Womack, C. J., Davis, S. A., Blumer, J., Barrett, E., Gaesser, G. A., & Weltman, A. (1994). Effects of training and epinephrine infusion on mediators of ratings of perceived exertion. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 26(5), Supplement abstract 637.

RPE on the Borg Scale was used for jogging, skiing, shuffle skiing, stepping, cycling, and rowing at ventilatory thresholds (VT-1 and VT-2) and at 60% of mode specific VO2max in 10 males. VT-1 was equivalent to an RPE of 7-8 and VT-2 was equivalent to an RPE of 13-14.

Implication. RPE can be used to estimate the intensity necessary to train at ventilatory threshold for different modes of exercise. However, at the same relative exercise intensity, young active men perceive the effort differently on different modes.

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