EVENTS Rate of Perceived Exertion December 7th, 2010 by Runners World RPE 1-2: Very easy; you can converse with no effort RPE 3: Easy; you can converse with almost no effort RPE 4: Moderately easy; you can converse comfortably with little effort RPE 5: Moderate; conversation requires some effort RPE 6: Moderately hard; conversation requires quite a bit of effort RPE 7: Difficult; conversation requires a lot of effort RPE 8: Very difficult; conversation requires maximum effort RPE 9-10: Peak effort; no-talking zone