Which has
better VO2 max estimates, Cooper’s 12-minute formula or Apple Watch?
I just ran the 12 minute
test (1% incline commercial treadmill) and squeaked out 1.51 miles.
The Cooper formula estimate is 43 VO2max an at
62y/o in the 90th percentile.
My Apple watch over the year has estimated a
*below average* 27 VO2max.
Which is closer to the truth?
(BTW, its hard to imagine holding an 8 min pace is
*below* average for 62 y/o men, but what do I know?)
This information comes from:
https://www.cultofmac.com/610268/vo2-max-apple-watch-aerobic-fitness/
To accurately measure your VO2 max, you must wear a face mask. This is the only way to know for sure how much oxygen is going in and out of your lungs.
Since Apple Watch is worn on your wrist, not your face, this is out of the question. So instead, Apple Watch provides a “predicted VO2 max” metric. This is an estimate based on changes in your heart rate during exercise.
The relationship between heart rate and VO2 max is not precise, and it varies from one individual to another. So Apple’s predicted VO2 max may not be very accurate. The estimate is also dependent upon your Apple Watch’s heart rate sensor. And while that’s pretty good, it is not infallible.
Apple Watch may log your VO2 max, but you can’t currently check it on the watch itself. To see your stats, you must use the Health app on your iPhone. Go to Health Data > Activity and scroll down to find it. If you have readings for the current month, they will be highlighted in a big orange box. If you have no VO2 max data, it will be languishing at the bottom of the list, under No Recorded Data.
If you can’t find any VO2 max readings in the Health app, that is probably because you have not yet logged the right kind of workouts with your watch. It can take at least 24 hours of wearing your Apple Watch, followed by several Outdoor Walk, Outdoor Run, or Hiking workouts and passive measurements with your Apple Watch before you receive an initial estimate. It has to be one of those 3 workout types. VO2 max relates to maximal exertion. So you’ll need to log a pretty intensive workout to generate a reading. And you’ll need to sustain it for at least 20 minutes.
My Series 6 Watch VO2 estimate matched my laboratory recorded treadmill VO2max test of 45.
You are as fast or faster than me so I think your watch is wrong. I just got a new Watch Ultra 2 and it now says 35 the day after my old watch said 47.
It seems that the heart rate monitoring must be inaccurate because all it has to calculate with is time, distance and heart rate and maybe it adds something for elevation change.
Apple Health and VO2max estimates
