Contents
Using high intensity interval training, endurance sports and endurance training, and cardiovascular system focusing to improve your Vo2 max.
Interval training, broad aerobic fitness, your favourite endurance exercise… there are many ways to improve your Vo2 max. But before getting into those, let’s identify what Vo2 max really is.
Why don’t we step away from today’s topic ever so slightly whilst remaining firmly within the world of fitness – here’s a question.
Do you know how much protein you can digest before you reach your conversion threshold?
While it’s largely debated, it’s said that you can only digest 30-50g of protein per meal before any excess is absorbed elsewhere.
Why I am talking about protein?
Because your Vo2 max works under a similar premise. Your Vo2 max is defined as the – VO₂ max is the maximum (max) rate (V) of oxygen (O₂) your body is able to use during exercise.
In other words, your maximal oxygen uptake is also your maximal aerobic capacity, determining how much of that oxygenated goodness actually gets used in your body while the excess is spurted out as exhalation.
High intensity
It sounds pretty obvious but if you want to grow with speed then you have to put your body under stress. Working out to 90% of your maximum heart rate will help to strengthen your heart muscles and increase the volume of oxygenated blood that can be transported to your muscles over a certain time period.
Simple.
Interval workouts
Your Vo2 max can also strengthen through interval training. Why? When coupled with standardised training routines, interval training helps with cardiovascular fitness in a way that’s centred around recovery time and exertion level.
Balancing these two factors helps to increase Vo2 max by acclimatising bodily functions to periodic and high levels of output, increasing the efficacy of the heart and lungs during those high-level bursts.
Functional threshold power
”Your FTP is defined as the highest amount of power you can sustain for an hour. You can use it to determine how hard you should be working when trying to improve your Vo2 max.” – Healthline, 2022.
From this, you can affect your Vo2 max by determining your power threshold and working around it to increase the aerobic power of your body through oxygenation of cells. Elite athletes use this, so why wouldn’t you?
Conclusion
From the right training program to simply figuring things out, your journey is a curve of learning strategies. You could say learning is like breathing. The more oxygen you take on the more power your body has. Its functions, resources and assets are proving empowerment through optimal respiratory operations – the more you learn, the more power you’re giving your brain, optimising its abilities and developing its function in helping you to grow, in many ways and the right ways for you.
Increase your Vo2 max to strengthen your fitness lifestyle and push the boundaries of your athletic ability today.
FAQs
Does body weight factor in?
As usual, yes. Your body weight will affect your muscle efficiency and how much oxygen said muscles need to perform.
