Testing VO2 Max

VO2 max is regarded as the benchmark measure of cardio fitness. It's the highest rate at which oxygen can be consumed during exercise or the maximal rate at which oxygen can be taken in, distributed, and used by the body during physical activity.

A number of studies have produced tests that attempt to predict VO2 max. I decided to try a few out and compare the results.

Maximal Test - 1.5 mile run

Calculation: VO2max (ml.kg-1.min-1) = 88.02 + (3.716 * gender) - (0.0753 * body weight in pounds) - (2.767 * time for 1.5 miles)

Where gender = 1 for males and 0 for females.

In the test I ran 9:56 which I was a bit disappointed with (considering my 5k PB is 19:40). My excuse is that my GPS watch was on the blink so I had to use my bike GPS. This meant I couldn't easily how fast I was going so I struggled a bit with pacing. I may give this another go at some point as I feel like I should be capable of hitting 9:30 or less. Anyway, enough excuses, back to the test. Based on my time of 9:56 my VO2 max is predicted as:

88.02 + 3.716 - (0.0753 * 153.8) - (2.767 * 9.9333) = 52.7

Sub-Maximal Test - Rockport Walking Test

This test is based on the time to walk a mile as fast as you can (without jogging) and your heart rate at the end of the test.

Calculation: VO2max (ml.kg-1.min-1) = 132.853 – (0.0769 * weight) - (0.3877 * age) + (6.315 * gender) - (3.2649 * mile walk time) - (0.1565 * ending heart rate)

Where:
Gender = 1 for male, 0 for female
Weight = pounds
Mile walk time = minutes and fractions of minute (14:30 = 14.5 min)

I completed the mile walk in 12:50 and measured my HR as 103bpm five seconds after completing the test. Based on these figures my VO2 max is predicted to be:

132.853 - (0.0769 * 153.8) - (0.3877 * 40) + 6.315 - (3.2649 * 12.8333) - (0.1565 * 103) = 53.8

The Jackson Non-Exercise Test 

Calculation: VO2max (ml.kg-1.min-1) = 56.363 + (1.921 * PA-R) - (0.381 * AGE) - (0.754 * BMI) + (10.987 * Gender)

Where:
Male = 1, Female = 0
BMI = Weight in kg / Height2 in meters
PA-R = Score on the physical activity questionnaire
The PA-R is a physical activity questionnaire which has a score of 0 - 7.

I went for the maximum value of 7 for the PA-R which corresponds to "Run over 10 miles per week or spend over 3 hours per week in comparable physical activity". This results in the following:

56.363 + (1.921 * 7) - (0.381 * 40) - (0.754 * 21) + 10.987 = 49.7

The George Non-Exercise Test

Calculation: VO2max (ml.kg-1.min-1) = 45.513 + (6.564 * Gender) – (0.749 * BMI) + (0.724 * PFA)+ (0.788 * PA-R)

Where:
Gender = 1 for male and 0 for female;
BMI = Weight in kg / Height2 in meters
PFA = sum of both PFA scales on following pages
PA-R = number form PA-R scale on following pages.

My PFA (perceived function abilty) score is 22 (11 & 11) and my PA-R is 7 (see link to tests below for further details on what those scores correspond to). This test predicts my VO2 max as:

45.513 + 6.564 - (0.749 * 21) + (0.724 * 22) + (0.788 * 7) = 57.8

Summary
I'm more inclined to believe the field tests than tests based on perceived fitness/activity level. The two field tests are actually pretty close at 52.7 and 53.8 and the two non-exercise tests balance each other out, the average of all four tests being 53.5. So even allowing for a bit of margin for error it seems like I probably have a VO2 max of around 50 which based on the data I've seen is pretty good for a man in his 40s. Though pretty pathetic if you start looking at elite athletes who can get up into the 80s or 90s.

Tests
The full detail on each of the tests can be downloaded here:

CV_Fitness_Tests