This study investigates heart rate (HR), in 11 young adults (22.4±3.21yr), at VO2max, to ascertain whether measured maximal heart rate (HRmax), as determined by a plateau in HR (HRplat), can reliably confirm VO2max. VO2max and HRplat were determined, using the parameters of a VO2=50ml•min-1 and a DeltaHR=2b•min-1, respectively, over the final 60?s of sampling. VO2 was also independently determined using a verification phase protocol. A HRplat was achieved by 91% of participants (DeltaHR=1.3±1b•min-1) and critically the time at which HRmax was reached coincided with that at which VO2max was achieved. Moreover RER and DeltaRER criteria were reached significantly earlier (p<0.05) than VO2max, whilst age-related heart rate maximums (HRage), were not achieved by many participants. The results suggest that a HRplat =2 b•min-1 is a more accurate method, within the group tested, to determine whether a `true` VO2max has been achieved, than other secondary criteria and potentially avoids the requirement for an additional verification phase.
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