{"id":580769,"date":"2026-04-02T13:12:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:12:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/580769\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T13:12:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T13:12:13","slug":"what-runners-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/580769\/","title":{"rendered":"What Runners Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"

VO2 max<\/a> is widely known as a gold standard of aerobic fitness. It shows up on watches, in training apps, and across social media as a benchmark for comparison.<\/p>\n

But the number you\u2019re seeing might not present your fitness level as accurately as you think.<\/p>\n

Research questions whether the most common way we measure VO2 max<\/a>\u2014that is, based on bodyweight\u2014actually provides the best way to compare aerobic efficiency across different body types.<\/p>\n

For runners, this raises an interesting follow-up: Is VO2 max skewed by your weight, and if so, what should you do about it?<\/p>\n

Related Stories2 Main Ways to Measure VO2 Max<\/p>\n

First, it helps to understand the difference between the two common ways physiologists report VO2 max.<\/p>\n

Absolute VO2 max measures your maximal oxygen uptake per minute, usually displayed in liters per minute.Relative VO2 max takes that number and divides it by your total bodyweight, commonly expressed in milliliters per kilogram per minute.<\/p>\n

Relative VO2 max is the measure you see most often. Its purpose is to level the playing field and provide a comparative measurement, because in general, heavier people consume more oxygen than smaller people and will have higher absolute VO2 max readings, says Kate Baird<\/a>, CSCS, running and metabolic testing coordinator and exercise physiologist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.<\/p>\n

The Problem With Accounting for Weight<\/p>\n

The traditional relative VO2 max score treats all bodyweight the same, whether it\u2019s lean muscle or fat<\/a>. Why might that be an issue? Muscle dominates<\/a> your body\u2019s oxygen consumption during exercise, and fat (also known as adipose tissue) does not contribute to oxygen utilization at all, explains Baird.<\/p>\n

Way back in 2015, researchers<\/a> examined the relationship between VO2 max and body composition and size. After a series of exercise tests on young subjects, researchers did not see a linear relationship between total bodyweight and VO2 max, but did see one between lean body mass (muscles) and VO2 max. They conclude that it makes more sense to factor in lean body mass, rather than total bodyweight.<\/p>\n

A 2021 review<\/a> argues in favor of these findings, saying that the common relative VO2 max formula (milligrams per kilogram bodyweight per minute) assumes that VO2 max scales directly with total bodyweight, when evidence suggests the relationship is not linear. (It\u2019s also worth noting more recent research<\/a> shows a link between lean muscle mass and higher VO2 max, which may be particularly important for older adults to keep in mind.)<\/p>\n

Basically, research agrees that the current formula for relative VO2 max (dividing absolute VO2 max by total bodyweight) isn\u2019t as accurate of a measure of fitness as it may seem.<\/p>\n

Related StoryWhat This Means for Runners<\/p>\n

Runner\u2019s World explored these findings<\/a> when they originally came out over a decade ago. But the conversation around this metric is more relevant now than ever. Baird points out that with wearable tech putting VO2 max estimates directly on our wrists<\/a>\u2014and alerting you to apparent changes\u2014it\u2019s easy for runners to treat the number as a definitive measure of overall fitness.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why it\u2019s important to know the nuances involved in this metric.<\/p>\n

For one, your bodyweight can influence how your VO2 max appears on your watch, says Baird. \u201cIf you gain weight of any kind and nothing changes with your fitness, your relative VO2 max is going to go down,\u201d she explains. \u201cIf you lose weight<\/a> and nothing changes with your fitness, it\u2019s going to go up. That\u2019s just how the math works.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, that doesn\u2019t mean your aerobic<\/a> capacity has necessarily worsened or improved. It just means the calculations shift based on your weight.<\/p>\n

This helps explain why athletes in different sports can look very different in terms of relative VO2 max, Baird continues. Elite marathoners tend to have high relative VO2 max values, partly because of their smaller, lighter frames. Meanwhile, athletes like rowers, who typically carry more muscle mass, often post lower relative VO2 max numbers than marathoners even though their absolute readings may be larger.<\/p>\n

This limitation is exactly why the researchers above suggested using lean mass\u2014or a more complicated scaling model<\/a>\u2014instead of total bodyweight in relative VO2 max calculations.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the question is how much oxygen you\u2019re able to consume per kilogram of muscle mass\u2014or lean mass\u2014I think that\u2019s a good way to compare athletes. I just don\u2019t know if it\u2019s that personally discerning on a day-to-day level,\u201d Baird says. On paper, these approaches do offer more physiologically accurate relative readings. In practice, they don\u2019t change how runners should think about their fitness, their weight, or their training strategy, she explains.<\/p>\n

No matter if your relative reading is calculated using total bodyweight or muscle mass, VO2 max is only one piece of the performance puzzle. Distance runners also need to zero in on lactate threshold<\/a>, running economy<\/a>, and durability<\/a> in order to achieve their best times.<\/p>\n

On paper, these approaches do offer more physiologically accurate relative readings. In practice, they don\u2019t change how runners should think about their fitness, their weight, or their training strategy.<\/p>\n

When it comes to overall health and aging, VO2 max is strongly associated<\/a> with long-term health outcomes, such as decreased risk of cardiovascular disease and improved longevity.<\/p>\n

But Baird still cautions against obsessing over the number. \u201cYour aerobic engine is not the only consideration,\u201d she says. \u201cSleep, mental health<\/a>, musculoskeletal health\u2014there\u2019s more to [a healthy lifestyle] than VO2 max.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, chasing a higher relative VO2 max score\u2014whether by dropping weight or changing the calculation entirely\u2014doesn\u2019t automatically lead to improved health.<\/p>\n

Related StoryThe Takeaway<\/p>\n

Yes, evidence suggests that the traditional way we calculate relative VO2 max has its limitations. It may underestimate cardiovascular fitness in heavier or more muscular individuals, but switching to a more precise formula isn\u2019t going to change the way you train, Baird says. The VO2 max workouts<\/a> you know and love still help raise your aerobic ceiling, regardless of how the number is calculated.<\/p>\n

If your goal is to improve aerobic fitness, the same fundamentals always apply:<\/p>\n

As an exercise physiologist herself, Baird stresses that for most people, runners included, simply being active and maintaining a well-rounded routine is far more important to both your aerobic fitness and your overall health than trying to optimize this metric\u2014or trying to manipulate your way to a better score.<\/p>\n

Related Story\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Matt Rudisill is an Associate Service Editor with the Hearst Enthusiast Group. A Nittany Lion through-and-through, Matt graduated from PSU in 2022 with a degree in journalism and worked in communications for the university’s athletic department for the past three years as the main contact and photographer for its nationally-ranked cross country and track & field teams. Matt was also heavily involved in communications efforts for the Penn State football team\u2019s 2024 College Football Playoff run as well as the Nittany Lion men\u2019s basketball team\u2019s 2023 NCAA Tournament appearance. In his role with Hearst\u2019s Enthusiast Group, Matt contributes to both Runner\u2019s World and Bicycling magazines, creating service content to benefit runners and cyclists of all ages. When he\u2019s not out jogging, Matt can be found tweeting bad takes about the Phillies or watching movies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"VO2 max is widely known as a gold standard of aerobic fitness. It shows up on watches, in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":580770,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[64,63,538,137,143426],"class_list":{"0":"post-580769","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-fitness","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-lifeservice"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/580769","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=580769"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/580769\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/580770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=580769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=580769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=580769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}