ENDURANCE OVER 50 · LONGEVITY AFTER 50 · FREE TOOL
FITNESS AGE CALCULATOR
Estimate your VO2 max without a treadmill test, from your age, waist, resting heart rate and exercise habits, using the published formula from Norway's HUNT study. Then see the age whose average fitness matches yours.
YOUR EXERCISE, IN A TYPICAL WEEK
Take your resting heart rate sitting quietly in the morning, or use your watch's resting value. Measure your waist at the level of your belly button, relaxed.
AVERAGE VO2 MAX BY AGE (mL/kg/min)
| Age | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| 20-29 | 54.4 | 43.0 |
| 30-39 | 49.1 | 40.0 |
| 40-49 | 47.2 | 38.4 |
| 50-59 | 42.6 | 34.4 |
| 60-69 | 39.2 | 31.1 |
| 70+ | 35.3 | 28.3 |
Measured on a treadmill in 3,816 healthy Norwegian adults aged 20 to 90 (HUNT3 Fitness Study, Loe and colleagues, 2013). These are averages for each age group of healthy volunteers who agreed to an all-out treadmill test.
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HOW IT WORKS
Your inputs go into the HUNT nonexercise formula (Nes and colleagues, 2011). Your exercise answers become an activity score: how often × how long × how hard. The estimate is then compared with the average VO2 max for each age group in the HUNT reference data, and your fitness age is where your estimate meets that line. The likely range uses the formula's typical error. This is our own way of turning the estimate into an age; it is not NTNU's calculator.
How the books train the aerobic engine: Build the Engine and VO2 Max and Mortality.
SOURCES
- Nes BM, Janszky I, Vatten LJ, et al. Estimating V·O2peak from a nonexercise prediction model: the HUNT Study, Norway. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2011;43(11):2024-30. PMID 21502897
- Øvretveit K, et al. Polygenic prediction of cardiorespiratory fitness in the Trøndelag health study (HUNT). Sci Rep. 2025;16:184 (reprints the formula). PMID 41402372
- Rasch-Halvorsen Ø, et al. The association between dynamic lung volume and peak oxygen uptake in a healthy general population: the HUNT study. BMC Pulm Med. 2019;19:2 (activity score). PMID 30612551
- Loe H, Rognmo Ø, Saltin B, Wisløff U. Aerobic capacity reference data in 3816 healthy men and women 20-90 years. PLoS One. 2013;8(5):e64319. PMID 23691196
- Nes BM, Vatten LJ, Nauman J, et al. A simple nonexercise model of cardiorespiratory fitness predicts long-term mortality. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2014;46(6):1159-65. PMID 24576863
BUILD YOUR ENGINE
BATTLE HARD AFTER 50
A twelve-week, no-gym-required strength and conditioning protocol for men over 50, built on a five-domain self-assessment — strength, power, engine, carry and grip, and mobility — instead of one overall fitness score.
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The full-spectrum longevity framework for men over 50. Sleep, inflammation, metabolic health, and the supplement stack that actually moves the needle.
QUESTIONS
WHAT IS FITNESS AGE?+
Here, it is the age at which the average healthy man or woman in Norway's HUNT Fitness Study had the same VO2 max as your estimate. If your fitness age is lower than your real age, your estimated VO2 max is above the average for people your age in that study.
WHAT IS VO2 MAX?+
The most oxygen your body can use during all-out exercise, in milliliters per kilogram of body weight per minute. It is the standard lab measure of aerobic fitness and is measured on a treadmill or bike with a breathing mask.
HOW ACCURATE IS THIS WITHOUT A TREADMILL TEST?+
The formula comes from 4,637 healthy Norwegian adults whose VO2 max was measured directly. It explained 61% of the differences between men and 56% between women, and its typical error was about 5.7 (men) and 5.1 (women) mL/kg/min. Good for a rough estimate, not a replacement for a lab test.
WHAT IS AN AVERAGE VO2 MAX AT 60?+
In the HUNT reference data, the average was 39.2 mL/kg/min for men aged 60 to 69 and 31.1 for women aged 60 to 69, measured on a treadmill. The full table is below.
WHY DOES FITNESS MATTER?+
In the HUNT study, among people under 60 when they joined, each one-MET higher estimated fitness (about 3.5 mL/kg/min) was associated with a 21% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease over about 24 years. That is an association in one population, not proof that raising your number changes your own risk.
MY FITNESS AGE IS HIGH. WHAT SHOULD I DO?+
This is an estimate, not a diagnosis. Talk with your physician, especially before starting harder exercise. Aerobic training is how VO2 max is built; the books below lay out how they program it.
FREE GUIDE
CLYDESDALE AND ATHENA RACE-DAY CHECKLIST
Race week to finish line for heavier triathletes: sweat rate, tire pressure, taper, race morning, swim, bike, run and heat warning signs, from The Clydesdale Protocol and The Athena Protocol. Free PDF. Enter your email and it opens right away.
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For education only. This is not medical advice and not a diagnosis. Talk with your physician about your fitness and health, especially before starting a new exercise program.