VO2 Max

I did my first VO2 Max test. It was super fun. Ha! Actually, it was not as bad as I expected. It was way better than a visit to the urologist and not quite as fun as eating a cinnamon roll at Anna’s House.

It looks scary, but you can have as much oxygen as you want. And while it reminds me of the crazy thing my brother and a friend use to simulate oxygen deprivation, it is NOT that. I could have as much air as I wanted, but at about the 15 minute mark I could not suck it in fast enough. Ha!

My result was a 45 mL/kg/min (expressed in milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute). He consoled me with most people my age get a 26. While this is nice, I am not really concerned with anyone else. I just wanted to know mine so I could have a way to measure improvement.

The big ‘ah-ha’ today is I have been working a full 10 beats per minute too high for Zone 2 and Zone 4. While this is not bad for the Zone 4 stuff, I have actually been spending most of my time in Zone 3 which does almost nothing for cardiovascular health.

Seems good to dial it back, but it feels weird. Here is to getting to 47 in 6 months!

SHINE!
The Road Rider

PS While I was not my normal smiling self at n these pictures, I was told not to do anything but ride. No extra movements, no talking, no posing for the camera. This is what Jeff looks like focused.