Aerobic exercise, also known as CV or Cardio Vascular exercise, is exercise that requires the use of oxygen as a fuel supply, by pumping the oxygen around the body in the red blood cells of haemoglobin. This is the case whenever the body depletes it’s other fuel supplies such as the ATP (andenosine triphosphate) stores in the muscles, usually through extended use. What this implies then is that aerobic exercise is that which requires the body to undergo training that lasts ten minutes or more. This kind of training burns reserve fuels such as carbs and fats and so is useful for burning fat and making the muscles appear more visible. On top of this, aerobic training will strengthen the heart and the lungs and increase your general stamina leading to better all-round health.

The popular forms of aerobic exercise are running, swimming, bike riding and rowing, though any continuous exertion can count as aerobic exercise. Other good ones include punching a punching bag, shadow boxing, skipping or dancing.

The maximum speed at which the blood and so the oxygen can travel around the body is limited by an individual’s ‘VO2 Max’ which refers to the fastest the heart can pump blood. In other words if you were to gradually increase the treadmill, the point at which you stopped converting oxygen any more quickly would represent your maximum VO2.

To calculate your own VO2 max in mil/min/kg, use the equation below known as The Cooper Test:

VO2 Max = (metres covered in 12 minutes – 505) / 45.

This obviously requires you to sprint as far as you possibly can in twelve minutes, but you should ensure that you have a basic level of fitness before you attempt this as it can put a large strain on your heart and joints. An average VO2 max for males is about 44-51, while for females it’s 35-43. The record so far is in the realm of about 90-100.

Once you’ve worked out your own VO2 max you can then start to work towards improving it by increasing the amount of aerobic exercises you do. Doing these a couple of times a week to begin with will help build up your general fitness, with three or four being a good target. As you do this you can start to increase the duration/distance of you workouts and hopefully your VO2 max will increase in accordance.

If you are training for an event though or have been doing aerobic exercises for some time, then you can improve your VO2 at a faster rate by running in the cold or where the air is thin. This is what’s known as ‘altitude training’ where by training where oxygen is in short supply, you will improve your body’s efficiency for when it is abundant.

Mack LeMouse

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