Should you track your VO2 max?
Mar 27th 2026|3 min read
At the 2026 Winter Olympics, held in Milan in February, Norwegian athletes topped the medals leaderboard. But the country’s year of record-breaking athleticism did not begin on the Italian slopes. In January lab footage emerged suggesting that Kristian Blummenfelt, a triathlete, had recorded the highest-ever VO2 max score, the most well-known gauge for cardio-respiratory fitness (CRF). Until recently such news would have interested few people apart from fellow endurance athletes. But an increasing number of health gurus and fitness influencers have begun touting to ordinary people the benefits of tracking VO2 max. Are they right?
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Should you track your VO2 max?”
From the April 4th 2026 edition
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