Online Coaching: Glossary

RPE

We use the RPE scale to indicate the relative difficulty we want to prescribe for a movement, either via loading or intensity.

We work from a scale of 1-10, with 1 being "no effort" and 10 being "I've got nothing left."

This allows you to auto-regulate week to week and maintain intensity/difficulty without being beholden to a particular weight as your fatigue levels rise and fall with training and life.

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Tempo

Tempo refers to how fast you perform an exercise. When written, it has four numbers (ex:

2121), and each number refers to a different segment of the movement. 

The first number refers to the eccentric or lowering portion—the lengthening of the muscle. 

The second number refers to the isometric pause at the bottom of the exercise—the hold after the muscle has lengthened.

The third number refers to the concentric or raising portion—the shortening of the muscle.

The fourth and final number refers to the isometric pause at the top of the exercise—the hold once it is complete.

An example of Tempo:

For example, Back Squat with the tempo of 4210 is 4 seconds lowering, 2 seconds pause at the bottom, 1 second raising, 0 seconds pause at the top.