How Perceived Effort Varies Across Exercises
What does a hard effort really feel like? Learn how to interpret perceived exertion across different exercises and training settings.
An effort rating is useful because it records how exercise feels to the person doing it. But the number needs context. A cycling rating, a running rating, and a rating during a resistance exercise do not necessarily describe the same physiological demand—or even use the same scale.
Running and cycling at the same reported effort
A study of 160 elite endurance athletes examined the Borg 6–20 rating of perceived exertion during progressive five-minute stages. Eighty-four athletes were tested on a cycle and 76 while running; this was not a crossover comparison in which every athlete completed both modes.
Effort ratings were strongly related to relative heart rate, oxygen uptake, and blood lactate, but there was considerable variation between individuals. At the same rating, running was associated with higher relative heart rate and oxygen uptake than cycling, with larger differences at lower intensities. These observations came from elite athletes, so they do not provide exact conversion rules for recreational exercisers.
The useful implication is to keep the mode in the record. A familiar effort rating can inform training without serving as a universal substitute for pace, power, or heart rate.
A different scale for elastic-band training
A 2026 study of 12 healthy, active adults aged 60 or older examined ratings on the first repetition of an elastic-band standing military press. All participants had more than three months of band-training experience. They used the OMNI elastic-band scale, with four target effort levels from 2 to 8 out of 10, then continued sets to failure.
Higher first-repetition ratings were associated with greater muscle activation and fewer total repetitions. Ratings also showed good repeatability. The study did not test long-term muscle growth or establish that first-repetition ratings prevent injuries. Cardiovascular responses did not differ significantly between intensities; that is not evidence that a first-repetition check rules out cardiovascular risk.
Record the scale as well as the number
These studies share a lesson about interpretation, rather than a single prescription. Note which activity, scale, and point in the exercise the rating describes. The band study used a different scale, population, and protocol from the endurance study. Keeping those distinctions visible makes effort ratings more useful for comparing like with like.