VO2 Max of 65 after 10 years of inactivity—is this possible or is the test result inflated?
Hi everyone,
I’m looking for some perspective on a recent clinical stress test result.
For context: I’m a 33-year-old male, 6'2", 190 lbs. Aside from general yardwork, I haven’t done any structured running or intense cardio in about 10 years (I used to trail run back in the day).
I recently had a medical stress test done due to some palpitations. The cardiologist told me my VO2 max was 65, noted it was "quite good," and cleared me regarding my heart health. Honestly, I’m skeptical, it seems remarkably high for someone who hasn't trained in a decade. My resting heart rate is also consistently in the 40–45 bpm range, which further confuses me given my lack of current activity.
Is it possible for a clinical VO2 max score to be inflated, or could there be another reason for these numbers? I only reached 98% of my predicted max heart rate during the test, not the full 100%.
How do these clinical numbers correlate with actual fitness for someone who isn't currently a runner? Is 65 actually a "good" score, or am I fundamentally misunderstanding how these are calculated?
Thanks for any insights!