Comparison of passive sensory stimulations on RPE during moderate intensity exercise

The purpose of this study was to compare three passive attentional manipulations on ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) during exercise. College subjects (13 men, 11 women) completed four 20-min. periods of cycling at 70% of peak aerobic power. Four stimulus conditions were randomly assigned from auditory (listening to fast upbeat music), visual (viewing high-action videotape of human stunts), auditory/visual (both stimulations), and control (no stimulation), Heart rate, peripheral RPE, central RPE, and over-all RPE were measured at 5-min. intervals. Peripheral RPE was significantly higher for visual at 5 and 20 min. compared with auditory/visual and at 5 min. compared to auditory stimulation. Central RPE was significantly higher for visual stimulation at 5, 10, 15, and 20 min. compared with auditory/visual, at 5, 10, and 20 min. compared with auditory, and at 5 min. compared to the control condition. Over-all RPE was significantly higher for visual stimulation at 5, 10, 15, and 20 min. compared with auditory/visual and at 5 and 10 min. compared with auditory stimulation. Passive dissociations using high-action visual images may evoke a strong, emotional response which may heighten awareness of physical sensations.