8,101
edits
Changes
From Fellrnr.com, Running tips
no edit summary
V̇O<sub>2</sub>max is the maximum (max) volume (V) of oxygen (O<sub>2</sub>) you can use during exercise. Measuring V̇O<sub>2</sub>max requires specialist equipment, but there are many locations with the facilities and the cost is usually under $100. The procedure involves running on a treadmill while wearing a mask to capture your breath. There is a warm up period, and then you run at a reasonably stressful pace while the treadmill gradient is steadily increased until you can't keep going. For most of the test, as the workload increases so does the O<sub>2</sub> you use. However, there will come a point where the increased workload does not have a corresponding increase in O<sub>2</sub> usage. This is the point where you are using as much O<sub>2</sub> as you are capable of and the increased workload is coming from anaerobic systems. While V̇O<sub>2</sub>max is interesting, it does not include details of [[Running Economy]], so it does not give a complete picture of a runner's capabilities. Arguably, [[VDOT]] is a more useful measure of fitness.
=Estimating VO2max=
V̇O<sub>2</sub>max can be estimated from a race performance, and this is implemented in the [[VDOT Calculator]]. Another approach is the Cooper test developed in 1968 found that the distance that could be covered in 12 minutes was strongly correlated with VO2max<ref name="Cooper1968"/>. However, the Cooper test requires a lot of [[Motivation|motivation ]] and a good sense of pacing, as 12 minutes is a relatively long period for this type of test<ref name="Billat-1996"/>. A similar technique is to increase running speed every two minutes until exhaustion, then VO2max can be estimated from the maximum speed that was achieved using Léger & Mercier formula:<ref name="Léger-1984"/>:
V̇O<sub>2</sub>max = speed * 3.5
Where V̇O<sub>2</sub>max is in ml/Kg/min and vV̇O<sub>2</sub>max is in km/hr.
<references>
<ref name="Whipp">THE PEAK VERSUS MAXIMUM OXYGEN UPTAKE ISSUE, Brian J. Whipp, Ph.D., D.Sc., Institute of Membrane and Systems Biology, University of Leeds,Leeds, UK</ref>
<ref name="Cooper1968">{{cite journal|last1=Cooper|first1=Kenneth H.|title=Cooper, A Means of Assessing Maximal Oxygen Intake<subtitle>Correlation Between Field and Treadmill Testing</subtitle>|journal=, JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association|, volume=203|, issue=3|year=, 1968|, pages=201|, ISSN [http://www.worldcat.org/issn=/0098-7484 0098-7484|], doi=[http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.1968.03140030033008 10.1001/jama.1968.03140030033008}}]</ref><ref name="Billat-1996"> {{Cite journal | last1 = Billat | first1 = LV. | last2 = Koralsztein | first2 = Billat, JP. | title = Koralsztein, Significance of the velocity at VO2max and time to exhaustion at this velocity. | journal = , Sports Med | , volume = 22 | , issue = 2 | , pages = 90-108 | month = , Aug | year = 1996 | doi = | , PMID = [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8857705 8857705 }}]</ref><ref name="Léger-1984">{{Cite journal | last1 = Léger | first1 = L. | last2 = Mercier | first2 = Léger, D. | title = Mercier, Gross energy cost of horizontal treadmill and track running. | journal = , Sports Med | , volume = 1 | , issue = 4 | , pages = 270-7 | month = | year = | doi = | , PMID = [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6390604 6390604 }}]</ref>
</references>
