Scult Energy — Timer-Built Interval Sessions | scultenergy.com

Scult Energy — Timer-Built Interval Sessions | scultenergy.com

How Hard Is Hard: the Borg Scale

The Borg 6-20 scale as a table with what each band feels like and the multiply-by-ten heart-rate estimate.

The Borg rating of perceived exertion scale runs from 6 to 20, where 6 means no exertion and 20 means maximal effort. Hard intervals typically sit at 15-17.

Gunnar Borg published the perceived-exertion scale in Sweden. Multiplying the rating by ten approximates heart rate in beats per minute for many adults, so a rating of 16 roughly corresponds to about 160 beats per minute.

Check the number mentally at the end of each work block. If the round reads above 17, shorten the next work block or lengthen the rest; if it reads below 15, the work block can stay the same or the effort can increase.

The signature mark of this site, drawn as a plate

On narrow screens, swipe or scroll the plate sideways.

The warm-up sits at Borg 9-11: easy movement that raises heart rate without spending the effort budget needed for the hard rounds.

On the Tabata protocol every work block is maximal, so rounds will read near the top of the scale. That is the design of the session, not a pacing error — but the rounds still need full rest and recovery days around them.

Use the scale as a pacing tool across the whole session rather than judging a single round in isolation. A session that starts at 19 has nowhere to go.

  • 6: no exertion at all
  • 9-11: warm-up effort, light to fairly light
  • 15-17: hard intervals, the target band
  • 20: maximal effort
  • Rating × 10 ≈ heart rate in bpm for many adults

Further reading