Three field tests that estimate VO2 max within a few points of a lab result, what score is good for your age, and how to raise it in 8 weeks.
By Coach Voris, NASM-CPT · AI Fitness · vo2 max, cardio, testing, wearables, endurance
A lab test with a mask and a treadmill is the gold standard for VO2 max. It is also expensive and inconvenient. The good news: two of the field tests below land within a few points of lab numbers for most healthy people, and they cost nothing. Warm up for 10 minutes. Then cover as much distance as you can in exactly 12 minutes on a flat track or treadmill. Pace it evenly; going out too hard wrecks the result. Estimate: VO2 max = (distance in metres minus 504.9) divided by 44.73. So 2,400 metres gives roughly 42 ml/kg/min. The test rewards honest pacing and punishes sprinting the first lap. Cover 1.5 miles as fast as you can after a full warm-up, and record the time in minutes. Estimate: VO2 max = 88.02 minus (0.1656 x body weight in kg) minus (2.76 x time in minutes) plus (3.716 if male, 0 if female). This one suits runners who pace well. It is harder than it sounds in the last third. Walk one mile as briskly as you can, then take your heart rate immediately at the finish. Plug time and finishing heart rate into the Rockport equation, or simply use your watch estimate taken during this walk instead of during mixed daily activity.…