BOOST YOUR MAXIMAL AEROBIC CAPACITY

Maximum aerobic capacity, which often appears as VO2max in scientific papers, is one of the best ways to measure cardiovascular fitness and aerobic power. You can train to improve strength, fitness and agility, so it makes sense that you should also be able to improve maximal aerobic capacity. A study published in The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness investigates the impact of positive feedback.

Regular runners took a VO2max test, and within 2 weeks, took the test again. Before the second test, some subjects were told it was just for verification of the first test while others were told they scored above average. Those in the test verification group showed an average VO2max decrease of 4.11% on the second test. Subjects who were told they were above average increased VO2max by an average of 3.28%.