Interval Training Best For VO2 Max

First, let’s understand the VO2 part. The acronym, as Wikipedia explains, represents the maximum capacity of an individual’s body to transport and use oxygen during incremental exercise, which reflects the physical fitness of the individual.  You get the picture, the greater your VO2, the fitter you are. Now comes an Ask Well column in the New York Times, inquiring about the best way to develop VO2; long runs or short bursts. The discouraging news, reports Reynolds, is that researchers believe that about half of VO2 is innate; you either have it or you don’t. And the other half? Reynolds reports that there’s not much certainty, but recent research suggests that “even a few minutes per week of high-intensity intervals can increase VO2 max to the same extent as many hours per week of more moderate, prolonged endurance training.”  Seen from the “best use of time” perspective, Reynolds’ researchers agree that you definitely get more physiological bang from intervals, although in an ideal world where time was not a consideration, both intervals and endurance training is best.