My next 20 years
Here's an example of the physical standards I want to hold for the next 20 years:
- Run 10 km in under 40 minutes
- Play a full game of recreational basketball
- Swim 750 m in under 15 minutes
- Deadlift at least 5 plates, squat 3 plates and bench 2 plates
- Play whatever sport or activity with my future kid
Whatever your physical standards are, you'll need to improve your VO2 max to achieve the highest quality of life physically. It will get harder as we age.
It gets harder with age
Some of the changes of aging start as early as our third decade of life. After age 25 to 30, the average person's maximum heart rate declines by about one beat per minute, per year, and the heart's peak capacity to pump blood drifts down by 5% to 10% per decade (Harvard, 2014).
Everything becomes less efficient unless we train it. Just as we stress a muscle to build it, we need to stress our cardiovascular system to make it more efficient. If your lifestyle has you sitting more, walking less and skipping cardio, it won't progress.
A not so fun fact: cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common way we go out. Types of CVD include:
- Atherosclerosis: plaque build-up inside the walls of the arteries
- Coronary artery disease: atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries
- Congestive heart failure: the heart doesn't work as well as it used to
- Heart valve disease: stenosis, regurgitation and more
- Cardiomyopathy: weakened heart muscle that pumps less well
- Arrhythmia: the heart beats too fast or too slow
Surprise, surprise: one of the best ways to combat this is to exercise and train.
What VO2 max is
VO2 max is the maximum volume of oxygen your body can use: how fast your muscles can pull oxygen from your blood and turn it into energy (ATP). The stronger your VO2 max, the more robust you are. If someone is low on energy, it's very rare that they're high on VO2 max.
An actual fun fact: bringing your VO2 max from low (bottom 25th percentile) to below average (25th to 50th) is associated with a 50% reduction in all-cause mortality. Going from low to above average (50th to 75th) brings that closer to 70%.
How to test your VO2 max
Non-exercise test
Uses age, gender, weight, height, max and resting heart rate, exercise habits and waist size. Not super accurate, but a good place to start: worldfitnesslevel.org.
Rockport 1 mile walk test
Uses your heart rate at the end of a timed one mile walk: exrx.net.
2000 m row test
Best once you've been training for a while: concept2.com.
Distance run test
Pick a distance and run it as fast as you can: omnicalculator.com.
A 4-week running plan
If you're a runner, or want to get into running, do the distance run test first. Then for 4 weeks:
After 4 weeks, retest.
Zone 2 cardio
Research points to three things: do more (raise your baseline), do Zone 2 cardio at 65% to 75% of your max heart rate, and go harder (raise your intensities).
Estimate your max heart rate with 220 minus your age. At 27, that's 193. Multiply by 0.75 and Zone 2 tops out around 145 beats per minute. Your Zone 2 session starts once your heart rate is in that range.
All at 65% to 75% of max heart rate. Past 75%, cardiac drift kicks in, so drop the intensity if you need to. Drifting into Zone 3 in the last 10 minutes isn't the end of the world.
Find a machine or activity you enjoy and can do at that effort. The details change with your goals, fitness level, training age and how much time you have.
Fat loss, muscle and the bottom line
Want to lose fat? Zone 2 cardio is a great complement to weight training. One to two sessions a week is a good start. If you're not sure how much to do, ask your coach.
Want to build muscle? You should absolutely work on your VO2 max. It helps you train harder, for longer, and recover faster.
If we really want to be healthy, the number one thing to fight is CVD. How do we fight it? With a high, strong VO2 max.
Book a free consultation with Coach Johngie: coachjohngie.rmbl@gmail.com