How To Use RPE!!!

RPE stands for rate of perceived exercise. In weight training methodology, RPE is used to measure how "hard" you have worked in a particular exercise in relation to you proximity to failure out of 10.

For example, let's say you do a heavy set of squats. If you finish the set without even breaking a sweat or feeling fatigued, it was probably an RPE 3 lift. However, if you think that you could have done 2, maybe 3 more reps, then that set would have been an RPE 6-7 set. A max out, ball-to-the-wall set would be close to an RPE 9, and even an RPE 10, which is the max level of intensity you can reach. Essentially, we are taking qualitative data and turning it into quantitative data.

RPE 10: MAX EFFORT - CHILL OUT BRO

RPE 9: DAMN THAT WAS HARD

RPE 8: Challenging

RPE 7: Hard

RPE 5-6: Average

RPE 4: Eh

RPE 1-3: There's weight on the bar?

 

The main way to judge RPE is by bar speed. A slow moving bar is going to be a higher RPE. You can also judge RPE by how you feel after the set and the amount of grind you had to fight through, but all of this will more or less be manifested through the bar speed, so just focus on that.

It is important to not confuse RPE with RIR. RIR means reps in reserve, and essentially describes how many reps you could have done in a set after you concluded it. For example, if you finished a set of squats and though that you could have done 1 more rep, that would be an RIR 1 set. However, RIR and RPE are NOT the same. An RIR 0 set would NOT always be an RPE 10 set. For most trainees, I recommend using RPE as it is more flexible and suitable to auto-regulated training.

RPE works to prevent yourself from training harder than you should. When you see recommended RPEs written in a program, it gives you an idea of how hard you should be working on that particular exercise. Going to heavy and training too hard can actually be counter-productive, especially the more experienced you become as a lifter. Some lifters (such as myself!) have the tendency to push their sets way to hard. What this can do is lead to a high level of stress on the body both mentally and physically, which can really affect the rest of the training session and even your subsequent recovery. RPE ensures that you are stilled stimulating strength adaptations whilst not pushing yourself too hard to the point where you might die (or get seriously injured)!