The Firehouse S&C Treadmill Test
VO2 Max Calculator
Treadmill VO₂max Calculator
What VO₂max Measures
VO₂max (maximal oxygen uptake) is the maximum rate at which your body can use oxygen during intense exercise.
In the fire service, it directly impacts:
Recovery between calls and reps
Stamina during long-duration incidents
Cardiovascular resilience under load
Training estimate—not medical clearance.
This calculator estimates aerobic capacity from your inputs. It does not directly measure oxygen uptake or determine fitness for duty. Do not use its labels or reference tables to make clearance, restriction, hiring, or return-to-work decisions.
Ask your department physician to interpret results using an appropriate validated test, your individual medical evaluation, and the standard adopted by your agency. The NFPA references and condition summaries below require professional review.
NFPA REFERENCE VALUES
Historical treadmill reference values from NFPA 1582 (2022 edition), TIA 22-2, effective December 20, 2023. These tables do not determine medical clearance. Confirm the applicable edition and interpretation with your department physician.
NO MEDICAL CONDITIONS
Reference values from Tables 8.2.2.3(a) and 8.2.2.4(a). Applicability requires individual medical review.
| Age Group | Sex | 50th %ile (METs) |
35th %ile (METs) |
Interpretation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20–29 | Male | 13.7 | 12.4 | Physician interpretation required. Percentile values alone do not establish clearance. |
| 30–39 | Male | 12.1 | 11.0 | |
| 40–49 | Male | 10.8 | 9.9 | |
| 50–59 | Male | 9.3 | 8.4 | |
| 60–69 | Male | 8.1 | 7.3 | |
| 20–29 | Female | 10.7 | 9.6 | Physician interpretation required. Percentile values alone do not establish clearance. |
| 30–39 | Female | 8.6 | 7.8 | |
| 40–49 | Female | 7.6 | 6.9 | |
| 50–59 | Female | 6.7 | 6.1 | |
| 60–69 | Female | 5.7 | 5.3 |
Source: NFPA 1582 (2022 edition), TIA 22-2, Tables 8.2.2.3(a) & 8.2.2.4(a)
Medical conditions require individual review
A diagnosis alone is not a clearance decision. This page is not a medical screening checklist. Your department physician must review the applicable medical provisions, test method, and essential job tasks for your situation.
The earlier condition summary is under professional review. For the historical source, see NFPA 1582 (2022 edition), TIA 22-2. NFPA now lists the 2025 edition of NFPA 1580; confirm your agency’s adopted standard before applying any criteria.