A Simple, Valid Step Test for Estimating Maximal Oxygen Uptake in Epidemiologic Studies1

Abstract

The authors' modification of the Astrand-Rhyming Cycle Ergometer Test is of short duration, has low initial and peak work rates and was in an earlier study applied for population fitness testing (N = 587) at a survey center after other cardiovascular risk factor measures were obtained in the home. To add fitness testing in the home, the authors have designed a safe, brief 10 inch (25.4 cm) high step test for estimating maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max). Measured maximal oxygen uptake for step tests has been shown to be approximately 10% higher than that reported for cycle tests. All test instructions and stepping rates were included on a cassette tape; heart rates were monitored by a digital tachograph during the last 30 seconds of stepping. Maximal oxygen uptake was measured directly on a bicycle, estimated by the step test, and measured by the authors' bike test in 48 men and women aged 19-70 years who took part in a community fitness program in Pawtucket, Rhode Island in January-February 1983. No significant differences in maximal oxygen uptake were found between the bicycle protocols. The step test estimate of maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) was significantly higher (12%) than directly measured VO2max, reflecting the expected difference between stepping and cycling. The correlation between direct and both estimates was 0.92. The cross-validation correlation between the estimates was 0.98. The authors' protocol provides accurate estimates of maximal oxygen uptake and is safe and suitable for in-the-home assessment of fitness of people aged 19-70 years for epidemiologic studies.

Hierarchy of individual calibration levels for heart rate and accelerometry to measure physical activity

“…Simpler methods for calibration, already proven feasible for fitness testing in epidemiological settings (6,21,31,51), can be performed with acceptable accuracy to consider combined HR and movement sensing as an objective measure of physical activity in population-based studies.…”

Physical Activity, Physical Fitness, and Insulin and Glucose Concentrations in an Isolated Native Canadian Population Experiencing Rapid Lifestyle Change

“…VO 2max , a measure of cardiovascular fitness, was estimated using a submaximal step test developed and validated by Siconolfi et al (23). Participants stepped on a 25.4-cm exercise stepper for 3 min per stage for a maximum of three stages.…”

“…In this current effort, cardiovascular fitness was estimated using a submaximal step test (23). It is possible that the women of this community were less willing or less able than the men to maximize their effort on this test, resulting in a less accurate test result.…”

Feasibility of fitness tests in subjects with chronic pain (fibromyalgia): discordance between cycling and 2-km walking tests

“…The same methodological problems may also apply to most rheumatic conditions. Also, the step test or even running [21,27] is in many cases not possible for all subjects with chronic pain (FMS) because of articular pain or other symptoms. The cycling method thus seems to be more feasible and recommendable for such patient groups as those with ®bromyalgia or possibly other rheumatic patients.…”