There are 3 main energy systems that the body uses and each utilizes a different fuel source:
Aerobic System (2 minutes or longer)
Anaerobic Lactic System (10s to 2 minutes)
Anaerobic A-lactic System (10s or less)
The aerobic system is most commonly trained, however, to improve your VO2MAX, it is important to also train the anaerobic lactic and anaerobic a-lactic systems. Improving fitness in these energy systems will also improve your aerobic system but not necessarily the other way around.
It is important to remember that the shorter the time the higher the intensity and the more sets are required to produce an adequate stimulus for improvement. In addition, the higher the intensity, the more rest that is required between sets to maintain the intensity and keep training the same energy system. Generally, the aerobic system should be developed first before moving into anaerobic training.
Here is one example of training the aerobic system designed by Dan Baker to improve VO2MAX, called modified Maximal Aerobic Speed (M.A.S):
Day 1 perform a 5-minute max watt test on the ski erg, rower, or bike. During this test you go as fast as possible for 5 minutes and log your average watts.
Calculate 120% and 70% of your average watts.
For the next training session perform 15s intervals at 120% followed by 70% of average Watts for a total of 8 rounds. Rest 4 minutes and repeat 2-4 times or until performance drops by 5-10%.
Perform 1 or 2x per week for 4 weeks and then repeat the test.
In contrast, training the Anaerobic lactic system would look like this:
45s as fast as possible logging average watts/distance
Rest 3 minutes
Repeat 3-4 times or until the intensity drops by 5-10%
If you are interested in improving your VO2MAX, be sure to check out our BE Cardio group class.