🏃 VO2 Max Calculator — 5K Time
Estimate your aerobic fitness level and training paces from your 5K race time
| Distance | Predicted Time | Pace (min/mile) | Pace (min/km) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Mile | — | — | — |
| 5K | — | — | — |
| 10K | — | — | — |
| Half Marathon | — | — | — |
| Marathon | — | — | — |
| 5K Time | VDOT | VO2 Max | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14:30 | 75 | 75.0 | Elite |
| 15:30 | 71 | 71.0 | Elite |
| 16:30 | 67 | 67.0 | Excellent |
| 17:30 | 63 | 63.0 | Excellent |
| 18:30 | 60 | 60.0 | Excellent |
| 19:30 | 57 | 57.0 | Good |
| 20:30 | 55 | 55.0 | Good |
| 22:00 | 51 | 51.0 | Above Average |
| 24:00 | 47 | 47.0 | Average |
| 25:00 | 45 | 45.0 | Average |
| 26:00 | 43 | 43.0 | Average |
| 28:00 | 40 | 40.0 | Below Average |
| 30:00 | 38 | 38.0 | Below Average |
| 33:00 | 34 | 34.0 | Poor |
| 36:00 | 31 | 31.0 | Poor |
| 38:00 | 29 | 29.0 | Poor |
| 40:00 | 28 | 28.0 | Poor |
| 43:00 | 26 | 26.0 | Very Poor |
| 46:00 | 24 | 24.0 | Very Poor |
| 50:00 | 22 | 22.0 | Very Poor |
| Zone | % VO2 Max | min/mile | min/km |
|---|---|---|---|
| Easy / Recovery | 65–79% | — | — |
| Marathon Pace | 80–90% | — | — |
| Threshold (Tempo) | 83–88% | — | — |
| Interval (VO2 Max) | 97–100% | — | — |
VO2 Max is the biggest amount of oxygen that the body is able to take and use during strong physical work. The word splits easily: “V” means volume, “O2” means oxygen, and “max” means the highest. Picture it like the power of an engine in a car.
DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning when you click the links and make a purchase, I receive a commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
It measures the skill of the body’s “engine” to process oxygen when it must work hard.
VO2 Max: What It Is, How to Measure It, and How to Improve It
One measures it by means of milliliters of oxygen for every kilo of weight of the body during one minute. If VO2 Max is higher, that shows that the body well takes oxygen from the air and carries it to the muscles. During aerobic exercise the heart system mainly cares about moving the blood flow with oxygen and food to the active muscles.
VO2 Max reveals how well the heart pumsp blood to the muscles and how well they pull oxygen from it.
VO2 Max is usually seen as the main mark for heart fitness and aerobic level. It helps to judge the aerobic skill of a sportsman before or during training. Even so it forms only part of the whole picture.
The speed at aerobic threshold or lactate threshold commonly shows the aerobic activity better, because it counts more factors at once.
Good lab tests include exercise on a treadmill, fixed bike or rowing machine, while one wears a mask or tube bound to a device for reading oxygen. Even so there are easier ways to measure it. The Cooper test requires you to run or walk as quickly as possible for exactly 12 minutes, and the covered distance relates two VO2 Max. One can measure VO2 Max also by means of a math equation based on data of heart rhythm.
Many training apps count it from weight, distance, pace and heart rhythm. If one reaches the same work level with low heart rhythm compared to others, that points to better VO2 Max score.
Genes play a big part in setting VO2 Max. Also age affects it. The maximum heart rhythm drops by 0.6 to 0.8 beats per minute each year, and aging shrinks the mitochondria in the working muscles. There are sex differences, partly because of lower levels of hemoglobin and slightly smaller bodies in women.
But studies showed that previously inactive older men and women, who trained during nine months to a year, both raised their VO2 Max average by 20 percent.
High intensity interval training ranks among the most effective ways to raise VO2 Max. Intervals of two to four minutes of hard work with enough pause for rest before the next round work well. Varying the intensity helps also. When VO2 Max grows, the resting heart rhythm tends to drop, and during the same exercise the normal heart rhythm should be lower.
Even so one should not train VO2 Max during the whole year. Too much of it can causeovertraining. One can build it quickly, but also lose it quickly.
