Calculate your vVO2max and your paces.
Your distance on a Cooper or half-Cooper test gives you your vVO2max. Your vVO2max gives you your paces, from easy runs to intervals.
- vVO2max
- 14 km/h
- 4:17 /km
Your paces
| % vVO2max | Speed | Pace |
|---|---|---|
| Endurance: easy runs, long run | ||
| 60 % | 8.4 km/h | 7:09 /km |
| 65 % | 9.1 km/h | 6:36 /km |
| 70 % | 9.8 km/h | 6:07 /km |
| Steady endurance, marathon pace | ||
| 75 % | 10.5 km/h | 5:43 /km |
| Threshold, half marathon pace | ||
| 80 % | 11.2 km/h | 5:21 /km |
| 85 % | 11.9 km/h | 5:03 /km |
| 10K pace | ||
| 90 % | 12.6 km/h | 4:46 /km |
| Intervals: VO2max | ||
| 95 % | 13.3 km/h | 4:31 /km |
| 100 % | 14 km/h | 4:17 /km |
| 105 % | 14.7 km/h | 4:05 /km |
How it's calculated
From the test to your paces.
vVO2max (your velocity at VO2max) is the speed at which your body uses the most oxygen. You can hold it for about 6 minutes: the half-Cooper test measures it directly (distance covered in 6 minutes ÷ 100), while the Cooper test estimates it over 12 minutes (distance ÷ 200).
Every pace is expressed as a percentage of vVO2max: 60 to 70% for easy running, around 75% for marathon, 80 to 85% at threshold, 90% for the 10K, 95 to 105% for intervals.
These are textbook benchmarks, not your coach's zones: your plan is built from your threshold pace and your personal bests. A VO2max test is run all-out, after a warm-up, on a track or a flat course.
Questions
What you ask us.
- How do you test your VO2max pace?
- After a 20-minute warm-up, run as far as you can in 6 minutes (half-Cooper) or 12 minutes (Cooper), ideally on a track. Note the distance down to the metre.
- What's a good VO2max pace?
- It ranges from 10-12 km/h for a beginner to over 20 km/h for the best runners. It improves with intervals, especially in your first few years.
- What pace should you run intervals at 100% of vVO2max?
- Your vVO2max itself: 15 km/h is a 4:00 /km pace. The table gives each percentage in speed and in pace.
Your VO2max — now your training plan.
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