To the neophyte, energy coaching is easy: decide up a weight, put it down, get robust.

Spend a number of weeks or months on the web or chatting up your new fit-buddies, and also you come to understand there’s an entire lot of science, artwork, and jargon behind the obvious simplicity: compound workout routines; plyometrics; supination; RPE; 1RM; ATG.

That will help you work out what the fitness center bros and health nerds are yapping about, we’ve put collectively a cheat-sheet of weightlifting phrases that breaks all of it down for you.

So subsequent time somebody recommends that you simply “Attempt to PR on the ultimate pyramid set of your compound actions the ultimate mesocycle earlier than deload,” you’ll know what they’re speaking about.

FORM/MOVEMENT

Ass to grass

A motion carried out in squat variations whereby the knees and hips flex totally, and the glutes are shut as doable to the ground. Typically abbreviated as ATG.

Compound motion

An train that includes vital motion of two or extra main joints. Examples embrace squats, lunges, deadlifts, pull-ups, and presses of all types.

Concentric motion

A sort of muscle contraction wherein a working muscle goes from a lengthened to a shortened place. In energy coaching, it’s the a part of the transfer at which the load (or your body weight) strikes upward, as within the ‘pushing’ portion of an overhead press.

Eccentric motion

A sort of muscle contraction wherein a working muscle goes from a shortened to a lengthened place. In energy coaching, it’s the a part of the transfer at which the load (or your body weight) strikes downward, as within the ‘reducing’ portion of an overhead press.

Flexion

A motion wherein a joint goes from an open to a closed or bent place, as in a biceps curl or sit-up.

Extension

A motion wherein a joint goes from a closed to an open or lengthened place, as in a triceps extension or a deadlift.

Purposeful motion

A motion, train, or drill that resembles, or helps to enhance, actions commonly encountered in on a regular basis life. For example, carrying groceries or hoisting baggage into an overhead bin.

Grip energy

The capability to know, maintain, pinch, carry, and grasp from objects of assorted shapes, sizes, and weights utilizing primarily the energy of your fingers and fingers.

Grip energy is a element of many various fitness center actions, together with farmer’s carries, rows, deadlifts, pull-downs, pull-ups, and, to a lesser extent, presses, and is taken into account an indicator of common well being and a dependable predictor of longevity.

Hip hinge

A motion wherein each hip joints flex (bend) whereas the backbone stays braced and inflexible. A Romanian deadlift is an instance, as is the set-up place for the standing row.

Isolation actions

Workouts that contain vital motion of only one main joint. Examples embrace lateral raises, triceps extensions, and biceps curls.

Isometric train

An train that locations stress on a number of muscle teams, however requires minimal motion at any main joint. Examples embrace the wall sit and the plank.

Lengthening

The act of extending, enjoyable, or releasing a muscle or muscle group. Within the ahead bend stretch, for instance, the hamstring muscle group on the backs of the thighs lengthens as you fold ahead.

Shortening

The act of tensing or contracting a muscle or muscle group. Within the curl train, for instance, the biceps muscle groups of the higher arms shorten as you increase the load.

Lifting to failure

Performing an train till you might be unable to finish one other repetition.

Technical failure refers to performing an train till you might be unable to finish one other full repetition with good kind.

Absolute failure refers to performing the train till you’ll be able to not transfer the load in any respect, and normally includes performing a number of partial repetitions — typically with the assistance of a coaching associate — till your muscle groups are fully exhausted.

Supination

The act of turning your hand or foot upward or outward in order that the palm or sole is pointing up. In a dumbbell curl, supinating your hand as you increase the load leads to better stress in your biceps muscle groups.

The time period additionally applies to the entire physique, when an train is carried out on one’s again (supine).

Pronation

The act of turning your hand or foot downward or inward in order that the palm or sole is pointing down. The time period additionally applies to the entire physique, when an train is carried out on one’s abdomen or dealing with down (inclined).

Time underneath stress (TUT)

The time taken to finish all phases of a strength-training train, typically expressed as a four-digit quantity, with every digit referring to the time taken to finish a selected portion of the motion.

So a pushup with a 4210 tempo could be a set of pushups wherein you are taking 4 seconds to decrease your self in the direction of the ground; two seconds holding the “down” place; one second to push your self again up, and 0 seconds — no time — within the “up” place. Every rep of the pushup would give your chest, shoulders, and triceps seven whole seconds underneath stress.

WORKOUT DESIGN

Lively restoration

Mild, simple motion carried out on non-exercise days — or between or after coaching classes on exercise days — supposed to stimulate circulation, relieve soreness, and improve restoration. Examples embrace foam rolling, simple swimming, strolling, stretching, dynamic warmups, and yoga.

Bulking

A coaching block centered on constructing muscle mass, normally involving heavy, compound workout routines, further protein and energy, and a deal with relaxation exterior the fitness center.

Calisthenics

Repetitive workout routines involving body weight solely. Examples embrace push-ups, squats, leaping jacks, and sit-ups.

Reducing

A coaching block centered on shedding fats, normally involving lowered energy, continued deal with protein consumption and energy coaching, and an emphasis on further low-intensity train exterior the fitness center.

Deloading

A brief interval — normally every week — of lowered quantity and depth in a strength-training program, normally following every week or extra of high-intensity and high-volume coaching.

Density coaching

A coaching fashion centered on finishing as many reps, units, and/or workout routines as doable in a given time frame. Instance: performing as many rounds as doable of 10 reps every of push-ups and squats in 10 minutes.

Drop set

A set of a energy coaching train carried out instantly after a number of medium to heavy units wherein you drastically scale back the load used in an effort to additional exhaust a muscle.

Dynamic stretching/warmup

Mild warmup strikes, carried out with body weight solely, to extend core temperature, loosen joints, improve circulation, and scale back damage. Examples embrace excessive kicks, leaping jacks, and strolling lunges.

Full-body coaching

A coaching block or program wherein you’re employed all the main muscle groups of the physique in every exercise.

Muscular endurance

The capability of a muscle to contract repeatedly underneath stress earlier than fatiguing.

One-rep max

The quantity of weight you might be able to lifting, for a single repetition at maximal depth, in a given strength-training train.

Overtraining

In energy coaching (versus endurance coaching), understanding at a stage of quantity and/or depth from which you might be unable to get better from one exercise to the subsequent.

Signs embrace elevated resting coronary heart price, lowered coronary heart price variability, lack of motivation, and hampered progress.

Periodization

An method to coaching which focuses on completely different targets — energy, energy, endurance, restoration — in coaching blocks lasting 4 to 12 weeks, all through the coaching 12 months.

An instance is the Tremendous Blocks idea, wherein you’re employed out in three-week blocks, every centered on a specific side of health, separated by one-week deloads (see above).

Energy

The capability to precise energy rapidly. A 100-meter dash or an extended soar are checks of energy. In physics, energy is expressed as pressure x acceleration, so the stronger you might be and the sooner you progress the extra highly effective you might be.

Plyometrics

Jumps, throws, and calisthenics strikes designed to develop athletic explosiveness and energy, and improve energy.

PR (Private report)

A person’s efficiency in a carry or different train that represents their greatest effort thus far. Examples in energy coaching might embrace performing extra pull-ups in a row than you’ve ever accomplished with out dropping from the bar, or lifting extra weight for a single repetition than you ever have in a deadlift.

Progressive overload

Systematically growing the reps, weight, and/or quantity of a energy coaching program over time in an effort to enhance energy, muscle mass, endurance, and different parts of health.

Pyramiding

A energy coaching technique wherein the load will increase incrementally in an train over a number of units whereas repetitions inversely lower, usually culminating in a single all-out set of 5 or fewer reps.

Reps

A single cycle of a strength-training motion, together with — if relevant — reducing, lifting, and/or isometric holds.

Units

A rep or group of reps of an train carried out in succession to extend some side of health. Often expressed together with the rep rely of the train, as in, “Three units of 10 reps,” or, merely, “3 x 10.”

Break up coaching

Versus full-body coaching (see above) a break up program focuses on completely different muscle teams or actions on completely different days of the week, or days inside a cycle of exercises.

Some examples embrace “push-pull” wherein the lifter performs actions that contain pushing workout routines on some days, and pulling workout routines on others; “upper-lower,” wherein the lifter works higher physique some days and decrease on others, and “physique half splits,” wherein the lifter works only one or two particular person muscle teams — say, arms or again or legs — every exercise.

Power

The power to exert pressure to beat resistance. In physics, energy is expressed as pressure x distance — so the extra pressure you’ll be able to exert, and farther you progress the resistance, the stronger you might be.

Tremendous setting

Alternating units of no less than two workout routines, again to again, normally to save lots of time, or to extend the workload on a given muscle group.

Undulating periodization

A variation of the usual periodization (see above) mannequin wherein you differ the main focus of the exercises throughout the similar coaching block in an effort to scale back stress, and create a stimulus for broader adaptation.

So, as an alternative of specializing in endurance for 4 weeks, hypertrophy for 4 weeks, and energy for 4 weeks, you would possibly carry out two endurance exercises, two hypertrophy exercises, and two energy exercises every week for a six- or eight-week interval.

Quantity

The overall quantity of labor carried out in a given exercise, week, or coaching block. Typically expressed as “weight lifted x units x reps,” however usually brief handed as “variety of working units.”

METABOLISM/ENERGY/NUTRITION

Amino acids

The constructing blocks of dietary protein, which kind the uncooked supplies for muscle- and tissue-building throughout the physique.

Anaerobic vs. cardio

In biology, cardio reactions are those who require oxygen, and anaerobic ones don’t. So, many trainers and exercisers check with endurance actions (working, swimming, biking, and so forth.) as cardio, and energy and energy actions (energy coaching, sprinting) as anaerobic.

In fact, few if any bodily actions are purely one or the opposite; most actions lie on a spectrum someplace between the 2 extremes.

ATP (Adenosine triphosphate)

The first gasoline that powers organic exercise within the physique. Vitality in meals (carbohydrate, fats) is transformed by means of metabolism into this power to carry out work.

Broscience

Scientifically unproven coaching and dietary recommendation, usually delivered by folks with few if any respectable credentials, in particular person or on social media.

EPOC (Extra post-exercise oxygen consumption)

The tendency for the physique to proceed burning power above your baseline metabolic price after the conclusion of a exercise.

EPOC is considerably increased after high-intensity actions like sprints and circuit coaching than lower-intensity ones, however, opposite to some older analysis, not a significant contributor to caloric burn or fats loss.

Hypertrophy

Muscle progress.

Lactate

An often-misunderstood and mischaracterized gasoline supply for muscle contraction, produced and burned throughout extended high-intensity energy or endurance coaching.

RPE (Fee of perceived exertion)

A subjective scale, expressed as a quantity from six to twenty or one to 10, of how onerous an individual is working relative to their maximal capability.

ANATOMY

Biceps

The muscle groups on the fronts of the higher arm, answerable for flexing (bending) the elbow.

Glutes (gluteals)

The “butt muscle groups” on the backs of the hip joints answerable for extending the hips.

Lats (latissimus dorsi)

The thick muscle groups on the perimeters of the torso answerable for drawing the arms again and down, and serving to to increase the decrease again.

Pecs (pectorals)

The chest muscle groups, answerable for drawing your higher arms in the direction of, and previous, your middle line.

Quads (quadriceps)

The muscle groups on the fronts of your thighs, answerable for extending your knee joint.

Traps (trapezius)

The kite-shaped muscle in your higher again, answerable for drawing your shoulder blades upwards, backwards, and downwards.

Triceps

The muscle groups on the backs of your higher arms, answerable for extending (straightening) your elbows.

Abduction

The act of shifting an arm or leg away from the middle line of the physique.

Adduction

The act of shifting an arm or leg towards the middle line of the physique.

Anabolism

All metabolic actions that contain progress, or the assembling of smaller organic parts into bigger ones. Muscle progress, which includes the development of recent muscle tissue from amino acids, is one instance.

Atrophy

Muscle loss or breakdown.

Physique composition

A measurement or the proportion of physique fats in an individual relative to their total physique mass.

Muscle fiber sort

A manner of categorizing the lengthy, parallel, hair-like fibers that comprise muscle tissue. (See additionally quick twitch and gradual twitch).

Recomposition

Altering the relative proportion of physique fats and muscle tissue within the physique, with minimal change in whole physique mass.

Catabolism

Metabolic actions that contain breakdown, or the breaking of bigger organic parts into smaller ones. Fats loss, which includes the breaking of fats tissue into triglyceride gasoline, is one instance.

DOMS (Delayed onset muscle soreness)

Soreness in muscle groups felt many hours — or typically days — following a tough train session.

Quick twitch

A sort of muscle fiber, also called sort II, that’s massive and light-weight in shade, and answerable for quick, high-effort, high-exertion actions like all-out sprints and heavy lifts.

These are distinguished from slow-twitch, or sort I, fibers, that are slimmer and darker, and answerable for slower, decrease effort actions like jogging and lighter, sooner lifts.

Midline

An imaginary middle line that bisects the physique vertically.

Thoughts-muscle connection

The psychological consciousness of the motion of your muscle groups as they lengthen and contract, proven to enhance the effectiveness of a strength-training program.

Muscle imbalance

A distinction within the relative energy of muscle groups on two sides of the physique or two sides of a joint, believed to play a job in posture and susceptibility to damage.

Vary of movement

The route and diploma to which a joint or a collection of joints transfer — or are able to shifting — in a specific train or stretch.

Sarcopenia

Lack of muscle mass stemming from illness, getting old, or disuse.