Accuracy of Borg's ratings of perceived exertion in the prediction of heart rates during pregnancy.

Abstract

When using Borg's 6-20 scale during pregnancy, ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) did not significantly correlate with exercise heart rates (HR) (P > 0.05). The The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) in pregnant women using Borg's 6-20 point scale as a predictor of the exercise heart rate (HR) in response to several commonly undertaken weight-bearing and nonweight-bearing activities, namely cycling, walking, aerobics and circuit training.Borg' developed this 6-20 scale after observing a linear correlation between RPE and HR during cycling in non-pregnant subjects (Table 1) has been questioned6 because the exercise responses of several of the physiological variables that influence RPE are altered during pregnancy6-8. Two previous studies in pregnant women observed that RPE were unchanged with moderate intensity cycling9 but higher with step-testing at the same target HR10. In view of these conflicting opinions and findings, the applicability of RPE during pregnancy requires further evaluation. Materials and methodsHealthy women with uncomplicated singleton pregnancies were tested. Women were dassified as 'trained' if they had exercised for 6 weeks or more before the test, at least three times per week for 30 min or more at an intensity that was high enough to cause perspiration and shortness of breath. 'Sedentary' subjects never participated in exercise sessions and subjects classified as 'neither' exercised once or twice per week or had started or stopped training in the 6 weeks preceding their test. The protocol was approved by the Institutional Ethical Review Committee and all subjects gave informed consent. Questionnaires were filled out during the 30-min rest period before the test.Women in Group 1 exercised on a treadmill at 23-28 weeks and 34-37 weeks gestation and again at 8 weeks or more after delivery. The subjects walked continuously for a total of 26 min -comprising 10 min Br J Sp Med 1992; 26(2) 121

Exercise and pregnancy in recreational and elite athletes: 2016 evidence summary from the IOC expert group meeting, Lausanne. Part 1—exercise in women planning pregnancy and those who are pregnant

“…During pregnancy, Borg's ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) scale does not correlate strongly with HR 111. HR predicted from RPE is significantly underestimated in the second trimester during walking (ie, actual mean HR is greater than predicted HR by 16 bpm), aerobics classes (15 bpm) and circuit training (18 bpm).…”

Comparação do índice de esforço percebido e consumo de oxigênio em exercício em cicloergômetro entre gestantes e não-gestantes e entre o exercício aquático e terrestre

“…The use of RPE for determination of exercise intensity during pregnancy is questioned in the study by O'Neill et al 18 , where the authors state that during pregnancy many physiological variables, which influence the exertion perception, are altered. In that study, five groups of pregnant women, who performed different types of land-based exercises, at different gestational ages and in the post-partum, were analyzed.…”

“…This control was performed with the aim to avoid interference in the collected variables. Moreover, the participants were familiarized with the Borg's scale (6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20).…”

“…In the literature, there are studies which measure the role of the RPE in the prescription of different exercise modalities [10][11][12][13][14] and have been also used in investigations which need to prescribe the exercise intensity in different environment [15][16][17] . When analyzing the investigations found on RPE in different exercise modalities on land, we observed that there are clashing opinions about the RPE use for pregnant women 18 . Regarding the O 2 , there are methodological differences in the studies which approach this issue, not making it clear whether the environment and pregnancy may result in distinct O 2 , when compared with the non-pregnant state.…”

Acute maternal exercise during the third trimester of pregnancy, influence on foetal heart rate. (Ejercicio físico durante el tercer trimestre de embarazo, influencia en la frecuencia cardiaca fetal).

“…For the estimate of the intensity of exercise we have used the Karvonen formulation (Colberg S, 2003) and the Borg Scale for perceived exertion adapted to the pregnancy (O´Neill et al, 1992). This mechanism tells us the ranges of maternal heart frequency at which each woman should work.…”