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VDOT Running Score Calculator

Turn a race result into a VDOT score and matching training paces.

How it is calculated

The tool turns a race result into velocity v in metres per minute, then applies the Daniels and Gilbert equations. Oxygen cost: VO2 = −4.60 + 0.182258·v + 0.000104·v². Share of VO2max you can hold for a race of t minutes: %max = 0.8 + 0.1894393·e−0.012778·t + 0.2989558·e−0.1932605·t. VDOT is VO2 / %max. Training paces are the speeds whose oxygen cost equals 70 % (easy), 88 % (threshold) and 98 % (interval) of VDOT, shown as min:sec per km. Distance is in km, time in hours, minutes and seconds, all optional except a total above zero. Results are refused when the speed is above 700 m/min (about 42 km/h) or the VDOT would exceed 100, because neither is humanly possible. Only easy, threshold and interval paces are produced.

Worked example

A 5 km race in 25:00. Velocity: 5000 / 25 = 200 m/min. Oxygen cost: −4.60 + 0.182258 × 200 + 0.000104 × 200² = 36.0 ml/kg/min. For a 25-minute race the share of VO2max is 94.0%. VDOT = 36.0 / 0.940 = 38.3. Race pace is 5:00 /km; the tool gives easy pace 6:19 /km, threshold 5:16 /km and interval 4:50 /km for that score.

Try this example →

Common mistakes

  • Entering minutes and seconds in one box, for example 25 minutes 30 seconds as 25.30. That is read as 25.3 minutes (25:18); use the separate seconds field, or type 25.5 in minutes.
  • Entering the distance in miles. The field is kilometres, so a 5-mile race is 8.05, not 5; typing 5 makes the runner look far slower than they are.
  • Using a time from a race on a very hilly course, in heat or after a fall. The score reflects that day, not your fitness, and all paces inherit the error.
  • Treating the paces as flat-ground targets for every run. Easy pace is a calculated figure, not a measured one; adjust for hills and heat.
  • Typing an impossible time such as 5 km in 1 minute, or a result that implies a VDOT above 100. The tool shows no result for these, so recheck the hours, minutes and distance.

About this calculator

VDOT is Jack Daniels’ single-number fitness score, derived from a race performance, that estimates your “velocity at VO2max” adjusted for how efficiently you actually convert oxygen uptake into race pace. Unlike a lab VO2max test, it is computed purely from a real result — distance and finish time — using the Daniels and Gilbert equations for the oxygen cost of running and the fraction of VO2max a runner can sustain for the length of the race.

Coaches and self-coached distance runners use VDOT from Daniels’ Running Formula to translate one race result into training paces for different purposes: easy runs, threshold/tempo work and VO2max intervals, so that training intensity stays consistent with current fitness rather than an old personal best or a guess. This calculator does not return repetition paces or equivalent finish times at other distances; it gives the paces listed below for the score you enter.

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