Borg Scale

The Borg Scale (Borg 1982)^[1] is a simple method of rating perceived exertion (RPE) and can be used by coaches to gauge an athlete's level of intensity in training and competition. Perceived exertion is an individual's rating of exercise intensity, formed by assessing their body's physical signs such as heart rate, breathing rate and perspiration/sweating.

Types of scales

There are several RPE scales, but the most common are the 15-point scale (6-20) and the 11 point scale (0-10).

15 Point Scale

6 - 20% effort
7 - 30% effort - Very, very light (Rest)
8 - 40% effort
9 - 50% effort - Very light - gentle walking
10 - 55% effort
11 - 60% effort - Fairly light
12 - 65% effort
13 - 70% effort - Somewhat hard - steady pace
14 - 75% effort
15 - 80% effort - Hard
16 - 85% effort
17 - 90% effort - Very hard
18 - 95% effort
19 - 100% effort - Very, very hard
20 - Exhaustion

10 Point Scale

0 - Nothing at all
1 - Very light
2 - Fairly light
3 - Moderate
4 - Somewhat hard
5 - Hard
6
7 - Very hard
8
9
10 - Very, very hard

Correlation

Research by Borg et al. (1983)^[2] found that there is a correlation between an athlete's rate of perceived exertion (RPE) and their heart rate, lactate levels, %VO₂ max and breathing rate.

References

BORG, G. (1982) Psychophysical bases of perceived exertion. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 14 (5), p. 377-81
BORG, G. et al. (1983) A category-ratio perceived exertion scale: relationship to blood and muscle lactates and heart rate. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., 15 (6), p. 523-528
BORG, G. (1970) Perceived Exertion as an indicator of somatic stress. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, 2 (2), p. 92-98

Page Reference

If you quote information from this page in your work, then the reference for this page is:

MACKENZIE, B. (2003) Borg Scale [WWW] Available from: https://www.brianmac.co.uk/borgscale.htm [Accessed 31/3/2025]

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