A typical VO2 max for men aged 40 to 49 is about 38 ml/kg/min on a measured treadmill test, and about 33 for men in their 50s. Above 45 puts a man in his 40s in the top quarter for his age. VO2 max matters because cardiorespiratory fitness is one of the strongest predictors of how long you live, and it falls by roughly 10% a decade unless you train it. You raise it with regular easy cardio plus one or two hard interval sessions a week.
VO2 max norms for men by age
VO2 max is the most oxygen your body can use during all-out exercise, measured in millilitres per kilogram of body weight per minute. These percentiles come from the FRIEND registry of measured treadmill tests in healthy US adults (Kaminsky et al., 2015):
| Age | 25th percentile | 50th (median) | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30–39 | 35.9 | 42.4 | 49.2 | 56.5 |
| 40–49 | 31.9 | 37.8 | 45.0 | 52.1 |
| 50–59 | 27.1 | 32.6 | 39.7 | 45.6 |
| 60–69 | 23.7 | 28.2 | 34.5 | 40.3 |
Values in ml/kg/min, men only. An updated FRIEND analysis in 2022 found treadmill reference values 1.5 to 4.6 ml/kg/min lower than these, and a decline with age averaging about 4 ml/kg/min per decade (Kaminsky et al., 2022). Either way, the order of magnitude is the same: the median man in his 40s sits in the high 30s.
Why VO2 max matters after 40
Cardiorespiratory fitness predicts mortality as strongly as many traditional risk factors. In 122,007 patients followed after treadmill testing, the lowest-fitness group had about five times the risk of death of the highest, and moving from below-average to above-average fitness was associated with a clearly lower risk (Mandsager et al., 2018). A meta-analysis of cohort studies came to a similar conclusion: better fitness was linked to lower risk of death and of heart disease and cardiovascular events (Kodama et al., 2009).
These are observational studies, so they show a strong association rather than proof. But fitness is one of the few risk markers you can change within months.
How to estimate your VO2 max
| Method | Accuracy | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Lab test with gas analysis (cardiopulmonary exercise test) | The reference standard | Usually paid privately; ask a sports medicine or exercise physiology clinic |
| Smartwatch estimate | Varies by person and device | Free if you own one |
| Field test (e.g. timed run or step test) | Moderate | Free |
Smartwatch numbers are fine for tracking your own trend on the same device. Don’t panic, or celebrate, over one reading compared with lab norms.
How to raise VO2 max after 40
Most men raise VO2 max with two ingredients:
- A base of easy aerobic work, two or three sessions of 30 to 50 minutes a week at a conversational pace. Zone 2 training explains how to find that intensity.
- One or two short interval sessions a week, where you work hard enough that you can only say a few words.
A starter interval session
| Phase | What to do |
|---|---|
| Warm-up | 10 minutes easy, building gradually |
| Intervals | 4 × 4 minutes hard (about 8/10 effort), 3 minutes easy between |
| Cool-down | 5–10 minutes easy |
Use a bike, rower, incline treadmill or hill. Start with 3 rounds if 4 feels too much. Build to 5 or 6 over a couple of months, or progress to shorter, faster repeats.
An eight-week progression
| Weeks | Easy sessions | Hard session |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 | 3 × 30 min | 3 × 3 min hard |
| 3–4 | 3 × 35 min | 4 × 3 min hard |
| 5–6 | 3 × 40 min | 4 × 4 min hard |
| 7–8 | 2 × 45 min + one long session | 5 × 4 min hard |
Keep your two or three strength sessions in the week. Put the hard cardio on a non-lifting day or after upper-body training. If you’re unsure how much total cardio to aim for, see how much cardio a man over 40 should do.
The bottom line
The median man in his 40s has a VO2 max in the high 30s. Moving up a percentile band, from below average to above average, is realistic in a few months and is one of the most valuable fitness changes you can make. If you’d like your cardio, strength and recovery planned together and adjusted as your fitness changes, that’s what monthly 1:1 coaching covers. To see how your other fitness markers compare, read the fitness standards for a 40-year-old man.
Questions people also ask
What is a good VO2 max for a 45-year-old man?
On measured treadmill tests in the US FRIEND registry, the middle value for men 40 to 49 was 37.8 ml/kg/min. Above 45 puts you in the top quarter for your decade; above 52 is in the top 10 percent.
Are smartwatch VO2 max numbers accurate?
They're estimates from heart rate and pace, and can be off for an individual. They're most useful for tracking your own trend over months on the same device, not for comparing against lab norms.
How fast can I improve VO2 max?
The response varies a lot between people. Give a consistent plan of easy cardio plus intervals at least two to three months before you judge it, and retest under the same conditions.
Does strength training improve VO2 max?
It isn't the main lever. VO2 max responds best to aerobic work, especially hard intervals. Strength training protects muscle and strength; a man over 40 needs both.
Sources
- Kaminsky et al. (2015), Reference standards for cardiorespiratory fitness measured with cardiopulmonary exercise testing (FRIEND), Mayo Clin Proc
- Kaminsky et al. (2022), Updated reference standards for cardiorespiratory fitness (FRIEND), Mayo Clin Proc
- Mandsager et al. (2018), Association of cardiorespiratory fitness with long-term mortality, JAMA Netw Open
- Kodama et al. (2009), Cardiorespiratory fitness as a quantitative predictor of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events, JAMA