Max Your Workouts

5.06

If you are investing in your wellness lifestyle, in your pantry and your level of activity, you will certainly benefit. I've been investing in my pantry choices for about 8 years, and every year I move the needle in a positive direction.


And my physical fitness keeps improving as well. Just being intentional about wellness will make a huge difference, if we'll simply do the work. Something I pay a bit of attention to is my VO2 max. This is a technical, physiological measure of our body's ability to absorb and use oxygen (measured in ml/kg/min.)

The better your aerobic health, the higher your VO2 max will be. Think of it as the efficiency of your circulation system 'plumbing'. Check out this article from Runner's World for a good explanation:
Runner's World on VO2 max

I've had a FitBit Blaze for a couple years, and it does a fairly good job of approximating things like VO2 max (using heart rate and stamina stats within long periods of exertion). My VO2 max? 54-58, which for an old guy like me is in the excellent (some even say 'superior') category. It simply means I can sustain a long, intense workout without 'hitting the wall'.

What does this really tell us? There are objective results from your wellness journey. Some days you may feel like you're doing all this work and not getting very far. But if you can track some simple parameters (like VO2 max) you're likely to learn that there is good coming from investing in your wellness.

So keep at it. Get to the gym, or out on the road. Stock up on some great food. Challenge the way you've always looked at your diet and your exercise - step it up this week. Register for a great race or workout which will really challenge you. And soon enough, you'll make progress that you couldn't have imagined when you began.

By the Way

There are great charts on VO2 max available online. Check these out and see where you are, and then work on a means to measure and track your own VO2 max (like a fitness tracker with a heart rate monitor).
Why I Exercise - charts