RPE scale for cycling and running

How the RPE scale works

RPE, the rate of perceived exertion, is how hard a session or effort feels to you on a scale from 1 to 10. It needs no device, works for any sport and takes everything into account: your power or pace, the heat, how you slept and how tired you are. This page is one of the free LeCoach cycling calculators.

The 1 to 10 scale is a version of Borg's category-ratio scale. Each level has a feel, a talk test and a rough match to power zones:

The zone and % FTP columns are typical for a steady effort of that intensity. They are a guide, not a conversion: the same power can feel like RPE 5 at the start of a ride and RPE 7 after four hours. The zones follow the model in our guide to cycling training zones.

RPE load: turning feel into training load

RPE load = RPE × minutes. This is session RPE, from Carl Foster and colleagues, and it is the same "RPE load" you see on Intervals.icu. It is quick to calculate: rate the whole session from 1 to 10, multiply by how long it lasted, and that is your number.

Important: this is not the Load number under your activities. That Load figure is a different calculation, based on power or heart rate, and typically runs about 50 to 100 per hour depending on intensity. An RPE load of 360 for an hour at RPE 6 is completely normal and is not comparable to a power-based Load of, say, 70. Do not mix the two up when you are checking your numbers.

The useful part is that very different sessions become comparable. Ninety minutes at RPE 3 scores 270. Forty-five minutes at RPE 8 scores 360, the same as the hour at RPE 6. Add up the loads for a week and you can see whether your training is rising, falling or steady, even across cycling, running and strength sessions.

RPE load is a different unit from TSS, so do not mix them. If you ride with power, the TSS calculator scores your rides from power. RPE load works for everything else, and is a useful check when the two disagree.

How to rate RPE well

• Rate the whole session, not the hardest interval. Foster's method asks for the rating about 30 minutes after you finish, once your breathing has settled.
• Use the talk test as an anchor. Full sentences means RPE 3 or lower; a few words means about 6; no talking means 9 or 10.
• Be honest, not tough. RPE is useful only if a 7 means the same thing every week.
• Rate the effort, not the mood. A great ride can still be an 8; a bad day on an easy ride can still be a 3.

RPE is also a skill for pacing. Our article on how to pace endurance rides by feel shows how to use it on long days.

RPE, heart rate and power together

Power tells you what you did. Heart rate tells you how your body responded. RPE tells you what it cost you. The most useful information is when they disagree:

• Normal power, high RPE: you may be tired, short of sleep, under-fuelled, getting ill or riding in heat. Consider an easier day.
• Normal power, low RPE: you are getting fitter, or your FTP is due a retest.
• High heart rate, normal RPE: often heat, dehydration or caffeine.

If you train by heart rate, the heart rate zone calculator sets zones you can compare with your RPE.

Common mistakes

• Rating straight after the last interval. The final effort dominates. Wait a while and rate the whole session.
• Rating everything 5 to 7. Easy days should be 2 or 3. If they are not, they are not easy.
• Mixing scales. The original Borg scale runs from 6 to 20. Pick one scale and keep it.
• Ignoring RPE when the numbers look fine. A session that feels much harder than usual at normal power is information, not weakness.

When RPE changes

• Heat and humidity raise RPE at the same power.
• Poor sleep, stress and fatigue raise it too, often before any number shows a change.
• Long rides: the same power feels harder as the hours pass.
• Altitude makes every effort feel harder.
• Illness: an unusually high RPE on an easy ride can be an early sign. Rest rather than push.

In LeCoach you log how each session felt, and the coach weighs that alongside your power, heart rate and recovery data.