How To Improve Your VO2 Max in 60 Days! 

VO2 Max is one of the best measures of cardiovascular fitness, and if you fully understand how it works as a measure of fitness, then it’s possible to improve your VO2 Max by 5-10% in 60-90 days. 

So here’s what you need to know about VO2 Max, and the best workouts you can do to increase your VO2 Max. 

WHAT IS VO2 MAX?

VO2 Max is the maximum (Max) volume (V) of oxygen (O2) that you can successfully intake (by breathing in air), transport (via red blood cells) and use (in the muscles).

It’s measured as a number which represents millilitres of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. It’s an individual measurement and will vary for each person based on their gender, weight, age and fitness. The average moderately active adult in their 30s will have a VO2 Max of 30-50, while elite athletes may measure 80+. 

If you’re unsure, then it’s pronounced: Vee Oh Two Max.

WHY DOES VO2 MAX MATTER AND HOW DOES IT RELATE TO FITNESS?

The more oxygen you can utilise in your muscles, the easier exercise feels at harder intensities. Basically: higher VO2 Max means your fitness potential is higher. Here’s a more scientific look at VO2 Max.

While your VO2 Max shouldn’t be a number that you fixate on or solely try to train to improve, it can be a number which shows signs of improved fitness, so it’s a useful metric to track.

IS MY VO2 MAX ACCURATE ON MY RUNNING WATCH?

The best way to measure VO2 Max is in a lab, running on a treadmill, with an oxygen mask strapped to you (check out the video below!). But not many runners can do that, and it’s not a fun process. Instead most of us rely on a measure given to us by our running watch. 

Our running watches have a smart analytic engine which takes data from your runs, including pace and heart rate, plus you age, weight and gender, and from that it can tell how hard you’ve worked, and can predict a VO2 Max. Your Garmin watch VO2 data is within around 5% variance from lab results.

HOW DO YOU IMPROVE YOUR VO2 MAX?

You have to work on two different types of fitness to improve your VO2 Max: consistently building up your overall running (or cardio) volume, mostly at a slow, easy pace; and a mix of faster running like interval workouts, tempo runs and threshold runs, where you’re exercising hard. Stick to the 80/20 rule of training for the best overall balance.

Easy running is our base cardiovascular fitness. The more of this we do, the greater our general exercise capacity becomes. Being consistent is really important, and you can gradually increase your weekly mileage to a level that works for you.

Intervals and faster running challenges our body to become more efficient at taking in oxygen and getting it to our muscles to generate energy. Aim for a variety of faster running including short and very fast sprints and longer tempo runs.

WHAT TYPE OF RUNNING IMPROVES VO2 MAX?

The best workouts for specifically improving your VO2 Max are hard interval efforts of around 90-95% of your maximum heart rate.

There’s an old thought that four by four minutes with three minutes of recovery between is an optimum VO2 Max workout, but now science suggests we can be more varied. The key is holding an intensity of 90-95% of max heart rate.

The best benefit for VO2 Max comes by exercising at that effort for 15-25 minutes during one workout. You could do that in 30 x 30-second reps or 3 x 8-minute reps, but what matters is holding that intensity.

BEST WORKOUTS TO IMPROVE VO2 MAX?

Always begin a VO2 Max workout with easy warm-up run and some drills:

• 30 x 30 seconds (15 second recovery)
• 15 x 1 minute (30 second recovery)
• 10 x 2 minutes (30-45 second recovery)
• 8 x 3 minutes (90 seconds recovery)
• 4 x 4 minutes (2 minute recovery)
• 5 x 5 minutes (2 minute recovery)
• 6 x 1km (2 minute recovery)
• 3 x 8 minutes (3 minute recovery)
• 10 x 90 second steady uphills (2 minute recovery)

The key thing to know here is that there’s no real benefit to only doing VO2 Max workouts in your training. Try a VO2 Max workout every 7-14 days and use a mix of other faster workouts in between. The key to improving your VO2 Max is having a bigger base of easy running with a variety of faster running.

WHY OVERALL TRAINING MATTERS TO VO2 MAX

You can increase your VO2 Max within a short period of time by doing the above workouts plus other runs like threshold runs and tempo runs, but if you maintain a consistent and balanced training programme, with mostly long, steady runs alongside some shorter intervals, then you can continue to gradually build your VO2 Max, and your general fitness, for a long time. 

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Do you have any favourite VO2 Max workouts?

And if you want to see how Andy increased his VO2 Max by almost 10% in 60 days, then check out this video!