Endurance athletes have access to more data than ever before, but data alone doesn’t guarantee better decisions. In this episode, CTS Coach Adam Pulford breaks down the role of Rate of Perceived Effort (RPE) in training and racing, and why internal awareness remains one of the most important skills an athlete can develop.

We cover pacing, training zones, effort calibration, common mistakes athletes make with RPE, and how to integrate subjective feedback with power and heart rate for better long-term performance. Wattage tells you what you did, RPE tells you what it cost.

HOST

Adam Pulford has been a CTS Coach for nearly two decades and holds a B.S. in Exercise Physiology. He's participated in and coached hundreds of athletes for endurance events all around the world.

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Resources:

• https://trainright.com/rpe-rating-of-perceived-exertion-in-training-and-racing/
• https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/abstract/2001/02000/a_new_approach_to_monitoring_exercise_training.19.aspx?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2017.00612/full?utm_source=researchgate.net&utm_medium=article
• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10422765/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2024.1341972/full?utm_source=chatgpt.com
• https://support.trainerroad.com/hc/en-us/articles/360021324932-RPE-Key-Explained