Educational reference. Measured from 276 recorded 5m bars of YM (E mini Dow) on Wednesday, October 7, 2026.
RSI crossed above 70 2 separate times during the session, and the typical visit lasted 22 minutes. Across the whole session it sat above 70 for 3.3% of the time, between 30 and 70 for 84.4%, and below 30 for 12.3%.
| Band | Share of session | Bars | Separate visits | Median visit | Longest visit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Above 70 | 3.3% | 9 | 2 | 22 min | 30 min | |
| Between 30 and 70 | 84.4% | 233 | 18 | 27 min | 355 min | |
| Below 30 | 12.3% | 34 | 15 | 10 min | 30 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 2 times, with a median stay of 22 minutes and a longest of 30. 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.