You have a VO2max number, but what does it actually mean? Whether a value is good depends on your age, your sex and how it was measured. This article helps you place your value in context and explains why the trend over time matters more than any single reading.
How VO2max is measured
Estimated or measuredThere are two very different ways to get a VO2max number. A smartwatch estimates it from your heart rate and pace, which is convenient but can be off by a wide margin. A spiroergometry test measures the oxygen and carbon dioxide in your breath directly during a graded exercise test. Only the direct measurement gives you a value you can truly rely on and compare against reference standards.
Reference values by age
FRIEND reference registryThe table below shows the median (50th percentile) VO2max for healthy men, measured on a treadmill, from the FRIEND reference registry. If your value sits above the median for your age group, you are fitter than half of your peers ; the top 10 percent typically lies around 12 to 15 ml/kg/min higher. The second column is the target we actually work towards at StoaVita ; the section after the table explains where it comes from.
| Age | Median (ml/kg/min) | StoaVita target (ml/kg/min) |
|---|---|---|
| 20 to 29 | 48.0 | > 66own age group |
| 30 to 39 | 42.4 | > 66 |
| 40 to 49 | 37.8 | > 60 |
| 50 to 59 | 32.6 | > 56 |
| 60 to 69 | 28.2 | > 51 |
| 70 to 79 | 24.4 | > 43 |
Source of the median values : FRIEND registry, treadmill, men (Kaminsky 2015), taken from the same StoaVita reference database our client reports classify against. The target in the second column is not a figure from the registry : it is our own benchmark, namely the excellent threshold of that same table read one age decade lower. Separate reference tables apply to women, and cycle ergometry has its own set (Kaminsky 2017).
Where our longevity target comes from
One decade youngerThe median tells you where the middle of your age group sits. It is a useful anchor, but it is not a goal : it describes the average, and the average declines steadily. Read the median column from top to bottom and you can see the decline in the reference data itself. From one decade to the next it drops by roughly 11 to 14 percent, from 48.0 at ages 20 to 29 down to 24.4 at ages 70 to 79. Aiming for the middle of your own age group means declining along with it.
That is why we set the bar differently at StoaVita. Our longevity target is the excellent category, the top five percent, of the age group one decade younger than you. A 45-year-old man is therefore not measured against his own group but against the excellent mark of the 30 to 39 year olds, which is above 60 ml/kg/min. The value is not invented : it comes from the same FRIEND reference table, we simply read it one row higher.
The reasoning is simple. Fitness you build today is the reserve you live off decades later. If you hold the level of a group ten years younger, the natural decline starts from a higher point, and it takes far longer before everyday activities such as stairs, luggage or a brisk walk uphill become strenuous. For people in their twenties there is no younger group to borrow from, so the excellent mark of their own age group is the level to reach and then defend.
One caveat that matters : this target is a training benchmark for healthy, training people, not a medical threshold and not a promise. Where your personal target sits depends on your starting point, your history and your health. In our reports we therefore always name the next realistic stage first, and keep the decade-younger mark as the direction of travel behind it.
Two important caveats. First, women reach their VO2max plateau at lower absolute values than men at the same age, so use sex-specific reference tables when you compare. Second, a test on a bike (cycle ergometry) typically produces values about 5 to 10 percent lower than a treadmill test, especially for people who do not cycle regularly. Always compare like with like.
What your value means for health
Fitness and life expectancyReference tables tell you where you stand against peers ; the health relevance goes further. In large cohort studies, higher fitness is associated with lower all-cause mortality, and the association keeps improving into the highest performers with no plateau.
Each additional MET of fitness (about 3.5 ml/kg/min) has been linked to roughly 13 percent lower mortality risk. This is an association from observational data, not a guarantee, but the size of the effect is why VO2max is taken so seriously.
Why the trend beats the single value
Baseline, then retestA one-off number is a snapshot. What really tells you whether your training and lifestyle are working is the direction of travel over months and years. A value that holds steady or rises as you age is a strong signal ; a value that drifts down is an early prompt to act. That is why we recommend re-testing under the same conditions rather than fixating on a single reading.
Measure your starting point
Direct VO2max analysis including training zones, in Tübingen and the greater Stuttgart area.
Sources (primary literature)
- Kaminsky LA, Arena R, Myers J (2015). Reference standards for cardiorespiratory fitness (treadmill), FRIEND registry. Mayo Clin Proc 90(11):1515-1523. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2015.07.026
- Kaminsky LA et al. (2017). Reference standards for cardiorespiratory fitness using cycle ergometry, FRIEND registry. Mayo Clin Proc 92(2):228-233. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.10.003
- Kodama S et al. (2009). Cardiorespiratory fitness as a quantitative predictor of all-cause mortality. JAMA 301(19):2024-2035. doi:10.1001/jama.2009.681
- Mandsager K et al. (2018). Association of cardiorespiratory fitness with long-term mortality. JAMA Netw Open 1(6):e183605. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.3605
This article is educational and does not replace medical advice. StoaVita provides longevity and performance coaching, not medical treatment.
