physics

Rating of perceived exertion

Rating of perceived exertion is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Rating of perceived exertion rather than just read about it. In short: In sports, health, and exercise testing, the rating of perceived exertion (RPE), as measured by the Borg rating of perceived exertion scale, is a quantitative measure of perceived exertion during physical activity. In medicine, this is used to document the patient's exertion during a test for the severity of various diseases.

Key takeaways

Rating of perceived exertion belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Rating of perceived exertion to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Rating of perceived exertion from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

In sports, health, and exercise testing, the rating of perceived exertion (RPE), as measured by the Borg rating of perceived exertion scale, is a quantitative measure of perceived exertion during physical activity. In medicine, this is used to document the patient's exertion during a test for the severity of various 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 in the 1960's, rated exertion on a scale of 6-20. Around 1982, a newer category-ratio scale, the Borg CR-10 scale was published. It used a scale from 0-11+. Unfortunately, for research and statistical analysis, the ratings greater than 10 are often times deleted. Borg stated that the CR10 scale was desireable for clinical diagnosis and severity assessment of breathlessness and dyspnea, chest pain, angina and musculo-skeletal pain. It has been described as being better 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, eg the "Modified Borg" is a variant of the CR10 developed for pulmonary conditions, and the 0-10 pain scale is often seen in medical settings. One key difference in the CR-10 scale is that the highest level of exertion is not tied to a numerical rating. Another difference noted by some writers is that the rate of increase in exercise intensity within the original scale (6-20) is quite "linear" in nature or proportional throughout, which accurately represents physiologic energy expenditure changes in the body. The newer scale (0-11+), however, is more logrithimic in nature, such that at higher levels of exertion, small increases in exercise intensity are often felt to a much greaster degree than at the lower levels, ie the CR10 scale may better reflect the subjective experience of subjects at the higher levels of exertion. Due to misuses, specific verbal instructions for use of the scale, and for instructions to test subjects, were published in 1998 and again in 2000. Borg himself expressed concerns in a 2014 paper, that there have been many unauthorized changes to the RPE, eg changes to the text or words within the scale, to suit various interests. He highly discouraged this practice, and recommended that the original verbiage be preserved. 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.

Borg RPE scale The Borg RPE scale is a numerical scale that ranges from 6 to 20, 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. This explains why the rating starts at 6, which would roughly correspond to a resting heart rate at about 60 per minute. 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 More recent research points to that being physically active in outdoor environments, compared to indoors, to a varying degree can lower (23-66 %) the perceived exertion that at a given physiological exercise intensity is connected to in laboratory or other indoor conditions.

CR-10 scale Borg later developed a CR10 scale.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rating of perceived exertion

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rating of perceived exertion claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Rating of perceived exertion before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Rating of perceived exertion ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Rating of perceived exertion

In research: Rating of perceived exertion appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Rating of perceived exertion in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Rating of perceived exertion is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Physical exercise, Scales, Sports science, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rating of perceived exertion outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Rating of perceived exertion in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rating of perceived exertion means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Rating of perceived exertion out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rating of perceived exertion in simple terms?

Why does Rating of perceived exertion matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Rating of perceived exertion?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Rating of perceived exertion.