Prediction of peak oxygen uptake from age and power output at RPE 15 in obese women

The purpose of this study was to develop a simple, convenient and indirect method for predicting peak oxygen uptake (\( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \)) from a sub-maximal graded exercise test (GXT), in obese women. Thirty obese women performed GXT to volitional exhaustion. During GXT, oxygen uptake and the power at RPE 15 (\( P_{{{\text{RPE}}\;15}} \)) were measured, and \( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \) was determined. Following assessment of the relationships between \( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \) and \( P_{{{\text{RPE}}\;15}} \), age, height and mass were made available in a stepwise multiple regression analysis with \( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \) as the dependent variable. The equation to predict \( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \) was: $$ \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{ 2 {\text{peak}}}} ({\text{l}}\,{\hbox{min}}^{ -1}) = 1.355 - 9.920{\text{e}}^{ - 3} \times {\text{age + 8}} . 4 9 7 {\text{e}}^{ - 3} \times P_{{{\text{RPE}}\;15}} $$ (r = 0.83; SEE = 0.156 l min−1). This study suggests that age and \( P_{{{\text{RPE}}\;15}} \) elicited during a sub-maximal GXT provides a reasonably accurate prediction of \( \dot{V}{\text{O}}_{{2{\text{peak}}}} \) in obese women.