This study was done to establish the standard of oxygen consumption, heart rate, and RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion) scale related to mode and intensity of exercise by using the treadmill, bicycle ergometer and arm ergometer which had been commonly used as tools of exercise prescription, to compare the exercise indices between modes of exercise and to know whether the heart rate and RPE predict the amount of oxygen consumption or not.
Twenty young healthy male volunteers, who had no history of cardiopulmonary disease and had never been expert athletes recently, participated in this study. Oxygen consumption per minute, hear rate, and Borg's RPE scale were measured using treadmill, bicycle ergometer and arm ergometer.
Simple significant regression equations were obtained between exercise indices (oxygen consumption, oxygen consumption per body weight, heart rate, RPE scale) and exercise load parameters (treadmill speed, ergometer work rate). Oxygen consumption and heart rate showed no significant difference between arm and leg exercise, but RPE scale of arm exercise showed more increase than that of leg exercise as the work rate increased. Oxygen consumption could be predicted by heart rate and RPE with simple significant regression equations. In submaximal exercise range (below 7.5 METS) heart rate showed little difference between arm and leg exercise under the same amount of oxygen consumption but we think further studies including the measurement of blood pressure and cardiac output will be necessary to confirm the influence of exercise mode on cardiac load.
