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How accurate is VO₂max tracking from wearables like WHOOP, Oura, and Garmin compared to lab tests (lactate threshold or spiroergometry)?
1 day ago (edited)
As my current fitness bottleneck is VO₂max, I’ve been adjusting my training to improve it.
To track progress accurately, I wanted to understand how reliable the VO₂max estimate from my WHOOP 4.0 is compared to a gold-standard lab test (spirometry with lactate threshold measurement). Here’s what I found:
My Results:
• WHOOP 4.0 estimate: 50 mL/kg/min
• Lab spiroergometry (bike ergometer): 45 mL/kg/min
Difference:
WHOOP appears to overestimate by about 10–15%, which aligns with what some studies and anecdotal reports suggest for wearables. That said, my WHOOP 5.0 just arrived, and I’ll recheck the values using the next-generation sensor hardware to see if there are any improvements or adjustments.
Important note:
My doctor mentioned that my true VO₂max might indeed be closer to 50 mL/kg/min, since the test was done on a bike ergometer. As I’m not a trained cyclist, my leg endurance may have limited the result.
Pro tip:
If you want the most accurate VO₂max reading, look for a spiro lab that offers testing on a treadmill or rowing ergometer in addition to a bike. These modalities engage more muscle groups, potentially leading to a higher and more holistic VO₂max reading, especially for runners, rowers, or hybrid athletes.
What about you?
Have you done a VO₂max lab test? How did it compare to your wearable (WHOOP, Garmin, Oura, Apple Watch, etc.)?
Would love to hear your experiences, especially if you tested on different machines or with different protocols.
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I will do a VO2max Spiro test this year in order to interpret the estimates by Whoop, Polar and the measurement at the Life Summit 2025 - and of course I will do it on a treadmill :)
I personally never measure my Vo2 Max. In my own instance, it's a vanity metric. My Garmin Venu 3 puts me at 70, my alltime high on Garmin is 72. That looks great in theory, but in reality I'm nowhere near my peak fitness. Running efficiency also plays a huge factor, hard to measure effectively.
I think for the general population what is most relevant is measuring your 5km time - can you run a 5km faster than 25 minutes? Good. Can you run faster than 20 minutes? Great. This is a very good predictor of cardiovascular health. You can use a different test for cycling, or swimming, whatever form of cardio you choose.
I don't think I'd ever think of Vo2 Max as a bottleneck to my training, especially with running. Just my perspective.
Had mine tested in Sept last year, also did a Cooper test to compare + my value from fitbit:
Spiro: 57.3
Fitbit: 57
Cooper: 58
Did the spiro on a treadmill and have been on a quite consistent running routine for very long time, so would not say it will be matching as much for everyone, in my case it did.
Got a new fitbit a few months back, which estimated my VO2max at 55, while my Cooper test estimate was 60.
Think +/- 10% variation from the real value or more should be expected from all these estimations, maybe more. However, given that you don’t really need much more accuracy, I might only do a spiro every 5 years or so to calibrate, otherwise rely on my trends from Cooper and fitbit.
