VO₂ Max Training: The Science, the Zones, and What Samit Learned From

VO₂ Max is a buzzword in the world of fitness — but most people either don’t know what it actually means or don’t realize how much it can reveal about their performance, recovery, and even longevity.

In this post, we break down:

What VO₂ Max really is
Why it matters for anyone who trains
What Samit (Founder & CEO of Neulife) learned from his own VO₂ Max test
Why today's cricketers are built like bodybuilders — and what that tells us about energy systems

Let’s dive in. This is science you can actually use.

🧠 What Is VO₂ Max?

VO₂ Max stands for Volume of Oxygen Max, or the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during exercise. It’s measured in millilitres of oxygen per kilogram of bodyweight per minute (ml/kg/min).

It indicates your aerobic fitness — in other words, how efficiently your lungs, heart, blood, and muscles work together to power your body.

🧪 What Determines VO₂ Max?

According to Samit:

“VO₂ is nothing but the volume of oxygen that blood can carry to working muscles… This is determined by your metabolic state, red blood cell density, and your cardiorespiratory fitness.”

Some key determinants:

Genetics (large influence)
Mitochondrial efficiency
Red blood cell count
Altitude adaptation
Training history

Samit adds:

“VO₂ Max is not so trainable because it is largely hereditary. You can train it through low-altitude training… but the gains are modest compared to something like lactate threshold.”

💬 Samit’s Personal Experience With VO₂ Max Testing

He recently took a lab test and shared this:

“I measured my VO₂ Max last month — about 52 ml/kg/min.”

To put that in context:

30–40 ml/kg/min is average for an untrained adult
50–60 ml/kg/min is strong recreational level
70–80+ ml/kg/min is elite endurance athlete level

The test uses a treadmill and a breathing mask to measure how much oxygen you’re consuming and how much carbon dioxide you’re producing at various intensities.

“They keep increasing the pace… you breathe in oxygen, and exhale carbon dioxide. They use reverse calculations to figure out how much oxygen your body is actually using.”

🏋️♂️ The Big Picture: VO₂ Max Is Only One Piece of the Puzzle

VO₂ Max tells you how much oxygen your body can deliver. But that doesn’t tell the full story of how long you can sustain that effort. That’s where lactate threshold comes in — and it’s far more trainable.

“Lactate threshold is one of the most trainable variables in endurance training,” Samit explains.
“If you increase your lactate threshold, you can stay in the aerobic zone longer — and avoid the wall caused by lactic acid build-up.”

⚡ VO₂ Max Training Zones — Explained Simply

Your heart rate and energy systems are divided into 5 zones:

Zone	Description	Fuel Source	Duration
Zone 1	Very light (recovery)	Mostly fat	Hours
Zone 2	Aerobic base	Fat & some carbs	1–3 hours
Zone 3	Moderate (tempo)	Mix of fat & carbs	~1 hour
Zone 4	Threshold	Mostly carbs, lactate builds	30–60 mins
Zone 5	VO₂ Max / HIIT	Carbs only, high lactate	Seconds to a few mins

“Zone 2 is where your energy mostly comes from fat. But as you go into Zone 4 and 5, your body starts using glucose rapidly, and lactate starts building up fast,” says Samit.

He notes:

“In Zone 5, VO₂ Max is maxed out. Beyond that, world-class athletes might hit 80 ml/kg/min — but most people won't.”

🏏 Why Cricketers Look Like Bodybuilders Today

Samit makes a striking observation about how the demands of modern sport have evolved:

“In cricket, every time I hit a shot, I have to sprint. So I need more muscle mass and more creatine phosphate to fuel that sprint… That’s why today’s cricketers are very well built. Very muscular. They almost look like bodybuilders.”

💡 This illustrates the shift in cricket from long, slow play to explosive, high-intensity bursts — which require:

More fast-twitch muscle
Anaerobic energy systems
Higher creatine phosphate capacity

It’s not about being lean — it’s about being explosive and repeatably powerful.

📉 Can You Improve Your VO₂ Max?

Yes — but expect gradual progress, not overnight transformation.

Effective training strategies:

Zone 2 cardio (fat-burning, aerobic base)
Threshold intervals (increase lactate clearance)
HIIT (boost peak oxygen use and tolerance to lactic acid)
Altitude or hypoxic training (increases red blood cells — if available)

✅ Final Takeaways

VO₂ Max = your body's oxygen delivery capacity
It's mostly genetic but can be improved with consistent training
Lactate threshold is more trainable and directly impacts performance
Cricketers and athletes need different energy systems depending on their sport
Testing VO₂ Max reveals deep insights — beyond just a fitness score

Samit sums it up perfectly:

“You need to study these three systems [aerobic, anaerobic glycolysis, and creatine phosphate]… and visualize your sport to know which one to train. That’s how you train smart — not just hard.”

🧪 Who Should Get a VO₂ Max Test — and Why

If you're an athlete, endurance enthusiast, or even just someone training regularly and not seeing results — a VO₂ Max test can be eye-opening.

It tells you:

How efficiently your body uses oxygen
Your aerobic vs anaerobic thresholds
Whether you're burning fat or glucose at different intensities
How to train smarter — not harder

✅ Recommended for:

Runners, cyclists, swimmers
CrossFit or HIIT trainees
Anyone struggling with fat loss despite consistent training
Coaches optimizing sport-specific programming
People curious about their metabolic efficiency

Getting tested takes the guesswork out of training — and gives you data-driven direction to improve performance, endurance, and body composition.

VO₂ Max Training: The Science, the Zones, and What Samit Learned From Testing Himself