Rating of perceived exertion explained

In sports, health, and exercise testing, the rating of perceived exertion (RPE), as measured by the Borg rating of perceived exertion scale,[1] [2] [3] is a quantitative measure of perceived exertion during physical activity.[4] [5] [6]

In medicine, this is used to document the patient's exertion during a test for the severity of diseases. Sports coaches use the scale to assess the intensity of training and competition as well as endurance. The original scale introduced by Gunnar Borg rated exertion on a scale of 6-20. Borg then constructed a newer category-ratio scale, the Borg CR-10 scale, rated on a scale from 1-10. This is especially used in clinical diagnosis and severity assessment of breathlessness and dyspnea, chest pain, angina and musculo-skeletal pain. The CR-10 scale is best suited when there is an overriding sensation arising either from a specific area of the body rather than overall exertion, for example, muscle pain, ache or fatigue in the quadriceps or from pulmonary responses during exertion.

The Borg scale can be compared to other linear scales such as the Likert scale or a visual analogue scale. The sensitivity and reproducibility of the results are broadly very similar, although the Borg scale may outperform the Likert scale in some cases.[7]

Borg RPE scale

The Borg RPE scale is a numerical scale that ranges from 6 to 20,[8] where 6 means "no exertion at all" and 20 means "maximal exertion." When a measurement is taken, a number is chosen from the following scale by an individual that best describes their perceived level of exertion during physical activity.

The scale was constructed to roughly correlate to 10% of heart rate in a healthy 20-year-old. In older individuals, the correlation becomes higher than 10% at the high-end of the scale, as maximum heart rate declines with age.

Borg RPE scale and the external environment

It appears that outdoor enternal environments can lower the perceived exertion that a given exercise is connected to in laboratory or other indoor conditions. [9]

!Numer al!Perceived exertion rating
6no exertion
7extremely light
8
9very light
10
11light
12moderate
13somewhat hard
14
15hard
16
17very hard
18
19extremely hard
20maximal exertion

CR-10 scale

Borg later developed a CR10 scale.[10]

NumeralPerceived exertion rating
0no exertion
0.5noticeable
1very light
2light
3moderate
4somewhat difficult
5difficult
6
7very difficult
8
9almost maximal
10maximal

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Borg GA . Psychophysical bases of perceived exertion . Med Sci Sports Exerc . 14 . 5 . 377–81 . 1982 . 7154893 . 10.1249/00005768-198205000-00012. free .
  2. Borg G . Perceived exertion as an indicator of somatic stress . Scand J Rehabil Med . 2 . 2 . 92–8 . 1970 . 10.2340/1650197719702239298 . 5523831 . free .
  3. Dawes HN, Barker KL, Cockburn J, Roach N, Scott O, Wade D . Borg's rating of perceived exertion scales: do the verbal anchors mean the same for different clinical groups? . Arch Phys Med Rehabil . 86 . 5 . 912–6 . 2005 . 15895336 . 10.1016/j.apmr.2004.10.043 .
  4. Roelands B, de Koning J, Foster C, Hettinga F, Meeusen R . Neurophysiological determinants of theoretical concepts and mechanisms involved in pacing . Sports Med. . 43 . 5 . 301–311 . May 2013 . 23456493 . 10.1007/s40279-013-0030-4 . 30392999 . A component that appears to integrate many variables during whole-body exercise is the rating of perceived exertion (RPE) [15]. ...
    15. Borg . Gunnar . Psychophysical bases of perceived exertion. . Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise . 1982 . 14 . 5 . 377–81 . 10.1249/00005768-198205000-00012 . 7154893 . free . .
  5. Rattray B, Argus C, Martin K, Northey J, Driller M . Is it time to turn our attention toward central mechanisms for post-exertional recovery strategies and performance? . Front. Physiol. . 6 . 79 . March 2015 . 25852568 . 4362407 . 10.3389/fphys.2015.00079 . Aside from accounting for the reduced performance of mentally fatigued participants, this model rationalizes the reduced RPE and hence improved cycling time trial performance of athletes using a glucose mouthwash and the greater power output during a RPE matched cycling time trial following amphetamine ingestion. free .
  6. Chambers . E. S. . Bridge . M. W. . Jones . D. A. . Carbohydrate sensing in the human mouth: effects on exercise performance and brain activity . The Journal of Physiology . 15 April 2009 . 587 . 8 . 1779–1794 . 10.1113/jphysiol.2008.164285 . 19237430 . 2683964 .
  7. Grant . S. . Aitchison . T. . Henderson . E. . Christie . J. . Zare . S. . McMurray . J. . Dargie . H. . A Comparison of the Reproducibility and the Sensitivity to Change of Visual Analogue Scales, Borg Scales, and Likert Scales in Normal Subjects During Submaximal Exercise . 10.1378/chest.116.5.1208 . Chest . 116 . 5 . 1208–1217 . 1999 . 10559077.
  8. Web site: Measuring Physical Activity Intensity. CDC. 2019-02-18.
  9. Olsson . k. . Ceci . R. . Wahlgren . L. . Rosdahl . H. . Schantz . P. . Perceived exertion can be lower when exercising in field versus indoors . 10.1371/journal.pone.0300776 . PLOS ONE . 19 . 5 . e0300776 . 2024 . free . 38809815. 11135770 .
  10. Web site: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale . 2024-04-11 . academic.oup.com.