Relating heart rate and rate of perceived exertion in two simulated occupational tasks

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and activity intensity, as determined by heart rate. Fifteen participants completed a standardized treadmill protocol in order to establish a heart rate--RPE calibration profile. These participants then completed two simulated occupational tasks--box carrying and sweeping. During the simulated tasks, heart rates and RPE values were recorded every minute from the third to tenth minute and then averaged over that period. There was a moderate, but statistically significant, correlation between monitored heart rate and heart rate predicted from RPE scores for both the box carrying (r = 0.70) and sweeping (r = 0.73) simulations. Direct prediction of task heart rate from RPE reported during the task was not as strongly correlated for the box carry (r = 0.11), as it was for the sweeping activity (r = 0.68). Results from this study suggested that heart rate monitoring alone does not account for enough of the variability resulting from both local and central mediation of RPE.