Educational reference. Measured from 225 recorded 5m bars of YM (E-mini Dow) on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.
RSI crossed above 70 3 separate times during the session, and the typical visit lasted 20 minutes. Across the whole session it sat above 70 for 4.4% of the time, between 30 and 70 for 86.2%, and below 30 for 9.3%.
| Band | Share of session | Bars | Separate visits | Median visit | Longest visit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Above 70 | 4.4% | 10 | 3 | 20 min | 25 min | |
| Between 30 and 70 | 86.2% | 194 | 9 | 90 min | 245 min | |
| Below 30 | 9.3% | 21 | 5 | 20 min | 55 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 3 times, with a median stay of 20 minutes and a longest of 25. 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.