Verification of Maximal Oxygen Uptake in Obese and Nonobese Children

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether a supramaximal constant-load verification test at 105% of the highest work rate would yield a higher V˙O2max when compared with an incremental test in 10- to 12-yr-old nonobese and obese children. METHODS: Nine nonobese (body mass index percentile = 57.5 ± 23.2) and nine obese (body mass index percentile = 97.9 ± 1.4) children completed a two-test protocol that included an incremental test followed 15 min later by a supramaximal constant-load verification test. RESULTS: The V˙O2max achieved in verification testing (nonobese = 1.71 ± 0.31 L·min and obese = 1.94 ± 0.47 L·min) was significantly higher than that achieved during the incremental test (nonobese = 1.57 ± 0.27 L·min and obese = 1.84 ± 0.48 L·min; P < 0.001). There was no significant group (i.e., nonobese vs obese)-test (i.e., incremental vs verification) interaction, suggesting that there was no effect of obesity on the difference between verification and incremental V˙O2max (P = 0.747). CONCLUSION: A verification test yielded significantly higher values of V˙O2max when compared with the incremental test in obese children. Similar results were observed in nonobese children. Supramaximal constant-load verification is a time-efficient and well-tolerated method for identifying the highest V˙O2 in nonobese and obese children.