RPE- RATE OF PERCEIVED EXERTION By Catherine Sellers, USOC Coaching As coaches, many of us do not have access to laboratory equipment to monitor our athlete’s workouts, yet we would really like to monitor the intensity of the athlete’s performance of the workout that we have prescribed. In the 1950’s, Swedish psychologist Gunnar Borg developed the Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale. We know that everyone is different in how they relate to training, but could we develop a common denominator to assist in measuring the intensity? The RPE can accomplish that task. The Borg Scale looks at the perception of heart rate, sweating, breathing rate and muscular fatigue as the common denominators.

WHY USE RPE? The RPE allows an athlete and coach to monitor intensity without equipment, without stopping the exercise to check the heart rate monitor and provides a “double-check” on the heart rate. For the coach, it might be good to verify the relationship of the RPE to a heart rate monitor at first. Even though “a high correlation exists between a person’s perceived exertion rating times 10 and the actual heart rate during physical activity; so a person’s exertion rating may provide a fairly good estimate of the actual heart rate during activity.” (Borg, 1998) For example, if your RPE rating is 10 and you multiple it times 10, then your heart rate estimate is about 100 beats per minute. This example indicates that this was not a very intense workout. Two researchers Ueda and Kurokawa, “correlated the RPE with the HR, the VO2 and the blood lactate during swimming”. After the application of swimming submaximal tests, the authors verified high correlation. They came to the conclusion that the RPE “may be considered an effective mechanism to measure the effort intensity in swimming”. We know that it works, but verification with a heart rate monitor would be a good step to take to make sure that you are on target with the concept and your athlete. HOW TO USE THE BORG SCALE? While doing physical activity, have your athlete rate their perception of exertion. This feeling should reflect how heavy and strenuous the exercise feels, combining all sensations and feelings of physical stress, effort and fatigue. Do not focus on any one factor such as leg pain or shortness of breath, but try to focus on your total feeling of exertion. Look at the scale and choose the number that best describes your level of exertion. This will give you and the athlete a good idea of the intensity level of the activity, and you can use this information to speed up or slow down their movements to reach your desired range of intensity. Try to get the athlete to appraise the feeling of exertion honestly and as it relates just to them and not the others around them. (www. Healthyontario.com) WHAT IS THE BORG SCALE? The original scale had a 15 point rating, while a more compact model goes from 0-10. Below is a comparison of the two scales: TIPS WHEN YOU USE THE SCALE When you use the scale with a group, have them individual point out their RPE. There is a tendency to make the RPE a competitive tool instead of a training tool as athletes may want to show that they are not as affected by the workout as their training partners. As you design your workouts, have an idea where you think they should be on the scale. As you progress up the scale the intensity of the workout increases, so the volume of your workout may be less. REFERENCES: Graef, Fabiane and Luiz Kruel, “Heart rate and perceived exertion at aquatic environment: differences in relation to land environment and applications for exercise prescription—a review” http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1517-86922006000400011&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en Johnson, Ken, “3-Fitness Triathlon and Personal Training” http://www.3-fitness.com/tarticles/zones.htm “Keeping Track: Perceived Exertion”, http://www.healthyontario.com/Features/Fitness/Keeping_Track_Perceived_Exertion.htm “Perceived Exertion (Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale” http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/physical/measuring/perceived_exertion.htm