StepTest4all: Improving the Prediction of Cardiovascular Capacity Assessment in Young Adults.

Cardiovascular capacity, expressed as maximal oxygen uptake (VO _2max ), is a strong predictor of health and fitness and is considered a key measure of physiological function in the healthy adult population. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of the physical activity levels (PA _level ) of participants in the StepTest4all (validated protocol for the estimation of VO _2max in adults). The sample consisted of 69 participants, including 27 women (age 21.7 ± 3.6 years; body mass = 63.5 ± 14.8 kg; height = 1.64 ± 0.06 m; body mass index = 23.7 ± 5.3 kg/m ² ) and 42 men (aged 21.7 ± 3.4 years; body mass = 72.0 ± 7.3 kg; height = 1.77 ± 0.07 m; body mass index = 23.1 ± 2.1 kg/m ² ). The participants were assigned to one of the two groups: (i) the VO _2max prediction group and (ii) the prediction model validation group. In the multiple linear regression, the following predictors of VO _2max remained significant: sex ( p < 0.001), physical activity level ( p = 0.014), and HRR ₆₀ ( p = 0.020). The prediction equation (R ² = 74.0%, SEE = 4.78) showed a close and strong relationship between the measurements and can be expressed as follows: VO _2max = 17.105 + 0.260·(HRR ₆₀ ) + 8.563·(sex) + 4.097·(PA _level ), in which HRR ₆₀ is the magnitude of the HR decrease (bpm) in one minute immediately after stopping the step, and sex: men = 1, women = 0, and PA _level is level 1 (low), level 2 (moderate), and level 3 (high). The StepTest4all was shown to be a suitable method for estimating cardiovascular capacity, expressed as VO _2max , in young adults. Retaining PA _level as a significant predictor allows us to better individualize the participants' VO _2max .