Your appointment
One test. Your aerobic engine, measured.
The gold-standard measurement of your cardiorespiratory fitness, and a leading marker of longevity. Here is exactly how your test runs and how to arrive ready to perform.
Don't forget your medical questionnaire. Your link is in the booking email we sent you, and it is unique to your appointment. Please complete it before you come.
01 / Do this first
Your medical questionnaire
- Your questionnaire is unique to your booking. It was emailed to you when you booked, so please complete that one.
- Check your inbox, and your spam or junk folder, as it can land there.
- We are unable to carry out your test until it is complete, so please do it in good time.
- Cannot find it? Contact us and we will resend your link.
02 / What we measure
One test, three things you can use.
Most training zones come from an algorithm based on your age and an assumed maximum heart rate. Yours will come from your own physiological measurements, taken during a graded, incremental test to full effort.
Your VO2 max
The single best measure of cardiorespiratory fitness, and a powerful predictor of long-term health.
Your training zones
Personalised heart-rate zones, so you train with precision instead of guesswork, and know exactly what easy and hard mean for you.
Your fat max zone
The exact intensity at which your body burns fat most efficiently.
03 / The visit
How your test is structured.
Your appointment lasts around an hour. The maximal effort itself is short, 15 to 20 minutes, and everything either side is preparation and recovery.
Welcome, consent and briefing
You review and sign your testing consent form. We then explain exactly what is going to happen, walk you through the test and cover all the safety guidance. Questions welcome, and encouraged.
Heart-rate strap, warm-up and your protocol
We fit your chest-strap heart-rate monitor and you warm up on the treadmill. Your test protocol is programmed specifically for you, based on your profile, rather than a one-size-fits-all setting.
Mask on, and the test
We fit the face mask that measures your breathing. You walk, then run, at gradually increasing intensity. You are in control of this test, and it ends when you need to stop or when you reach your limit. We capture your recovery data in the minutes immediately afterwards too.
Debrief
Before you leave, we share your preliminary VO2 max figure and talk you through some of your data on the spot.
You are fully supervised from start to finish, and in control the whole way through.
04 / On site
Where your test happens.
Your test
Inside the partner location, on a treadmill
The maximal test needs a full-size treadmill, so it takes place inside the partner location. Your practitioner sets everything up with you and stays with you throughout.
Arriving
Wait in reception, we will come to you
Wait in the partner location's reception, just outside the mobile clinic, or in your vehicle, whichever feels most comfortable. There is no need to knock on the clinic door, as we may be testing another client.
A member of the TELOMYX team will come out and greet you.
A note on privacy
Your test may take place in an open, working partner location rather than a private room. It is still fully supervised and your results stay completely confidential. You may simply be testing alongside other members. Prefer a quieter slot? Just let us know.
Your location and parking
These vary by venue, so your confirmation email carries your specific address, parking and check-in details. Please read it before you set off.
05 / Preparation
Small rules, better data.
Your physiology shifts through the day. Sleep, caffeine, hydration, recent meals and recent training all move the numbers. Standardising your condition makes sure your result reflects your true fitness rather than a short-term fluctuation.
Steady the week
The days before- Stay well hydrated.
- Prioritise good sleep, especially the night before.
Back off
24 hours before- No hard or strenuous training. You want fresh legs for a maximal effort.
- No alcohol.
Arrive ready
On the day- No caffeine at all on the day: coffee, tea, energy drinks, pre-workout. A morning coffee still shows in your heart rate during an afternoon test, so skip it rather than counting hours. Where you safely can, skip cold and flu remedies too.
- Eat a light, high-carb meal around 3 hours before. Avoid anything heavy.
- Do not drink a large amount of water immediately beforehand.
- Tie long hair up so the mask can seal properly.
- If you are feeling ill on the day, please let us know and we will reschedule. Testing unwell affects the accuracy of your result.
06 / Kit
What to wear and bring.
Wear
Comfortable kit and proper trainers
Comfortable exercise clothing, and running trainers rather than casual shoes, as you will be on a treadmill at full effort.
Long hair tied up so the mask seals properly.
Bring
Water, towel, inhaler
A water bottle and a small towel.
Your inhaler, if you use one.
07 / Safety
Please tell us if.
Your safety comes first, and this is a maximal effort. Let us know before or on the day if any of these apply to you.
- You feel unwell or have any infection. If you wake up ill, contact us to reschedule rather than push through.
- You are carrying an injury.
- You take beta-blockers or any heart or blood-pressure medication. Never stop taking medication, just tell us, as it affects your heart-rate response.
- You have a heart condition or any history of chest pain.
- You are pregnant.
- Anything else has changed since you completed your questionnaire.
08 / Afterwards
What you walk away with.
Before you leave
Your preliminary VO2 max figure and a first look at your data, talked through with your practitioner.
Within 2 working days
Your full, detailed report by email, with every metric explained and personalised recommendations written for your goals.
- Your VO2 max. Measured, not estimated, and set against reference ranges for your age and sex.
- Your training zones. Heart-rate zones you can programme into your watch the same week.
- Your fat max zone. The intensity where fat oxidation peaks for you.
09 / Repeat testing
Tracking over time? Consistency is everything.
A VO2 Max test measures your fitness exactly as it is on the day. Sleep, caffeine, hydration and recent training all move the numbers. Ensuring consistency is key to accurate longitudinal monitoring.
Make your next test comparable
Book a similar time of day each time. Keep your sleep, nutrition and training in the 48 hours beforehand as close as you can to this first visit, and keep the same pre-test meal timing.
Follow the same protocol every time and an improvement in your number is a real improvement in your engine, rather than a better day.
Questions before the day?
Reply to your confirmation email. Your confirmation email also carries your specific location, address and arrival details, along with your medical questionnaire link.
TELOMYX / Data, not guesswork