Innovative Universities and Colleges Worldwide Using VO2 Master for Human Performance Metabolic Testing

From tracking oxygen consumption to respiratory frequency and resting energy expenditure, metabolic testing has taken on a whole new role in research and athletic performance in thought-leading schools around the world. 

Many leading educational institutions have started to invest in this innovative technology strategically. 

Why? 

The VO2 Master provides leading schools with multiple benefits. In this article, we discuss these benefits and share the key advantages it can provide for your university or college.  

Key Advantages of Portable Metabolic Testing for Universities and Colleges

Conduct Leading Edge Research Faster and for Less Cost 

VO2 Master allows researchers to purchase more analyzers for the same cost as a traditional metabolic lab cart. This is both cost-efficient and a time-saver for researchers, helping them to complete studies faster.

The freedom of the analyzer’s capabilities also allows for research to be conducted in unique, unprecedented settings. A prime example is the University of Hawaii’s study on outrigger canoe paddlers. This study was the first to use VO2 analyzers to determine how many calories canoe paddlers burned while canoeing, measured by METs or metabolic equivalents. 

The study and its results have important implications for public health initiatives and hold cultural significance for the local population. 

Investing in innovative technology with these advantages is transformative for studies related to exercise physiology and sports performance; it can have important implications for health promotion, athletic performance, cultural activity initiatives, and beyond.

Enhance Athletic Programs 

The data that VO2 Master provides empowers coaches to optimize training regimens and performance. By using VO2 Master, coaches, and athletic directors get essential insights into athlete fitness, readiness, and progress. This innovative device can track performance metrics such as:

• VO2 Max
• Ventilatory thresholds
• Resting energy expenditure

These insights allow both coaches and directors to make strategic decisions at all times of the competitive season. 

The analyzer allows them to balance precise data collection with real-world sports practice, enhancing training and research outcomes​. For example, Duke University uses the VO2 Master in its Cardiovascular Performance and Innovation Lab to support both amateur athletes and research efforts. 

Jeroen Molinger, Sr. Lead Clinical Medical Physiologist at Duke University’s Cardiovascular Performance and Innovation Lab shares, “VO2 Master is changing the landscape of human performance testing globally.” 

Create Interdisciplinary Collaboration 

The VO2 Master has created cross-department collaboration opportunities at leading universities and colleges. Departments are collaborating by:

• Using the VO2 Master to teach health sciences students 
• Conducting research using VO2 Master
• Testing school athletes’ performance with this device 

Collaborating with different departments boosts creativity and innovation, creating the perfect conditions for cross-department researchers to think outside the box.

Boost Student Engagement With VO2 Master

More students get hands-on experience using and testing classmates’ performance with the analyzer due to the portability and cost. Using this portable analyzer in classrooms enhances engagement and learning for students. 

That’s why schools like Montgomery College have been using the VO2 Master in their program for several years. Others have noted how game-changing the analyzer has been for monitoring student athletes’ performance wherever they need it, including on the road.

Alfonso Penichet Tomás—the researcher and head rowing coach at the University of Alicante in Spain—in particular notes, “Knowing and using the VO2 Master has allowed us to be able to evaluate and monitor our athletes both to improve their sporting performance and for research purposes. VO2 Master has become an indispensable tool for optimizing our training, projects, and studies.” 

Conduct In Situ Testing With VO2 Master

VO2 Master allows departments to break free from the constraints and costs of traditional lab equipment. Traditional oxygen consumption tracking devices come with wires, cables, and a clunky design that is time-heavy to set up in labs and virtually impossible to use outside of labs. 

The VO2 Master analyzer is not only portable but also 100% wireless and comes with a Bluetooth connection for a complete hands-free experience. This has made it easy for professors and coaches to use the analyzer in different locations, whether on the field, in the lab, or on the track. 

Professor Mark Abel, Director, of First Responder Research Laboratory, University of Kentucky, shares how the portability and wireless capabilities of VO2 Master have allowed him to conduct on-field research. 

Dr. Abel explains, “My lab conducts physiological research in the field with firefighters and other tactical populations. The ability to accurately assess the physiological responses of tactical operators in working conditions has been very challenging due to a lack of cost-effective, validated device options. However, VO2 Master has changed the game by providing practitioners and researchers with an invaluable, low-profile tool to evaluate operator readiness.”

Global researchers like Dr. Rob Orr, Director of Bond University Tactical Research Unit, Australia, also point out, “The nature of our research with tactical personnel requires that we conduct most of our work in dynamic and often austere environments while these personnel are doing highly physical tasks. 

While capturing energy expenditure is often a key requirement, pragmatically, we have not been able to do this given the requirement for bulky, generally static equipment. The VO2 Master has been a game-changer. Being so small and portable, we have been able to use it in a variety of projects, from mounted police on horseback to specialist police conducting occupationally specific capability testing. 

Best of all it works easily with some of our other equipment (e.g., polar HR monitors) and iPads and allows us to monitor and show other researchers and personnel data in real-time.” 

The Benefits of Using the Innovation Driving VO2 Master Technology

VO2 Master is changing the landscape of metabolic testing and research innovation in institutions, on the field and on the road. That’s why leading universities and colleges around the world are investing in this device. It’s cost-effective, it’s portable, and it delivers detailed performance metrics, all of which have allowed coaches to optimize student athletes’ performance and conduct field testing. 

In addition, VO2 Master has created opportunities for strategic interdisciplinary collaboration, trailblazing research with public health implications, and for enhanced student engagement. For more information about incorporating VO2 Master into your institution’s research or athletic programs, click here.