Educational reference. Measured from 1021 recorded 1m bars of MES (Micro E-mini S&P 500) on Friday, September 4, 2026.
RSI crossed above 70 12 separate times during the session, and the typical visit lasted 2 minutes. Across the whole session it sat above 70 for 2.9% of the time, between 30 and 70 for 90.6%, and below 30 for 6.5%.
| Band | Share of session | Bars | Separate visits | Median visit | Longest visit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Above 70 | 2.9% | 30 | 12 | 2 min | 5 min | |
| Between 30 and 70 | 90.6% | 925 | 31 | 20 min | 137 min | |
| Below 30 | 6.5% | 66 | 18 | 2 min | 15 min |
RSI compares the size of recent gains with recent losses, so a reading above 70 says buying has dominated the last 14 bars — not that price is high. A long stay above 70 is a market trending up, which is the opposite of the reversal the word 'overbought' suggests.
Here the reading entered overbought territory 12 times, with a median stay of 2 minutes and a longest of 5. A brief excursion above 70 that resolves in minutes is noise on this timeframe. A sustained one is the signature of a trend that is still running, and selling into it is how traders get run over.