VO₂max vs. Submaximal Testing in Calgary

You’ve probably heard the term VO₂max thrown around in running groups, fitness apps, and endurance communities. It’s the gold standard for measuring aerobic capacity — the highest amount of oxygen your body can consume and use during intense exercise. But here’s a question most people don’t ask: do you actually need to go all-out to get meaningful fitness data?

The answer is no — and that’s where submaximal testing comes in. At Vital Performance Care inside Eau Claire Athletic Club in Calgary, we offer both VO₂max testing and submaximal predictive VO₂max testing. Both give you real, actionable data. But they serve different people, different goals, and different days. Here’s how to know which one is the right fit for you.

What Is VO₂max Testing?

VO₂max testing is a maximal exercise test that directly measures the highest rate at which your body can take in, transport, and use oxygen during all-out effort. It’s expressed in mL/kg/min and is widely considered the gold standard for cardiovascular fitness assessment.

During the test, you work progressively harder — on a treadmill or bike — while wearing a mask connected to a metabolic analyzer that measures the oxygen you inhale and the carbon dioxide you exhale. You’ll push until you physically can’t go any harder. At that ceiling, we capture your true VO₂max.

What you walk away with is highly precise data: your exact VO₂max score, your ventilatory thresholds (the points where your body shifts from aerobic to anaerobic energy), and personalized heart rate training zones based on your actual physiology — not an age-based formula.

We’ve written in detail about what VO₂max testing involves, what it can (and can’t) tell you, and whether it’s the right test for you in our full blog: Unlock Your Potential: VO₂max Testing in Calgary.

What Is Submaximal Testing — and How Is It Different?

Submaximal testing estimates your VO₂max without ever pushing you to your limit. Instead of measuring oxygen directly, it uses the predictable, linear relationship between heart rate and exercise intensity to extrapolate what your aerobic capacity would be at maximum effort — without you ever reaching it.

The science behind this is well established. The test is based on the Astrand-Rhyming method (1954), which relies on four key assumptions:

• VO₂ for a given workload is consistent across individuals
• Heart rate rises linearly with power output up to your maximum
• A steady-state heart rate is achieved at each workload stage
• Maximum heart rate can be estimated using age (220 − age)

Using these principles, we can plot your heart rate response across two to four progressively harder workloads, then draw a line to your age-predicted maximum heart rate. Where that line intersects gives us your predicted VO₂max — no mask, no all-out sprint required.

What Actually Happens During a Submaximal Test at Vital

Here’s what to expect when you come in for a submaximal test with us.

Before You Arrive

To get accurate results, preparation matters. In the 24 hours before your test:

• No caffeine on the day of your test — it elevates heart rate and will underestimate your VO₂max
• No strenuous exercise within 24 hours
• No alcohol within 12 hours
• Eat a light meal 2–3 hours before (avoid heavy meals within 2 hours)
• Wear comfortable clothing and proper athletic footwear
• Arrive well hydrated

Safety Screening

Before we begin, we measure your resting heart rate and blood pressure following CSEP pre-exercise testing guidelines. We will not proceed if your resting HR is above 100 bpm or your blood pressure is at or above 160/90 mmHg. This is standard protocol — it’s there to keep you safe and ensure your results are accurate.

The Test Itself

The test typically takes place on a stationary bike. You’ll cycle through two to four progressive workload stages, each three to four minutes long. At each stage, we monitor your heart rate and your Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) — how hard it feels on a scale of 1 to 10. Once your heart rate stabilizes (within ±5 bpm), we move to the next stage.

You never push to exhaustion. The goal is a steady, moderate effort — think “comfortably challenging” at most. Most people find the test genuinely manageable, even enjoyable.

What You Get from Each Test

Both tests give you a VO₂max score benchmarked against CSEP (Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology) norms by age and gender — ranging from Poor to Excellent. They also both produce personalized training zones.

The submaximal test outputs the same five-zone structure:

Zone	Intensity	RPE(1-10)	HR(bpm)	%HRmax
1	Easy / Recovery	1–2	<100	50–60%
2	Moderate / Endurance	3–4	100–115	60–70%
3	Heavy / Transition	5–6	116–130	70–80%
4	Severe / Threshold	7–8	131–147	80–90%
5	Maximal	9–10	148+	>90%

The key difference is precision. A direct VO₂max test identifies your exact ventilatory thresholds — the specific points where your energy systems shift — using real gas exchange data. The submaximal test estimates training zones from heart rate extrapolation, which is accurate enough for the vast majority of people but doesn’t capture the finer physiological detail.

VO₂max vs. Submaximal Testing: Side by Side

	VO₂max Test	Submaximal Test
Effort required	Maximal — push to exhaustion	Moderate — never near your limit
Measurement type	Direct (measured)	Estimated (predicted via HR)
Accuracy	Gold standard	Very good for most populations
Equipment	Metabolic cart + mask	Bike or treadmill + HR monitor
Duration	~1 hour	~45–60 minutes
Training zones	Precise, from direct data	Accurate, from HR extrapolation
CSEP norms	Yes	Yes
Who it’s best for	Competitive athletes, researchers	General population, all fitness levels
Medical clearance	Recommended for higher risk individuals	Safety screened; lower risk

 

Which Test Is Right for You?

The honest answer: it depends on your goals, your fitness level, and how you respond to high-intensity effort.

Choose VO₂max Testing If:

• You’re a competitive or semi-competitive endurance athlete (runner, cyclist, triathlete) who trains with precision
• You’ve hit a plateau and want to know exactly where your aerobic ceiling is
• You’re interested in knowing your ventilatory thresholds — not just estimated zones
• You want to pair testing with our VO₂max Booster Program and track measurable improvement over time
• Longevity is a priority — VO₂max is one of the strongest predictors of long-term health and all-cause mortality

Choose Submaximal Testing If:

• You’re newer to structured exercise or returning after a break
• You’re managing a health condition, injury, or are in a rehab phase
• You want meaningful fitness data without the physical stress of a maximal test
• You’re interested in establishing a baseline to track your progress over time
• You simply prefer not to push to exhaustion — and that’s a perfectly valid reason

Not sure which one fits? That’s what we’re here for. A short conversation with our team is all it takes to point you in the right direction.

Both Tests Are Available at Vital Performance Care in Calgary

Vital Performance Care is located inside Eau Claire Athletic Club in Calgary. Our Exercise Physiologist, Carla Robbins (MSc Exercise Physiology), offers both VO₂max and submaximal testing — and is one of the only professionals in Calgary trained and credentialed to administer maximal exercise testing on any individual cleared to exercise.

In Canada, Exercise Physiologists are the only training professionals qualified to perform maximal exercise testing. This distinction matters — it means the data you receive is collected and interpreted with clinical-level expertise, not just a fitness tracker algorithm.

After your test, you leave with a full report: your VO₂max or predicted VO₂max, your CSEP health benefit rating, your personalized training zones, and guidance on how to use that information to train smarter.

If you want to take the next step and actually improve your VO₂max after testing, we also offer the VO₂max Booster Program in partnership with O2max — a respiratory muscle training program that can improve VO₂max by 10–25% through structured breathing and metabolic training. Not just knowing your number, but moving it.

The Bottom Line

VO₂max testing and submaximal testing are both legitimate, science-backed tools for understanding your aerobic fitness. Neither is universally better — the right choice is the one that fits where you are right now and what you’re trying to accomplish.

If you’re a serious athlete optimizing for performance, go direct. If you want accurate, actionable fitness data without an all-out effort, the submaximal test delivers everything you need.

Either way, you’ll walk out of Vital with a real picture of where your fitness stands — and a clear direction for what to do next.

Ready to find out where your fitness stands?Book a complimentary 15-minute consult with Carla to figure out which test is right for you — or book directly into a VO₂max or submaximal testing session.→ Book a Free 15-Minute Consult → Book VO₂max Testing

 

References

Astrand, P.O. & Rhyming, I. (1954). A nomogram for calculation of aerobic capacity (physical fitness) from pulse rate during submaximal work. Journal of Applied Physiology, 7(2), 218–221.

Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (2019). CSEP Physical Activity Training for Health (CSEP-PATH) Resource Manual (2nd ed.).

Mandsager, K. et al. (2018). Association of cardiorespiratory fitness with long-term mortality among adults undergoing exercise treadmill testing. JAMA Network Open, 1(6), e183605.

Kyral, A. M., Shipherd, A. M., & Hearon, C. M. (2019). The effect of moderate intensity aerobic exercise on affect and exercise intention. PubMed, 12(5), 1070–1079.