The Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) is how we feel during physical activity such as running. We feel RPE in the form of increased breathing/heart rate, sweating, and muscle fatigue. RPE is based on the Borg Rating Scale 6 to 20, where 6 is no perceived exertion, and 20 is all-out total exertion (Borg, 1998).
Studies have found—especially during races—that RPE is the best way to pace ourselves. We tend to either start at too fast of a pace, which causes us to hit a wall too soon, or we finish too quickly because we started too slow, causing us a slow overall finish time (Billat et al., 2022).
Billat et al. (2022) studied nine non-elite marathon runners during the Sénart Marathon in France who had at least completed two marathons previously. They found that three of the nine runners recorded their best run, and all finished when they ran on perceived exertion rate alone, which was an average of 13—way below their threshold.
Billat et al. (2022) study focused on the phenomenon called “Hitting the Wall” in a marathon. Hitting the Wall is when after a certain amount of miles—15.5 miles determined in this study— runners tend to get to the point of the body shutting down, either to fatigue or nutrition. This study focused on fatigue; all runners did not hit the infamous “Wall.” These runners weekly training miles consisted of 30 – 80 miles a week during their marathon training blocks.
The above study sample—nine runners— is small, so it is hard to determine the importance of RPE based only on this study, but there are other studies—too many to list—that support the best performance based on the Rate of Perceived Exertion.
Based on my experience with RPE, it does work. When I consistently look at my watch for pacing, I over-exert myself and underperform. When I don’t look at my watch and run based on how I’m feeling, I always surprise myself with how good my performance is.
I recommend glancing at the watch once in a while to see how far and time you’ve run for, but don’t base your performance on the watch—it’ll only slow you down.
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