VO2 max — The key indicator to longevity
VO2 max, brain health, and longevity.
I’m 43. My Garmin smartwatch tells me that my fitness age is 20! As much as I’d like to roll with it, it’s quite unbelievable. I’m not an elite athlete or a superhuman.
But, it’s not a bug either. It’s an estimate based on one of the key indicators of longevity.
Welcome VO2 max.
VO2 max is the maximum volume of oxygen your muscles can use in one minute per kg of your body weight. It’s measured in mL/kg/min.
The idea is that the more oxygen you can consume during a hard workout, the more energy your body can generate. The higher the VO2 max, the better.
It’s a true measure of your cardiovascular fitness.
Note: There are other important indicators of fitness like lean mass, bone mineral density, etc. But today’s post is dedicated to one such key indicator, the VO2 max.
Maintaining and improving an optimal VO2 max is an investment toward future fitness. It’s your golden ticket to a hearty old age.
VO2 max and mental aging
When we talk about an aging brain, it’s not the brain cells that age. It’s the blood vessels in the brain that deteriorate as we age.
Anything that damages blood vessels damages the brain. Sedentary lifestyle is one such factor. Instead, if we increase our blood flow, we can improve our brain fitness.
Exercise is the simplest way to increase the blood flow to brain cells.
Exercise is the single biggest elixir for brain health. As important as sleep and nutrition are, exercise takes the cake.
— Peter Attia
As we exercise harder, our body takes more oxygen from air and delivers to lungs. Lungs filter oxygen, which is then passed to heart via blood. Heart pumps blood with oxygen to all parts of the body including muscles.
Oxygen from air → lungs → heart → muscles
As you can see, there are a lot of moving parts in the transfer of oxygen all the way from air to muscles. As we exercise more, our body becomes more and more efficient in delivering oxygen to muscles.
There is a limit, of course, to the max capacity of each individual to use oxygen.
Simply put, there’s a cap to your VO2 max. But the chances are that you’re not there yet, unless you’re an elite athlete or you’re training very hard.
What’s a good VO2 max?
The optimal value differs by age and sex. Men have a higher VO2 max than women of the same age.
Here’s a chart:
As you can see, it shows low, below average, above average, high, and elite categories for each age group.
The bad news is that VO2 declines 8-10% every decade.
The good news is that the decline resulting from sedentary lifestyle can be reversed.
Studies show a clear trend between fitness and mortality.
The biggest gap is between the low and below average cardiovascular fitness groups. The smallest gap is between the high and elite groups.
If your VO2 max is low, you’ll gain the most by bumping it to below average.
If you’re already in the high category, bumping it to the elite category won’t make much of a difference. It’s an exciting goal to shoot for though!
One thing is for sure. The more you bump your VO2 max, the more you reduce your risk of all-cause mortality (death rate in a population in a given time period).
If you compare bottom quarter to the elite for a group, there’s a 5x difference in all-cause mortality. That’s probably the single strongest association I’ve seen for any modifiable behavior.
— Peter Attia
Not everyone can be an elite athlete. But the best part about VO2 max is that you don’t need to be one.
You don’t need to be an elite athlete for an elite VO2 max.
What is the value you should be targeting?
At the least — If your VO2 max is low, below average, or above average, aim to bump it one level high for your group. If your VO2 max is high, maintain and improve it as much as you can.
For ultimate fitness and longevity — Dr. Peter Attia encourages to aim for a VO2 max same as an elite one decade younger to you! e.g., If you’re a 40-year old female, aim for an elite VO2 max for a 30-year old female.
How to measure it?
The most accurate measure of VO2 max is done in labs. It’s a tedious process and it’s not something we all would like to do.
There are web calculators like this and this that help you calculate your VO2 max based on your stats like running, walking, rowing, etc.
The simplest way to track your VO2 max is through your smartwatch. Make sure your smartwatch contains accurate information about your age, weight, etc.
Besides tracking VO2 max, there are other health benefits of using a smartwatch. e.g., sometimes, you need an extra push to get moving 😀 (see image below).
Almost all smartwatches, like Garmin, Apple, Fitbit, Polar, Samsung, and Huawei among others monitor VO2 max.
How to improve VO2 max?
There is a reason that most neuroscientists love running. Running is the fastest way to increase your BDNF. BDNF is a brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a growth factor that helps in the development of new brain cells.
Interval running, especially, is undoubtedly one of the best ways to improve your VO2 max. It’s when you run harder for short bursts of time. If you like running, include 30 seconds of sprints in your runs.
As you build your endurance, increase your sprint intervals to 2 mins, 3 mins, or even 5 mins for best results.
Racket sports like tennis, table tennis, and badminton are the best sports when it comes to longevity. In a study, tennis tops the list of sports proven to increase life expectancy by 7 years!
Racket sports activate the cerebellum, part of the brain involved in coordination and processing speed. So when you’re playing tennis, you’re not just adding years to your life. You’re also becoming smarter and more focused.
Let’s use this key fitness indicator to 10x our minds and bodies ❤️