Educational reference. Measured from 273 recorded 5m bars of YM (E-mini Dow) on Monday, September 21, 2026.
RSI crossed above 70 11 separate times during the session, and the typical visit lasted 5 minutes. Across the whole session it sat above 70 for 15.4% of the time, between 30 and 70 for 79.9%, and below 30 for 4.8%.
| Band | Share of session | Bars | Separate visits | Median visit | Longest visit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Above 70 | 15.4% | 42 | 11 | 5 min | 60 min | |
| Between 30 and 70 | 79.9% | 218 | 15 | 25 min | 270 min | |
| Below 30 | 4.8% | 13 | 3 | 15 min | 45 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 11 times, with a median stay of 5 minutes and a longest of 60. 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.