I swim 3 times a week for 30 mins and am an Apple Watch user. My Apple Watch grades my effort for my swim at ‘all out’ with an average heart rate of around 140 and a top heart rate of about 150.
I also walk several times a week for 45 - 60 mins with an Apple Watch effort of ‘hard’ and an average heart rate of 115.
I’m 62 yrs old. I take amlodipine and ramipril for high blood pressure and atorvastatin for high cholesterol.
My normal resting heart rate is 60
My health app tells me that my average VO2 max is 17 and below average. Unfortunately no matter what I do I don’t seem to be able to improve my VO2 score.
Can someone please advise why this is and should I be concerned?
many thanks
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Jalfd100
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Hi Jalfd100, I had a similar conversation with my private cardiologist last week. My V02 isn’t as low as that but it’s lower than someone I know who isn’t as fit as I am, speaking with the cardiologist he told me to ignore it on the Apple Watch because the only way to get a true V02 is to be on a proper test system
Your average resting pulse of 60 is very good and your walking pulse also seems very good at 115. The fact that you can swim 3 times per week for 30 mins with an average pulse of around 140 also seems very good, as you’re pushing yourself slightly harder than when walking but for a shorter period.
Personally, I would go by your feelings rather than what grades your watch gives you.
Just use your watch as a control measure to ensure your exercise is regular and at a consistent pace.
As has been mentioned here, the various devices aren't as good as a full VO2 Max test. That said I use my Polar chest monitor to do one from time to time. Change can take quite a long time unfortunately. I find it helpful to focus on how things feel when I do these things and whether there is an improvement through the weeks and months. There is also a lot to be said for slower, steadier training, what is sometimes known as 'Zone 2' work. In essence this is where one would be able to hold a conversation whilst exercising (not easy whilst doing freestyle I know). It can feel like one is not doing 'enough' but it's the way a lot of the top athletes train. I use Polar heart monitors when cycling and swimming. They firstly give me a bit of reassurance that my (post cardiac arrest) heart isn't doing anything bonkers. The greater value of them is to be able to look at the trends in data over the months and years. As most cardiologists would say though, some exercise is always better than no exercise.
Hi Jalfd100, short answer - no, you shouldn't be concerned. You’re doing great!
Max VO2 is a valuable health metric but can only be measured accurately via a maximal test in a lab with a breathing mask. It’s expensive and horrible but some people do it. The Apple Watch provides an indirect estimate but is relatively accurate. Their algorithm was tested in a study with 755 volunteers and was found to be within 4% of the true value.
Things to consider:
1. Amount of exercise (how much) - Current recommendation is 150 minutes a week of ‘moderate’ activity or 75 minutes of ‘vigorous’ activity. You've got this covered👍
2. Intensity of exercise (how hard) - As you have an Apple Watch you can use heart rate zones. Stay in zone 2 to increase endurance and zone 5 to improve VO2. In a week, spend 80% of exercise time in zone 2 and 20% in Zone 5.
Here are the exercise heart rate zones for a 62 year old (Using Tanaka formula):
Zone 2 - 122-133 beats per minute
Zone 5 - 155-165
In summary - For you, improving VO2 means more minutes at higher intensity. This is usually achieved with some form of high intensity interval training. The Norwegian 4x4 is a popular example (detailed info here ntnu.edu/cerg/advice).
For my own exercise, I link my Apple Watch data to the MIA Health App as it tracks duration and intensity really well. I’m 64, 2 years post heart attack and quad bypass.
Please bear in mind this is relatively ‘general’ advice as I only have the information in your post to go on.
I agree with the thrust of what you're saying but the Tanaka formula seems problematical, as is the famous 'pedometer' scale. An added problem for many of us is that we may be on beta-blockers which affects the max heart rate - there seems to be little meaningful research that would allow the figure to be quantified. I'm 66 and in the last two years my max HR has only once reached 155. Last week, successfully climbing a hill (cycling) for the first time I blipped up to 147 for a moment. Simply, without being tested in a very controlled environment, ideally with a crash team and a defibrillator nearby, I don't think 162 is doable for me. And there's the rub really.
Intrigued to know what your concerns about the Tanaka calculation are as it tends to be more accurate for older folks like us. Also, not sure what you mean by the 'famous pedometer scale' in this context? For those on beta blockers I usually point them to this ntnu.edu/cerg/hrmax as it's based on a large data set and takes beta blockers into account for the calculation - have a go and see what you think. If all else fails, perceived exertion does the job IMO. All the best 👍
have you recorded your meds on your Apple Watch? When I recorded mine my VO2 fell dramatically. Did a google search and it appears this is something Apple does. I removed my meds and the VO2 came straight up. Basically this just confirms to me that this is not a reliable measurement on the watch!
You're spot on that certain meds will affect the result. These would be primarily heart rate limiting medications such as beta blockers and calcium channel blockers. But the fact they take this into account I see as evidence of it being more, not less, reliable. This is the Apple report on how it all works apple.com/healthcare/docs/s...
I view my apple watch data as decent enough for real world use as I'm aware of the limitations but can still get a decent tune out of it, if you know what I mean...👍
Hi, how long have you been wearing your watch ? It may take a few months for it to accumulate enough info to give a VO2 ? I’m wearing a new garmin device and it’s taken about 2-3 months to get consistency. I’m 62 (63 in May ) , 4x bypass following nstemi July 2023. Running I wear chest strap monitor, lane swim just my watch. Stats are steady now .
Hi, do you take beta blockers? They disrupt the Apple Watch records. That aside my VO2 max is 32.7. I’m not very active either. Out of interest what’s your heart rate variability? I’ve had open heart surgery and mine is 15ms. I think that’s quite low. There is a setting to turn on or off beta blockers. I turned mine off despite taking 1.25mg Bisoprolol as otherwise my figures are wrecked. There is quite a lot of comments on blogs requesting Apple to sort out their algorithm.
Simple answer, don't pay attention to watch readings. They at simply not accurate, except for perhaps your pulse rate. So you should not be concerned. If you want accurate reading you need to take the right tests. If you are doing those exercises and feeling well why worry.
thank you for all your comments. I do take Amlodipine which is a calcium channel blocker and I have added this to my health app and this has definitely lowered my VO2 max. I also understand there is an accuracy issue with a watch reading however what I find worrying is that no matter how hard I try the VO2 max reading doesn’t ever seem to get above 18. I also don’t seem to find exercise getting easier. I have been using the watch for the last 4 years. I did have a period of time quite recently when I didn’t exercise so maybe I’m being impatient. My average HRV tends to be 30. But the HRV can go down as low as 7 after exercise and it takes me a good two hours to recover. Thanks again everyone. I’ll keep going
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Low 'resting' pulse rate
high sleeping heart rate 
NSTEMI and BP / Heart Rate
monitoring heart rate
I know this may have been asked many times - Apple Watch - yay or nay?
