Strength and Skills
What is VO2 max?
VO2 max is the maximum volume (V) of oxygen (O2) your body can process. A VO2 max score is a little like horsepower in a car—it’s a measure of the capacity your body (engine) has to use oxygen when exercising. If you have a high VO2 max, you have a big engine. VO2 max has three primary components:
- Lung capacity and heart volume: The more oxygen your lungs can intake and the more oxygenated blood your heart can pump, the higher your VO2 score.
- Capillary delivery: The more oxygenated blood your circulatory system can transport to your muscles, the higher your VO2 score.
- Muscle efficiency: The more your muscles can extract and use oxygen from your blood, the higher your VO2 score.
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Knowing your current VO2 max is key to understanding and improving your fitness. It serves as a baseline measurement of your fitness level today, and it can inform your training to improve your VO2 max readings in the future. You won’t automatically run, ride or ski faster if you increase your VO2 max. But raising your score will make it easier to go faster and to sustain a given pace in any aerobic activity you do.
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Source: Article
If yo have done the 1 Mile Run Test and you have your time, head over to the VO2 max calculator and check your score.