Without modern knowledge about the work and functioning of the human body at maximum loads, it is impossible for any athlete to succeed in sports, especially in running.
Knowledge about VO2max is needed not only for athletes, but also for ordinary people, since this indicator reveals the secrets of the state of health of any person at the moment, the capabilities of the body, and its ability to live long.
What is vo2 max exponent?
VO2 Max is defined as the maximum amount of oxygen your body can take in, deliver, and use in one minute. It is limited by the amount of oxygen in the blood that the lungs and cardiovascular system can process and the amount of oxygen that muscles can extract from the blood.
The name means: V - volume, O 2 - oxygen, max - maximum. VO 2 max is expressed either as an absolute rate of liters of oxygen per minute (l / min) or as a relative rate in milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body mass per minute (eg ml / (kg · min)). The latter expression is often used to compare the endurance performance of athletes.
What does it characterize?
VO2max is a measure of the maximum speed at which an athlete's body is able to absorb oxygen during a particular operation, adjusted for body weight.
It is estimated that VO2 Max decreases by about 1% per year.
A high VO2max is important because it is closely related to the distance traveled by the subject. Research has shown that VO2max accounts for roughly 70 percent of race performance success among individual runners.
So if you are able to run 5000m one minute faster than I can, it is likely that your VO2max is higher than mine by an amount that is sufficient to account for 42 seconds of that minute.
There are two main factors that contribute to a high VO2max. One of these is the strong oxygenation of the transport system, which includes a powerful heart, blood hemoglobin, high blood volume, high capillary density in muscles, and high mitochondrial density in muscle cells.
The second speed is the ability to contract a large number of muscle fibers at the same time, since the more muscle tissue is active at any given time, the more oxygen is consumed by the muscles.
This makes VO2 Max a critical sign of aging, and we can measure and improve it with proper aerobic training. To do this, you must raise your heart rate to a temperature between 65 and 85 percent of your maximum through aerobic exercise for at least 20 minutes, three or five times a week.
The difference in indicators between ordinary people and athletes
Ordinary men aged 20-39 have VO2max on average from 31.8 to 42.5 ml / kg / min, while athletes-runners of the same age have VO2max on average up to 77 ml / kg / min.
Untrained girls and women tend to have maximum oxygen absorption 20-25% lower than untrained men. However, when comparing elite athletes, the gap tends to be close to 10%.
Going further, VO2 Max is adjusted for lean mass in elite male and female athletes, the differences disappear in some studies. Sex-specific significant stores of fat are thought to account for the majority of metabolic differences in running between men and women.
Typically, the decrease in age-related VO2 max can be attributed to a decrease in maximum heart rate, maximum blood volume, and maximum a-VO2 difference, that is, the difference between the oxygen concentration in arterial blood and venous blood.
How is Vo2 max measured?
Accurate measurement of VO 2 max includes physical effort sufficient in duration and intensity to fully load the aerobic energy system.
In general clinical and athletic testing, this usually includes a differential exercise test (either on a treadmill or on a bicycle ergometer), in which exercise intensity is gradually increased by measuring: ventilation and oxygen, and carbon dioxide concentration in inhaled and exhaled air. ...
- VO 2 max is reached when oxygen consumption remains stable despite increased workload.
- VO 2 max is correctly determined by Fick's equation:
- VO2max = Q x (CaO2-CvO2)
these values are obtained during exercise at maximum effort, where Q is the cardiac output of the heart, C O 2 is the arterial oxygen content and C V O 2 is the venous oxygen content.
- (C O 2 - C v O 2) is also known as arteriovenous oxygen difference.
In running, it is usually determined using a procedure known as a supplemental exercise test, in which the athlete breathes into a tube and a tube device collects and measures the exhaled gases while running on a treadmill, where
the belt speed or gradient is gradually increased until the athlete reaches fatigue. The maximum oxygen consumption rate recorded in this test will be the runner's VO2max.
Calculation of VO 2 Max without a suitability test.
To determine your heart rate without a monitor, place two fingers against an artery on the side of your neck, just under your jaw. You should be able to feel your heartbeat on your fingers. Set a timer for 60 seconds and count the number of beats you feel
This is your heart rate (heart rate) in beats per minute (BPM). Calculate your maximum heart rate. The most common way to calculate your maximum heart rate is by subtracting your age from 220. If you are 25, your HR max = 220 -25 = 195 beats per minute (bpm).
Let's define VO 2 max by a simple formula. The simplest formula for calculating VO 2 Max VO 2 max = 15 x (HR max / HR rest). This method counts well when compared to other general formulas.
Calculate VO 2 max. You have already determined your rest use and maximum heart rate, you can plug these values into the formula and calculate the VO 2 max. Let's say you have a resting heart rate of 80 beats per minute and your maximum heart rate is 195 beats per minute.
- Write the formula: VO 2 max = 15 x (HR max / HR rest)
- Connect values: VO 2 max = 15 x (195/80).
- Solve: VO 2 max = 15 x 2.44 = 36.56 ml / kg / min.
How to improve your VO2max
A quick way to improve VO2max is to run for about six minutes at the fastest pace you can sustain during that time. So you could do a VO2max workout that consisted of a 10-minute warm-up, a 6-minute run, and a 10-minute cool-down.
But this is not the best way to prepare for VO2max, as you can get very tired after six minutes of effort. It is best to do slightly less effort at the same or slightly higher intensity, separated by recovery periods, as this allows the athlete to use more total time at 100 percent VO2max before reaching exhaustion. Another option is to add intensity back just a little, and do slightly longer intervals.
Start at 30/30 intervals. After warming up for at least 10 minutes by jogging lightly, work 30 seconds hard, at the fastest pace. Then it slows down to light. A good way to introduce VO2max training into your program at 30/30 and 60/60 intervals. Continue alternating between fast and slow 30-second intervals until you have completed at least 12 and then 20 of each.
Increase the number of 30/30 intervals to complete each time you do this workout, then switch to 60/60 intervals. Start with at least six of them and build up to as many as 10.
Shorter intervals of 20 to 90 seconds are great for developing power, strength and speed. Slightly longer intervals of two to three minutes are great for VO2max development. In order to do the intervals of increasing the workout, you need to warm up, jogging for 10 minutes. Then run uphill for two to three minutes (choose duration before starting), jog back to starting point and repeat.
Lactate intervals are a hard type of VO2max training. Make sure you have a high enough level of physical fitness with 30/30, 60/60 and extended intervals before moving on to lactate intervals.
This type of training is best done on the track. Warm up for 10 minutes with a light jog and then run a hard 800m run (two laps on a full-size treadmill) up to 1200 meters (three laps on a full-size treadmill) around the track. Now reduce your pace to an easy 400 meter run.
Perform short intervals (800 m) in your first workout of the lactate intervals of this training cycle, and then move on. There are a total of about 5000m of fast running in these workouts (6-7 x 800m, 5 x 1000m, 4 x 1200m). Again, try running a fast pace that you can sustain until the last interval without slowing down.
VO2 Max measurement helps professionals prescribe exercise safely and effectively for people of all fitness levels. Evaluation of heart function and oxygen consumption can be just as beneficial for beginners looking to improve their health, as well as for improving endurance in trained athletes, especially in running disciplines.
