People who are able to comfortably converse during exercise are likely working out at an acceptable intensity. This guideline, known as the “Talk Test,” has been shown to correctly gauge intensity and correspond to an effective range for exercise prescription.
New research, published in the September issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the official scientific journal of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), provides further evidence that the Talk Test is a simple method to determine appropriate levels of exercise intensity and set markers to avoid overexertion.
Researchers studied the consistency of the Talk Test to determine if responses were similar among different modes of exercise. Sixteen healthy and moderately active participants performed two progressively harder tests, one on a treadmill and one on a cycle ergometer. All recited a standard paragraph, the Pledge of Allegiance, aloud during each stage of each exercise test. After completing the paragraph, participants were asked if they could speak comfortably. Those who answered “yes” were marked with “positive” Talk Tests. The first time participants who reported they could not speak comfortably, the researchers took this as a negative Talk Test. A third category of “equivocal” was assigned to participants who were uncertain about or could not indicate their level of comfort in speaking during a testing phase.