Getting to know as much as possible about how your body works and functions is extremely important to keep a hand on your health. With how fast life is nowadays, keeping track of your vitals is the least you can do to keep yourself healthy and happy.
That’s why smartwatches are so popular nowadays. Thanks to these small, handy - and often quite stylish - accessories, you can monitor various aspects of your health straight from your wrist.
Among the health stats that you might be interested in is the VO2 Max metric. This stat first showed up on thebest running watches, but it quickly trickled down toall the best smartwatches.
Now, both the biggest brands, such as Apple or Garmin, have VO2 Max statistics available on their smartwatches. Here’s everything you need to know about that metric - what that is, what it all means, and how to measure it on your favorite smartwatch.
What is VO2 Max?
Let’s start with the metric itself, as its abbreviation might be a little mysterious for the people who see it for the first time. Essentially, VO2 Max means the maximum volume of oxygen that a person can use during intense exercise. In general, the more oxygen your body is able to use during the exercise, the more endurance and performance you have.
What it means is that the VO2 Max score is essentially a measure of your endurance during intense training.
If you want to get technical, there is a very simple formula for measuring VO2 Max, which results in the score your smartwatch will give you later. This score is presented in METs (metabolic equivalents), and here’s how to calculate it:
1 MET = 3.5mL O2 / kg x minute
Essentially, the higher the value, the more fit you are. Higher scores mean that your body uses oxygen more efficiently, making it possible for you to endure longer training sessions or harness more power from your muscles.
What is a good VO2 Max score, and how can you improve it?
Your smartwatch - or any other equipment that measures VO2 Max - will give you a certain score in METs. Unfortunately, the score is often insufficient to know if you’re doing well.
That’s because these scores mean very different things depending on your age and sex. The same score for an elderly female and a young male will signify drastically different fitness levels.
Fortunately, if your smartwatch can measure your VO2 Max, it also has other information to quantify that data. In order to take accurate measurements, it’ll need your weight, as well as your sex and age. According to that data, it’ll show you not only your score but also an indication of what it means. Usually, it’s done descriptively, saying “Poor”, “Average”, and “Good” or something similar.
However, if you are just getting the score without any explanation, here’s a rough estimate of what these numbers mean for your fitness:
How to improve your VO2 Max
When looking at your VO2 Max score, you might be tempted to look for ways to improve it, whether it’s already looking great or if you have a bit of work ahead of you to get a “good” grade. How should you go about doing that?
As the VO2 Max is an indicator of your body’s endurance, the best way to get a higher score is to… improve your endurance. This is, of course, done by exercising. Threshold training is particularly helpful here; that is a training when your heart rate is right around that anaerobic threshold.
But do keep in mind that it’s not the only way. Simply going for one or two more walks a week will already do you good, and starting some light exercise regimen will also work wonders for your VO2 Max, especially if your score isn’t that high.
Also, remember that exercise is not the only thing that you can do. Your diet and habits - especially smoking - can impact the score as well, so if you’re attempting to squeeze out every last digit of the VO2 Max score, you should consider giving up smoking and changing your dietary habits for the better as well.
How do you measure your VO2 Max on an Apple Watch?
Apple Watches are known for theirvarious fitness and workout apps and features. Among those is, of course, the ability to measure your VO2 Max, which is called Cardio Fitness Levels.
to track your VO2 Max, you’ll first need to enable it in your Health app - here’s aguide on how to do it. Once it’s on, your Apple Watch will simply collect your VO2 Max data every time you’re moving around, even for a bit, so there’s no need to go on a long run or walk to get your measurements.
Once you’ve done some walking throughout the day, here’s how to find your VO2 Max score:
How do you measure your VO2 Max on a Garmin?
Apple Watch might be the most popular smartwatch in the world, but if you’re really into exercise, you probably have a Garmin. The brand is known for making thebest sports smartwatchesthat have excellent tracking capability, as well as advanced features that the competition simply does not include.
This means that you can also see your VO2 Max statistics on your Garmin. Again, Garmin devices will measure your VO2 Max when you’re simply moving around, always providing up-to-date information about your endurance levels.
The steps to do it on your device are different for almost all smartwatches, but you can also simply see it in the companion app, along with a much more detailed view of these stats. Here’s how to do it:
How do you measure your VO2 Max on a Fitbit?
If you’re looking for an accurate fitness tracker that won’t break the bank, you’re probably eyeing a Fitbit device. Google’s fitness trackers have made a name for themselves as a great option, combining great tracking, an excellent app, and a decent price - along with a wide range of devices to choose from.
Of course, Google’s smartwatches also offer VO2 Max tracking. They track your VO2 Max in two different ways. If you want an approximate measurement, the band will give you your info based on your resting heart rate (especially when asleep) along with your user profile, so you don’t need to do anything, but your score will be shown as a range.
If you want a more precise measurement, you’ll need to do a bit of exercise. To get a precise VO2 Max score, you’ll need to run for 10 minutes at a steady pace with your GPS connected to the Fitbit. That’s how the band measures your oxygen levels and determines your VO2 Max in detail.
Once you’re done measuring, you can find your scores here:
How do you measure your VO2 Max on other smartwatches?
Generally, most smartwatches treat measuring your VO2 Max in basically the same way. The statistic itself has to be measured when you’re moving around, so your watch will gather that data when your mobile, usually in two ways:
After you’re done exercising, and your smartwatch synchronizes with its app on your phone, you’re ready to check your results. Just keep in mind that it’s best to update your weight and other stats in the app beforehand, as they might have a significant impact on your score.
Within the app, you’ll usually find VO2 Max metrics within advanced training statistics. It’ll be either called simply VO2 Max or something along the lines of Cardio Fitness Level. You will usually be able to see both your score, as well as what that score means for your personal fitness level.
