Vo2 Max & Fitness test

A definition of cardiovascular fitness can be explained as the ability of the heart, lungs and circulatory system to supply oxygen and nutrients to working muscles efficiently, and allows activities that involve large muscle groups (walking, running, swimming, biking, etc.) to be performed over long periods of time. From a health standpoint, cardiovascular or aerobic fitness is generally considered to be the most important of the fitness components.

I had the opportunity to get a fitness test and my maximum oxygen consumption (Max VO2) measured last Friday at the Human Performance lab here at CSU. A fitness test along with a Max VO2 test is part of the fitness for life class that students take at the end of the semester.
My fitness test results included the measurements of:
**Blood Chemistry's - Total Cholesterol -203 mg/dl, HDL - 65 mg/dl, LDL - 120 mg/dl, Triglycerides - 86 mg/dl, and Glucose - 95mg/dl,
**Muscular Strength Assessment - Grip (L) 53 kg, and Grip (R) 49 kg
**Flexibility Assessment - Sit & Reach - 9.3 in
**Body Composition - Body weight 144lbs, Lean Body Mass 134.5 lbs, Fat Mass 9.5 lbs, Basal Metabolic Rate 1915, Body fat percentage 6.6%.
My Body Age is 39 compared to my chronological age of 47. I finally caught up with my father who still claims to be 39. Now I can say, 'I'm turdee-nine too (said with a Hungarian accent).

The Max VO2 test was performed on a treadmill. I started with a warm-up run at a 7:30 pace for 10 minutes and the incline set to zero. After the warm-up a head piece with a mouth piece connected to hoses and a nose clip were put on and I was hooked up to the machine to begin the test. The test began with me running at the 7:30 pace and the incline increased to 3 percent every 3 minutes. I hit my max of 60.8 ml/kg-min ten minutes into the test and the incline was set to 9 percent. At eleven minutes the effort began to wane and my VO2 went down to 58.6 which meant I wouldn't get any better than 60.8 and the test was completed. I think I might have done better if the nose clip didn't keep flying off my sweaty nose and the head piece would have stayed on better. I was a bit distracted with those issues and lost my concentration to push it a little harder. Overall I was please with the results which indicated my cardiovascular fitness to be in the 99th percentile and the Elite classification.

I have been in the program for the past 6 years and have been tested every year. I find it interesting to review the results and compare it with pervious years.