VO₂ Max Testing

Getting the best results starts before you arrive.

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To ensure the test captures a true and useful picture of your physiology, we recommend a few simple preparations:

• The day before:
  Take it easy. Avoid intense workouts or long training sessions. You want to come in rested so that your cardiovascular system reflects your baseline performance, not accumulated fatigue. Hydration is important too—drink water throughout the day, especially if you're coming off a busy or warm day.
• Four hours before your test:
  Water only. Please avoid food, caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol in the four hours leading up to your session. All of these can affect your heart rate, breathing, and metabolic response—shifting the very thresholds we’re here to measure.
• What to wear and bring:
  Dress as you would for a normal run or gym session—comfortable, breathable training gear and trainers. If you use a chest strap or smartwatch during training, feel free to bring them along. While we don’t test through those devices, we can help you interpret your results in the context of how you usually track effort.
• Before you arrive:
  We’ll send you a short health questionnaire. It’s quick to complete and helps us tailor the session to your needs while ensuring safety and clarity from the moment you walk in.

Testing takes place at our private fitness lab in Mayfair—a calm, high-spec performance space built for focused, one-to-one work. Unlike a commercial gym, there’s no background noise, no waiting for equipment, and no distractions. Just you, your Fitness Expert, and the data.

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Once you’ve checked in, we’ll walk you through exactly what to expect and fit a comfortable heart-rate monitor and lightweight breathing mask. Everything is non-invasive and designed for comfort and precision.

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You’ll begin with a short warm-up—five minutes at an easy effort on either a treadmill or stationary bike, depending on your preference. Then comes the ramp test: a gradual increase in speed or resistance every minute or so until you decide to stop. There’s no shouting or pushing—you go as far as you feel ready to, and most people complete the test within 8 to 12 minutes.

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Afterwards, we’ll guide you through a short cool-down and remove the equipment. We’ll talk through the key metrics you’ve just generated—VO₂ Max, heart-rate response, breathing patterns—and explain what happens next in plain language.

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The whole appointment, from arrival to departure, typically takes no more than 60 minutes. It’s designed to slot easily into your schedule—whether you’re coming before work, over lunch, or at the end of the day.

Your 60-minute appointment includes everything you need to understand and act on your results:

During your session:

• A one-to-one appointment with a Hooke Fitness Expert
• A full VO₂ Max and metabolic-threshold test using clinical-grade gas analysis
• Continuous heart-rate and oxygen monitoring for precise data capture
• Immediate verbal feedback highlighting your key metrics and performance

After your session:

• A personalised report, prepared by your Hooke Fitness Expert, delivered to you the same day
• Your report will include:
  • Your VO₂ Max score (both absolute and adjusted for your body weight), benchmarked against your age and sex
  • Identification of your fat-burning (FatMax) and carbohydrate-crossover thresholds
  • Five clearly defined and personalised training zones
  • Analysis of calories burned from fat versus carbohydrate at each intensity
  • Practical, goal-specific training and lifestyle recommendations based on your fitness aims

Without clear numbers, most people guess their training intensity—and often miss the mark.

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Your personalised report allows you to train with precision, not assumption.

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Example:
If your results show that your fat-burning peaks at a heart rate of 138 bpm, your Hooke Fitness Expert might recommend keeping your endurance sessions at or just below this heart rate. That way, you target exactly the physiological system you're trying to improve—building aerobic fitness and burning fat—without slipping into intensities that are too high to be efficient.

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Whether your goal is better endurance, improved speed, weight management or simply getting more benefit from limited training time, the report arms you with a precise roadmap.

VO₂ Max isn’t just an athletic metric—it’s one of the strongest predictors of health, resilience, and lifespan.

• Research suggests every 3.5-point increase in VO₂ Max (roughly one MET, or metabolic equivalent) is linked to a 13–15% lower risk of death from any cause.
• Higher VO₂ Max levels are consistently associated with:
  • Lower rates of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and certain cancers
  • Reduced risk of cognitive decline and dementia
  • Better mobility, independence and functional strength as you age

Example:
If two people are otherwise similar in weight, lifestyle and health but have different VO₂ Max scores—say, one at 30 ml/kg/min and another at 40 ml/kg/min—the person with the higher VO₂ Max is statistically likely to live longer, stay more active, and experience fewer chronic illnesses.

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Targeted training can meaningfully raise your VO₂ Max, often by 4–6 points within a few months—an intervention far more powerful (and safer) than most medications.