Bodybuilding Terms - Glossary of Bodybuilding Terms

Bodybuilding Glossary

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Bodybuilding Terms - Glossary of Bodybuilding Terms

Aerobic Exercise: Constant moderate intensity work that uses up oxygen at a rate in which the cardio respiratory system can replenish oxygen in the working muscles. Examples of such activity are stationary bike riding or walking. It is a good activity for fat loss when done in the right amounts but highly catabolic if done in excess.

Anaerobic Exercise: Exercise in which oxygen is used up more quickly than the body is able to replenish it inside the working muscle. Weight training is an example of such an activity. It is highly anabolic in nature but also highly catabolic if done in excess.

Anabolic State: Favorable state in the body created by a combination of good training, nutrition and rest that leads to favorable changes in body composition.

Anabolic Steroids: Synthetic (man-made) hormones that simulate the effects of the male hormone testosterone.

Anti-Catabolic Properties: Properties provided by certain nutrients that protect the muscle mass in the body from being broken down.

Anti-Lypolitic Properties: Properties provided by certain nutrients that prevent the body from turning calories into fat.

Antioxidant Properties: Properties provided by certain nutrients that protect the body from disease.

Basic Exercises: Exercise movement that involves a large number of muscles in the body. They are generally multi-joint movements that target the larger muscles of the body (such as chest, back and thighs) but also involve the smaller muscles as well (such as shoulders, arms, calves and abs) as auxiliary muscles. Examples of such movements are the chin-ups, pull-ups, dips, bench presses, squats, and lunges.

Biological Value (BV) of a Protein: Value that measures how well the body can absorb and utilize a protein. The higher the Biological Value of the protein you use, the more nitrogen your body can absorb, use, and retain. As a result, proteins with the highest BV promote the most lean muscle gains. Whey protein has the highest BV value, rating as a104. Egg protein is only second to whey rating as a 100 with milk proteins being a close third rating as 91. Beef rates as an 80 with soy proteins a distant 74. Bean proteins, due to the fact that are plant-based proteins, only rate a 49.

Bulk Minerals: minerals which the body needs in great quantities (in the order of grams) such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium and phosphorus.

Carbohydrates: Macronutrient used by the body as its main source of energy. Carbohydrates are divided into complex carbs and simple carbs. The complex carbs give you sustained energy ("timed release") while the simple carbs gives you immediate energy. This macronutrient can be found in rice (complex, starchy), pasta (complex, starchy), breads (complex, starchy), fruits (simple), sugars (simple), fruit juices (simple), dairy products (simple), and vegetables (complex, fibrous).

Catabolic State: Unfavorable state in the body created by a combination of too much training, lack of good nutrition and lack of rest that leads to muscle loss and fat accumulation.

Concentric Movement: Portion of the exercise where the muscle contracts. This happens when you are lifting the weight. This portion of the movement should be performed as fast as possible (once you are past the beginner period) without involving momentum. Beginners should concentrate however in performing the movement slowly and deliberately.

Cortisol: Catabolic hormone secreted by the adrenal glands in situations of stress (both physical and mental), lack of calories/nutrients and lack of sleep. This hormone is associated with loss of muscle mass, loss of strength, and fat accumulation. An excess of it over long periods of time may also contribute to hardening of the arteries; something that leads to heart disease.

Diuretics: Drugs used to remove excess water from the body. There are two versions: the drug version (can only be prescribed by a physician), and the herbal version. Excessive use of the drug version has as side effects muscle cramps and harsh arrhythmia. The herbal version, while safer than the drug version, can lead to potassium loss and excessive use puts stress on the kidneys.

Dumbbell: A short-handled barbell 10-12 inches long that can be carried in one hand. Dumbbells allow for flexibility in the execution of a movement and for full range of motion.

Eccentric Movement: Portion of the movement where the muscle elongates. This happens as you lower the weight back to the starting position. This portion of the movement should be performed slowly and deliberately.

Endorphins: Hormones that make us feel good and happy. The production of these hormones is stimulated by exercise.

Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs): Fats that have anti-catabolic, anti-lypolitic and antioxidant properties. These fats affect the good cholesterol in a positive way. In addition, these fats aid in the muscle-building, fat-loss process. The Omega 3 Fatty Acids found in fats such as fish oils and flaxseed oil are a good source of EFAs.

Estrogen: Female hormone that regulates and sustains female sexual development and reproductive function. An excess of this hormone appears to be related to heart disease and cancer. In addition, when this hormone is in excess, it causes fat gain and water retention. Estrogen deficits, on the other hand, include memory problems, trouble finding words, inability to pay attention, mood swings and irritability. By helping to balance the levels of this hormone, exercise helps reduce the risk of these diseases and conditions.

Exercise Volume: The amount of work performed in an exercise session defined by the product resulting from the amount of weight lifted, multiplied by the number of sets and multiplied by the number of repetitions. For example, if you had a workout that consisted of 10 sets of dumbbell curls, and for each set you used 30 pounds and performed 10 repetitions, then your biceps routine volume equals 10x10x30=3000 pounds. Too much volume leads to overtraining.

Fats: Macronutrient needed by the body in order to manufacture hormones and sustain cell metabolism. All the cells in the body have some fat in them. Hormones are manufactured from fats. Also, fats lubricate your joints. If you eliminate the fat from your diet, your hormonal production will go down and a whole array of chemical reactions will be interrupted. There are three types of fats: saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated.

Fat Soluble Vitamins: Vitamins that get stored in fat that if taken in excessive amounts will become toxic. They include vitamins A, D, E, and K.

Giant Set: Giant Sets are 4 exercises done one after the other with no rest in between sets. Again, there are two ways to implement this. You can either use 4 exercises for the same muscle group or perform 2 pairs of opposing muscle group exercises. For the purposes of this manual, whenever we do Giant Sets, we will perform two pairs of opposing muscle group exercises with no rest. The exception is when we do Abs in which we will alternate between lower abs and upper abs.

Growth Hormone: Hormone secreted by the pituitary gland that aids in fat loss and muscle building.

Hormones: Fats similar to, and usually synthesized from, cholesterol, starting with Acetyl-CoA, moving through squalene, past lanosterol, into cholesterol, and, in the gonads and adrenal cortex, back to a number of steroid hormones. Because they stimulate cell growth, either by changing the internal structure or increasing the rate of proliferation, they are often called anabolic steroids.

Hypertrophy: Scientific term for describing an increase in muscle mass and strength caused by the stimulation of the muscles.

Bodybuilding Definitions I - P

Intensity: Intensity has two definitions in the weight-training world. (1) Relative term that indicates the level of effort exerted during the performance of an exercise. (2) In the strength training circles, intensity refers to the amount of weight being used on a specific exercise.

Insulin: Hormone secreted by the pancreas responsible for carbohydrate metabolism. This hormone determines if the carbohydrates are to be used for energy, for storage inside the muscle cells as glycogen, or for converting and storing the carbohydrates as fats when they are found in excess in the bloodstream.

Isolation Exercises: Exercise movements that are generally single jointed and serve to isolate a single area of the body. Examples of such are dumbbell flyes, concentration curls, triceps kickbacks, leg extensions, and leg curls.

Lactic Acid: Byproduct created by a lack of oxygen flow to the working muscles. Lactic acid is created by anaerobic activities such as weight training exercises. It is believed that its presence causes a surge in growth hormone levels.

Macronutrient: One of the three major nutrients that the body needs for survival. These nutrients are carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

Metabolism: The rate at which the body utilizes calories and nutrients in order to sustain its daily activities.

Minerals: Minerals are inorganic compounds (not produced by animals or vegetables) whose main function is to assure that your brain receives the correct signals from the body, as well as to ensure balance of fluids, make muscular contractions possible and allow energy production, as well as the building of muscle and bones. There are two types of minerals: bulk and trace minerals.

Modified Compound Superset: In a modified compound set, you pair exercises for opposing muscle groups or for opposing muscle movements (e.g. Push vs. Pull). First you perform one exercise, rest the recommended amount of seconds and then perform the second exercise (for instance, first do biceps, rest, then do triceps). You then rest the prescribed amount of time again and go back to the first exercise. Using this technique of pairing exercises in a modified superset fashion not only saves time and keeps the body warm, but also allows for faster recovery of the nervous system between sets. This will allow the person to lift heavier weights than possible if he just stayed idle for 2-3 minutes waiting to recover.

Monounsaturated Fats: Fats that have a positive effect on the good cholesterol levels. These fats are usually high in the essential fatty acids and may have antioxidant properties. Sources of these fats are fish oils, virgin olive oil, canola oil, and flaxseed oil.

Muscle Failure: Point during the exercise at which it becomes impossible to perform another repetition in good form. This point is reached due to the lack of oxygen reaching the working muscles and the increased levels of lactic acid.

Neutral Grip: a grip on a parallel bar that allows your palms to be facing each other. In this grip, your thumbs are pointing up. For example, a low pulley row with the traditional V-bar is an exercise that uses a neutral grip. Chest dips on parallel bars also use a neutral grip.

Overtraining: Condition caused by an excess of volume in a training routine that leads to muscle loss, strength loss and fat accumulation. Symptoms include depression, insomnia, lethargy and lack of energy.

Polyunsaturated Fats: Fats that do not have an effect in cholesterol levels. Most of the fats in vegetable oils, such as corn, cottonseed, safflower, soybean, and sunflower oil are polyunsaturated.

Pronated Grip: a grip on the bar when your palms are facing down and away from you. In this grip your thumbs are pointing inwards to each other. For example, a close grip pulldown to front is an exercise that uses a pronated grip.

Protein: Every tissue in your body is made from protein (i.e. muscle, hair, skin, nails). Proteins are the building blocks of muscle tissue. This macronutrient can be found in poultry, meats, and dairy products.

Bodybuilding Definitions R - Z

Repetitions: The amount of times that you perform an exercise. For instance, pretend that you are performing a bench press. You pick up the bar, you lower it, pause and lift it up. That action of executing the movement for one time counts for 1 repetition. If you perform that same movement a second time, then that is your second repetition, and so on.

Rest Interval: The amount of time that a person rests in between sets. For instance, a rest interval of 60 seconds means that after you finish your first set, you will remain idle for 60 seconds before going on to the next set.

Saturated Fats: Saturated fats are associated with heart disease and high cholesterol levels. They are found to a large extent in products of animal origin. However, some vegetable fats are altered in a way that increases the amount of saturated fats in them by a chemical process known as hydrogenation. Hydrogenated vegetable oils are generally found in packaged foods. In addition, coconut oil, palm oil, and palm kernel oil, which are also frequently used in packaged foods and non-dairy creamers are also highly saturated.

Sets: A set is a collection of repetitions that culminates in the muscle reaching muscular failure. Muscular failure is the point, due to a buildup of lactic acid in the muscle, it becomes impossible to perform another repetition with good form.

Supersets: A superset is a combination of one exercise performed right after the other with no rest in between. There are two ways to implement a superset. The first way is to do two exercises for the same muscle group at once; like doing dumbbell curls immediately followed by concentration curls. The drawback to this technique is that you will not be as strong as you usually are on the second exercise. The second and best way to superset is by pairing exercises of opposing muscle groups or different muscle movements such as Back and Chest, Thighs and Hamstrings, Biceps and Triceps, Shoulders and Calves, Upper Abs and Lower Abs. When pairing antagonistic exercises, there is no drop of strength whatsoever once your cardiovascular system is well conditioned.

Supinated Grip: a grip on the bar when your palms are facing up towards you. This is most commonly known as a reverse grip. In this grip, your thumbs are pointing outwards and away from each other. For example, a close grip chin using a reverse grip (palms up) is an exercise that uses a supinated grip.

Trace Minerals: Minerals which are needed by the body in minute amounts, usually in the order of micrograms, such as chromium, copper, cobalt, silicon, selenium, iron and zinc.

Testosterone: Hormone responsible for increasing muscle size. Even though this hormone is predominantly present in males, it is also present in women to a lesser degree. It is believed that this hormone also aids in fat loss to a lesser degree.

Vitamins: Vitamins are organic compounds (produced by both animals and vegetables) whose function is to enhance the actions of proteins that cause chemical reactions such as muscle building, fat burning and energy production. There are two types of vitamins: fat -soluble and water-soluble.

Water Soluble Vitamins: Vitamins that are not stored in the body, such as the B-Complex vitamins and vitamin C. Therefore, they need to be taken on a frequent basis.

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