Session-RPE: turning effort into training load

Knowing how hard a session felt is useful. Knowing how hard it felt and how long it lasted is far more useful. That combination is the heart of the session-RPE method, and it is how Train Climb calculates your training load.

The method in one line

Session-RPE load is simply:

Load = effort (1 to 10) × duration in minutes

A 60 minute session rated 6 gives a load of 360. A 90 minute session rated 4 gives 360 as well. A 45 minute session rated 9 gives 405. The units are often called "arbitrary units", because the number only means something when you compare it with your own other sessions and weeks.

The approach was described by Foster and colleagues (2001). Their studies showed that this simple product tracked heart-rate based training load reasonably well, and that it worked across different types of training. Since then it has become one of the most widely used monitoring tools in team and individual sports, largely because it is cheap, quick and works for almost any activity.

Why it suits climbing

Climbing is awkward to measure. A bouldering session might involve a few minutes of actual climbing spread over two hours. A route session might be long and steady. Hangboarding is short and intense. Heart rate, distance and speed, the usual tools in endurance sports, do not capture what is happening to your fingers, shoulders and nervous system.

Session-RPE sidesteps that problem. It asks you to sum up the whole experience with one number, then weights it by time. It treats a fingerboard session, a gym circuit and an outdoor day on the same terms, so your coach can see them side by side.

What it is good for

• Seeing your week at a glance. Adding up session loads gives a weekly load that reflects both volume and intensity.
• Spotting sudden jumps. A week that is much bigger than usual stands out immediately.
• Checking a plan was followed. If a coach planned an easy week and the load came in high, it is worth a conversation.
• Comparing phases. Base phases, strength blocks and deload weeks should look different in your numbers.

What it does not tell you

Session-RPE is a summary, and summaries lose detail. Keep these limits in mind:

• It does not know which tissues were stressed. A load of 400 from easy mileage and a load of 400 from maximal crimping are not the same for your finger pulleys.
• Duration can mislead. Long sessions with lots of rest can produce big loads that overstate the real stress. Short, very intense sessions can look smaller than they feel the next day.
• It depends on honest, consistent rating. See What is RPE for tips.

That is why load is best read alongside how you feel, what you actually did and any niggles you notice, rather than on its own.

Practical tips for logging

1. Log the session time, not the time at the venue. If you spent 20 minutes chatting and 90 minutes climbing, use something close to the climbing time including normal rests. Whatever you choose, be consistent.
2. Log every session. Missing sessions make weeks look lighter than they were, which can make later weeks look like sudden spikes.
3. Include other training. Running, strength work and mobility all contribute to fatigue. Log them with an honest rating too.
4. Add a note when the number hides something. "Short session but fingers took a beating" is valuable context.

From load to the bigger picture

Once you have a few weeks of loads, you can start asking more interesting questions. Is this week much bigger than what you are used to? Is every week identical? Those questions lead to the acute:chronic ratio, covered in ACWR explained, and to monotony and strain, covered in Monotony and strain.

In Train Climb

• Every logged session automatically gets a load = effort × minutes. You never need to calculate it yourself.
• Open the Progress page to see your weekly load build up over time.
• Coaches can set a target load per week in a season plan and compare it with what athletes actually logged.
• If you have never tracked before, read Why track your training first.