Training Load Calculator
Quantifies your weekly training load score from session duration, perceived exertion, weekly volume, experience level, and recovery quality. Use it to avoid overtraining and plan recovery weeks.
About this calculator
Training load quantifies the physiological stress placed on the body during a training week, combining volume (how much) and intensity (how hard). This calculator uses a composite formula: Load = (sessionDuration × RPE × (weeklyVolume / 7) × experienceFactor × (recoveryScore / 10)) rounded to one decimal. Session Duration (minutes) and RPE (1–10 Rating of Perceived Exertion) together approximate session impulse (TRIMP), a concept pioneered by exercise scientist Eric Banister. Weekly volume spread across seven days produces an average daily load. The experience multiplier adjusts for the fact that trained athletes tolerate higher loads, while the recovery score (1–10) scales down load impact when recovery is poor — reflecting the principle that unrecovered stress accumulates faster and increases injury risk. Monitoring load week-over-week helps keep the acute-to-chronic workload ratio in a safe range.
How to use
Suppose you do a 60-minute session at RPE 7, your weekly volume is 7 hours, your experience multiplier is 1.2 (intermediate), and your recovery score is 8. Step 1: weeklyVolume / 7 = 7 / 7 = 1.0. Step 2: Multiply all terms: 60 × 7 × 1.0 × 1.2 × (8 / 10) = 60 × 7 × 1.0 × 1.2 × 0.8. Step 3: 60 × 7 = 420; 420 × 1.2 = 504; 504 × 0.8 = 403.2. Step 4: Rounded result = 403.2. Use this score to compare against previous weeks — a week-on-week increase above 10% is a common overtraining warning sign.
Frequently asked questions
What is RPE and how do I choose the right number for my training session?
RPE stands for Rate of Perceived Exertion, typically measured on Borg's 1–10 or 6–20 scale. On the 1–10 scale used here, a 1 is barely moving, a 5 is a moderate effort where talking is possible but slightly laboured, and a 10 is an all-out maximal sprint lasting only seconds. For most steady-state aerobic training, RPE 5–7 is appropriate; intervals and race efforts fall in the 8–9 range. The simplest guide is the talk test — if you can hold a full conversation, RPE is likely below 5; if you can only speak in broken phrases, you are around 7–8.
What is a safe week-on-week increase in training load to avoid injury?
The widely cited 10% rule recommends increasing weekly training load by no more than 10% compared to the previous week. Research using the acute-to-chronic workload ratio (ACWR) suggests that keeping this ratio between 0.8 and 1.3 is associated with the lowest injury risk, while ratios above 1.5 significantly increase the likelihood of soft-tissue injury. These thresholds are guidelines rather than hard limits — individual recovery capacity, sleep quality, nutrition, and training age all moderate how much load any individual can safely absorb. Planned deload weeks every 3–4 weeks help reset baseline fatigue.
How does training experience level affect how much load an athlete can handle?
Experienced athletes have developed greater structural resilience — denser bones, stronger tendons and ligaments, more efficient neuromuscular patterns — allowing them to tolerate and recover from higher training loads than beginners. This is why the experience multiplier in the formula scales load upward for advanced athletes: the same session duration and RPE produces a meaningful but manageable stimulus for an elite runner that might be genuinely injurious to a novice. Beginners should start conservatively, focus on building a consistent aerobic base over 6–12 months, and only progressively increase intensity once volume adaptation is established.