What is RPE and How Do I Report It?

RPE stands for Rating of Perceived Exertion, or in other words, how hard you feel that your body is exerting itself based on the parameters of the workout.  This is a Self-Assessment, there is no right or wrong answer.  At Lifetime Endurance, we predominantly use the RPE system, and this guide will help you understand it so you can complete workouts and self-report with confidence.

RPE is such a strong system to build and assess workouts because it focuses solely on your body and how it is feeling.  Other systems can be skewed due to factors such as being sick, being in different phases of training, being mentally or physically under-recovered, heat/cold, and all sorts of other varying conditions.

RPE, like any data, is most useful and accurate when looked at from a very zoomed out perspective.  The more RPE data that is collected and taken into account, the more accurate the data trends and inferences can be drawn to plan future training.  Lots of athletes struggle initially with the RPE system, because it can feel very vague, and the number scale can feel somewhat arbitrary.

What is a ‘7’ vs an ‘8’?  This guide will do the best to explain.  But do not fret on choosing the number.  Your coach looks at the data from the big picture: putting a ‘7’ vs an ‘8’ is almost negligible difference when looking at a month, a season, or an olympic cycle of training.

Various apps, coaches, and online articles that are out there will explain/implement the RPE system slightly different.  There is not an exact right or wrong answer, but while being coached through Lifetime Endurance, this is how we do things:

After a workout, you will be asked to “Set Perceived Effort” on your watch. This chart gives a rough idea of how each numerical value should feel:

1 _ Very Light 

You are going through the motions of an activity with a very light and gentle effort. Your heart rate almost stays at a resting level, you are exerting almost zero power. Generally scheduled for technique work or as a rest between exercises.

2 _ Light

You are going through the motions of an activity with light effort. Your heart rate stays near a resting level, you are exerting very little power. Generally scheduled for technique work.

3 _ Moderate

You are going through the motions of an activity with a moderate effort. Your heart rate increases to Zone 1-2, you are exerting a gentle and controlled amount of power. Generally scheduled for technique work or light warm-up/cooldown.

4 _ Somewhat Hard

You are completing an activity with a somewhat hard effort, just starting to do some work. Your heart rate increases to Zone 2, you are exerting a controlled amount of power. Generally scheduled for low intensity training or moderate warm-up/cooldown.

5 _ Hard

You are completing an activity with a hard effort, doing some work that feels extremely manageable over long periods. Your heart rate increases to Zone 2-3, you are exerting a moderate but controlled amount of power. Generally scheduled for low intensity training or harder warm-up.

6 _ Hard

You are completing an activity with a hard effort, doing work that feels very manageable over long periods. Your heart rate increases to Zone 3, you are exerting a moderate and fluctuating amount of power. Generally scheduled for mid intensity training or very hard warm-up.

7 _ Very Hard

You are completing an activity with a very hard effort, doing work that feels somewhat difficult over long periods. Your heart rate increases to Zone 3-4, you are exerting a hard and fluctuating amount of power. Generally scheduled for mid-hard intensity training over long periods.

8 _ Very Hard

You are completing an activity with a very hard effort, doing work that feels difficult over mid-length periods. Your heart rate increases to Zone 4-threshold, you are exerting a very hard and fluctuating amount of power. Generally scheduled for hard intensity training over mid-length periods.

9 _ Extremely Hard

You are completing an activity with an extremely hard effort, doing work that feels extremely difficult over short periods. Your heart rate increases to threshold-superthreshold, you are exerting an extremely hard and fluctuating amount of power. Generally scheduled for interval training over short periods.

10 _ Maximum

You are completing an activity with all the effort you have to give, doing work that feels extremely difficult over long periods. Your heart rate increases to superthreshold, you are exerting your max power output. Generally scheduled for interval training over short periods and setting power PR’s.

Your coach will set either a range or a target for you to work towards in the scheduled workout, providing it is constructed using the RPE system.  This is the goal, but not necessarily how you will feel after you finish the workout. This is where your own self-assessment comes in, again, with no right or wrong answers. Do not copy the intended target RPE amount, put HOW YOU FEEL.

On your watch, you are only going to report on the MAIN ACTIVITY.  Your warmup/cooldown and any sets outside of the main activity you should exclude from your final average.  The number you end up selecting should be the AVERAGE RPE you felt over the duration of the main activity.

After you have finished reporting your RPE, you will be prompted to do a SELF-EVALUATION.  This is so that your coach can compare your recorded RPE (or how much effort you put into the workout) compared to your body’s capacity that day/time of day.

Based on many factors, including training period, mental health, physical health, temperature, fueling, hydration, sleep, etc. your body’s capacity to put effort into a workout can change.  Below is a rough idea on what each value for physical capacity should mean:

😣 - Very Weak

Extremely low energy, underfueled, sick, under-recovered, mentally tired, very little sleep, or other factors that are severely affecting your capacity for training.  Training becomes extremely difficult.

😟 - Weak

Low energy, somewhat underfueled, under-recovered, not super focused, not the best sleep, or other factors that are somewhat affecting your capacity for training.  Training becomes tedious.

😐 - Normal

Energy, fueling, recovery, mental focus, sleep, and other factors are at a baseline, leading to sufficient capacity for meaningful training.  Training is completed to baseline satisfaction.

🙂 - Strong

Energy, fueling, recovery, mental focus, sleep, and other factors are well taken care of, leading to higher capacity for meaningful training.  Training feels energizing.

😄 - Very Strong

Energy, fueling, recovery, mental focus, sleep, and other factors are in peak shape, leading to an extremely high capacity for meaningful training.  Training feels electric and you can push hard.