Beep test · level 3 of 21
Beep test level 3
At level 3 of the Beep test, the required speed is 9.5 km/h: 8 shuttles of 7.58 s each. The level lasts 1 min 01 s; when it ends you have covered 460 m in 3 min 08 s. Completing it in full credits you with a MAS of 9.5 km/h. An adult who stops during this level has an estimated VO₂max of 29.6 ml/min/kg (Léger 1988 equation, age set to 18).
At 9.5 km/h you are at easy jogging pace. A sedentary adult who stops here is not in danger, just at zero training: six weeks of regular running gains three levels.
The previous level, 2, was run at 9 km/h. The next one, 4, moves to 10 km/h and counts 9 shuttles instead of 8. On this test the gap between two levels is small in speed and large in feel, because fatigue carries over from one level to the next.
The VO₂max shown comes from the equation Léger and colleagues published with the test in 1988. It starts from the last level announced, the one during which you stop, not the last one completed: S = 8 + 0.5 × 3 = 9.5 km/h. It also depends on age, capped at 18; the figure above is for an adult. For a child or a teenager the same level gives a higher figure: the VO₂max calculator gives it for every age from 8 to 17. It is an estimate, not a measurement.
Level 3 in the table
Frequently asked questions
What MAS does level 3 of the Beep test give?
A MAS of 9.5 km/h, provided you complete the level. If you stop midway, the scoring rule credits the last full level, so 9 km/h (level 2).
How long does level 3 last?
1 min 01 s, i.e. 8 shuttles of 7.58 s. From the start of the test that makes 3 min 08 s of running.
What pace per kilometre is this level?
9.5 km/h is 6:19 /km. That is the pace you would hold on a track, without the turns: in a shuttle the same figure costs more.