RPE Training: How to Use RPE in Your Workouts

RPE 8, RPE 9 and RPE 10: what each number means

Each RPE is a number of reps in reserve (RIR): how many more reps you could have done with good form. The percentage column is the % of 1RM for a 5-rep set at that RPE, from the table Hardy's RPE calculator uses. Heavier sets sit higher, lighter sets lower.

What is RPE in weight training?

RPE stands for Rate of Perceived Exertion. In endurance sport it is a 6-20 scale of how hard you are breathing. In weight training it is the 1-10 scale above, tied to reps in reserve and made popular by Mike Tuchscherer's Reactive Training Systems.

The point is autoregulation: adjusting the weight to the day. A fixed percentage of your max assumes every day is the same, while an RPE target adjusts to how you feel. On a strong day RPE 8 is heavier than planned, on a tired day lighter, and both are right.

How to calculate RPE from reps in reserve

There is no formula for the rating itself. After the set, ask how many more reps you could have done with the same form, then subtract that from 10. Two reps left is RPE 8, one is RPE 9, and none is RPE 10.

Bar speed is the honest tell. If the last rep moved as fast as the first, you were at RPE 7 or below no matter how it felt.

The math comes in when you convert a rated set to a weight or a max. A 100 kg (220 lbs) set of 5 at RPE 8 is about 81% of 1RM. So the estimated 1RM is 100 / 0.81, about 123 kg (272 lbs).

The RPE calculator does both directions. The 1RM calculator shows the same estimate from any single set.

How to use RPE in your workouts: six steps

1. Step 1: Learn the scale on your top sets

   Begin by rating only the heaviest set of each exercise. After it, ask how many more reps you could have done with good form. The first few weeks you will rate everything RPE 9, which is normal, and filming a set to count slow reps speeds up learning.

2. Step 2: Pick a target RPE for the session

   Most working sets belong at RPE 7-9. Use RPE 7-8 for volume work and technique days, RPE 8-9 for top sets, and RPE 9.5-10 only for planned tests. Programs written in RPE give you this directly, for example "5 reps at RPE 8".

3. Step 3: Work up to the weight the target calls for

   If the plan says 3 reps at RPE 8, add weight across warm-up sets until a triple feels like two reps left. On good days that is heavier than last week, on bad days lighter, and both are right. The RPE calculator gives a starting weight from your 1RM.

4. Step 4: Log the RPE on every working set

   Record weight, reps and RPE together. A lower RPE at the same weight over weeks means you are getting stronger, and a rising RPE means you need recovery, not more load. Hardy stores RPE per set and shows the estimated 1RM each set implies.

5. Step 5: Adjust the next set, not the whole plan

   A set rated one point over target: take 3-5% off the bar for the next set. One point under: add 3-5%. Two or more points off: stop and check the rating first, because the miss is usually in the rating, not the weight.

6. Step 6: Do not chase RPE 10

   Training to failure adds far more fatigue than growth, and it limits how much quality volume you can do. Keep most sets at RPE 7-8.5 and save RPE 9 for key sets on the main lifts. A true RPE 10 belongs in a test week, not a Tuesday.

RPE vs percentage training: use both

Percentages give structure and are easy to plan. RPE gives feedback and adapts to the day. The strongest setups combine them.

A percentage program like 5/3/1 prescribes the weight and uses the AMRAP set as an RPE reading. The reps you get tell you whether the Training Max is set right.

An RPE program prescribes the effort and lets the weight float. A percentage cap often stops a good day from turning into a max test.

Beginners do better starting with percentages and rating their sets alongside. The RPE becomes reliable within a few weeks, and then it can steer the load.

Common mistakes

• Rating every hard set RPE 10. A true RPE 10 means the next rep would have failed. "That was hard" is usually RPE 8.
• Rating by how the set felt instead of how many reps were left. Fatigue makes light sets feel heavy without changing the RIR.
• Ignoring the ratings and lifting the planned weight regardless. RPE only helps if it changes the next set.
• Using RPE as permission to go light on a day you should push. If the ratings say RPE 6, add weight.
• Rating only heavy singles. Rate every working set, or the trend data that makes RPE useful never appears.