Glossary of running terms used on the forum. - Couch to 5K

Couch to 5K

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Glossary of running terms used on the forum.

Realfoodieclub profile image
RealfoodieclubGraduate
27 Replies

Aerobic...An exercise that is at an intensity that is sufficiently easy for your respiratory and cardiovascular systems to deliver all or most of the oxygen required by your muscles, and slow enough that lactic acid doesn’t appreciable build up in your muscles.

Anaerobic...an exercise that’s intensity makes it impossible for your respiratory and cardiovascular systems to deliver all or most of the oxygen required by your muscles and fast enough that lactic acid begins to build up in your muscles.

Bandit... someone who runs in a race who has not paid by using a photoshopped bib and they should not be in the event.

Base Layer... warm, wicking clothing worn next to the skin in cold weather

Bonking... Hitting the wall on a run, feel like you can’t run anymore, you have depleted your glycogen stores.

Bling...Medal earned in an event

BPM...Beats per minute

Buff... a material tube that is used for a scarf or hat.

C25K...Actually means getting off your couch and learning to run for 30 mins in some cases 5km but the most 30 mins.😁

Cadence...Number of steps per minute

Carb loading...The lead up to an event adding more carbohydrates into your diet so it can be stored and used during your event

Chaffing... when the fabric rubs your skin and causes irritation if left while running can also cause bleeding.

Cool down... slow running,jogging or walking after a workout to rid the body of lactic acid.

Cross training...Cycling,swimming,walking, weights,rowing,yoga,Pilates any low impact exercise you do on rest days.

DFL...an official term. Dead Freaking Last. Someone has to be last and in most events this person is celebrated.

DNF...Did not finish - an official classification for not finishing an event.

DNS... Did not start and event, race or run.

DOMS...delayed onset muscle soreness. Muscle ache usually about 48 hours or more after an exercise.

Drafting...where you tuck behind another runner to take advantage of the wind flow to give you an easier run, (this is frowned upon)

Dynamic stretching...stretching while moving

Faffing and faffage...Pre run or pre event getting ready, including trips to the loo, equipment check, phone check, fuel, loo again (with events) and nail painting in some cases.

FAIL... First attempt at learning, a word that is not good to use as you are learning to run. It is always a bad run not a fail.

Fartlek...speed drills. While running add in short variable speed bursts to your workout and the return to your normal pace.

Foam roller... a devise that is cylindrical and used to roll your muscles over to massage the muscles. (Or a torture devise😁)

Front runner... the person who take their place at the front of a running pack

Gait Analysis... checking your footfall with a professional at a running shoe shop.

Glycogen... the form of carbohydrates that is stored in your muscles and liver and is converted to energy during exercise.

GPS...Global Positioning System. A way to track the distance of your runs.

Graduation Podium... The place where you stand after requesting your graduation badge in the pinned post and you see your badge for the first time.

Gremlins... a little horrible monster that resides in your head and tries to tell you you can’t do things related to running.

HM... Half Marathon. 13.1 Miles

HR... Heart Rate

Hypoxia.... when you are too excited to start a run and you start too fast, you can’t breather properly because your lungs can’t keep up with you so you have to slow down.

IC - injury Couch... when an injury stops you going out for a run, is sometimes used when feeling poorly as well.

Intervals/repeats...running for short fast bursts the taking the pace down again and repeating.

Jeffing....running with planned walking intervals as in Jeff Galloway

Joffle...a sort of jog/shuffle.

Jogette... the first tentative gentle run after an abstinence

Jogger...Runner

Junior...according to the IAAF any athlete who is under 20 on December 31 of that year.

Lactic Acid...A substance which forms in the muscles as a result of the incomplete breakdown of glucose, lactic acid is associated with muscle fatigue and sore muscles

LSD... (Not what you are thinking😏) a long slow distance run.

M... Marathon. 26.2 Miles

MAMIL... Middle-aged man in Lycra

Master... an athlete 40 years of age or older in some countries Veteran is used.

Medial... Inner side of the(or arch side) of the shoe

Metric Mile... 1500m the international racing distance closest to the imperial mile.

Mid foot strike...

midsole... The area of the shoe between the upper and outsole. Primarily responsible for cushioning.

Minimalist shoes... very lightweight shoes that have a low heel drop and little support or structure and no cushioning.

Naked running... running without music or podcasts.

Negative Splits...when you have chipped seconds off each km or mile during a race resulting in a faster mile/km split from start to finish. Basically running the second half of the race faster than the first.

NRC...Nike RunClub app. An app that has benefits of being part of a group.

Onthespotting...the little run you do to keep yourself going while waiting for the traffic to let you cross.

Orthotics... devises worn in the shoes that correct a structural problem, prescribed by a podiatrist.

OTDC... Out there don’t care.

Over pronation...when the outside heels make contact with the ground first

Pace... how many minutes it take to run a km or a mile. The lower the number the faster.

PB... Personal Best

Pronation...pronation begins immediately after the heel contacts the ground.

Rest Day.... a day off running to allow the body to repair.

RICE... Rest, Ice,Compression and Elevation

Runners High... a feeling usually unexpected, of exhilaration and well being associated with vigorous running.

Runrithmetic... doing in the fly calculations in your brain to work out your runs stats before you finish your run.

Shin splints is defined as "pain along the inner edge of the shinbone. (tibia)." Shin splints are usually caused by repeated trauma to the connective muscle tissue surrounding the tibia. ... They are characterized by general pain in the lower region of the leg between the knee and the ankle.

Shoe Porn...Sharing a photo of your new running trainers 😁

Smugfast...the smug feeling you get when you know you have burned off all your breakfast calories before eating it.😁

Static stretching...standing still to perform the stretch

Strava... an app for runners there is a C25K NHS group

Streaking... Running in consecutive days

Strengthening exercises... Can be for any part of the body that needs building up with additional weight or body weight exercises

Taper...the period before an event when a runner while cut back of their distance so they have fresh legs for their event.

Technical clothing...a type of fabric that wicks sweat away from the skin to help prevent chaffing,

Tempo...a sustained fast pace that simulates an event pace.

Threshold run...a short and fast run that takes you to the top of your running pace limit.

Toxic Ten... first ten minutes of a run when your body feels like quitting.

Trail running.... running off the beaten track, in woods, fields or mountains.

Ultra/ ultramarathon... Any race/event that is longer than a marathon.

Veteran... an athlete who is 40 years or older in USA Master is used

VO2Max...The maximal amount of oxygen that a person can extract from the atmosphere and the transport to use in the body’s tissues.

VRB... Virtual Running Buddies

WR... World record

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Realfoodieclub profile image
Realfoodieclub
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27 Replies
Realfoodieclub profile image
RealfoodieclubGraduate

I Have tucked it into the Events box on the right on the home page for easy access. There are some fun ones just from our forums added in as well 😀. Please be kind to me if I have made any glaring obvious mistakes. It has taken me ages to do and being dyslexic it has been a bit of a challenge 😀.

AlMorr profile image
AlMorrAmbassadorGraduate in reply to Realfoodieclub

Much appreciated Realfoodieclub, I certainly won't be deleting that post at all, the other posts that I have not deleted are the ones congratulating me on my graduation 🎓 run and the post that ButtercupKid sent me of the photo of the AlMorr Loop. 😊 🏃

lexi6 profile image
lexi6Graduate

Thats brilliant! Rfc, what a fun post thank you so much, love it (ya done good) what a lot of work and very much appreciated. 😊

Lauren_ICanDoThis profile image
Lauren_ICanDoThisGraduate

Fab post- thanks very much.

IannodaTruffe profile image
IannodaTruffeMentor

Brilliant.

I will put a link in the FAQ Posts as well!!

IannodaTruffe profile image
IannodaTruffeMentor

Maybe IC should be included too?

Realfoodieclub profile image
RealfoodieclubGraduate in reply to IannodaTruffe

Hehe this made me laugh at myself so much. The main reason for doing the whole glossary was to explain IC and it is the one that i wrote down wrong, 😂😂😂, trust me. I have rectified it now. Thanks for letting me know.

RunRunRun13 profile image
RunRunRun13Graduate

Such a great post and thank you for taking the time to write it. I especially liked the “bonking” and “naked running” which wasn’t what I originally thought it meant 😂😳😂

Knittingrunner profile image
Knittingrunner

Thank you for this. I have often seen some of these terms and tried to guess what they meant. Too embarrassed to ask. Now I don’t need to ask 😊❤️. Thank you.

Oldgirlruns profile image
OldgirlrunsGraduate

Thank you - a very useful list. I think ‘Joffle’ is a perfect description of my running style!

MuddledGardener profile image
MuddledGardenerGraduate in reply to Oldgirlruns

Mine too! 😁

Granspeed profile image
GranspeedGraduate

Really useful and fun besides. What could be better? 👏🏼🎉👏🏼

Irishprincess profile image
IrishprincessGraduate

That's a lot of work RFC! Brilliant stuff 🙂

Millsie-J profile image
Millsie-JGraduate

Brilliant post Rfc, lots of fun items in there too! Thank you for putting this together x

ButtercupKid profile image
ButtercupKidGraduate

DFL is my new favourite ! 😂

Deals1 profile image
Deals1Graduate

Great. Thanks 👍

robew88636 profile image
robew88636Graduate

I have been reading loads of PB posts and now I know what it is. Thanks for this. Really disappointed by the definition of "naked running" though 😆

Hope we will add more to this list in the coming days.

littlemac24 profile image
littlemac24Graduate

Fabulous thank you 😊

MuddledGardener profile image
MuddledGardenerGraduate

So what is cushioning? 🤔

Hatman profile image
HatmanGraduate

Well Done RFC. Thankyou. This page made my C25K journey so much easier to understand. May I offer a Wiki explanation of one that perhaps I was too careful to get or just didn’t run fast enough?

Shin splints is defined as "pain along the inner edge of the shinbone. (tibia)." Shin splints are usually caused by repeated trauma to the connective muscle tissue surrounding the tibia. ... They are characterized by general pain in the lower region of the leg between the knee and the ankle.

Realfoodieclub profile image
RealfoodieclubGraduate in reply to Hatman

Thank you so much for that. I have added it in 😀 Rfc x

Hatman profile image
HatmanGraduate

PS. To make it more worthwhile I found the NHS page that may answer VRB ‘s queries. nhs.uk/conditions/shin-spli...

So glad now, that I, touch wood, haven’t had this. Thanks again RFC

Dexy5 profile image
Dexy5Graduate

A brilliant list RFC, and if it’s possible to add to it , how about bling, shoe porn or flat racer (or whatever it’s called when you photograph your race outfit)?

It could go on forever, but I really appreciate the initial work in putting it all down.

Realfoodieclub profile image
RealfoodieclubGraduate in reply to Dexy5

I will do an update In the next couple of days. I can see a few on this thread that need adding in. Thank you. Rfc x

Annieapple profile image
AnnieappleAdministratorGraduate

Love this!! Thank you🤣

nowster profile image
nowsterGraduate

Nit pick:

Devises means "inventing", as in "She devises ways of running faster."

Devices are gadgets, doofers and thingamajigs: objects that have been invented.

Devizes is a town in Wiltshire. 🤪

Over60sRunner profile image
Over60sRunnerGraduate

Brilliant resource. Thank you so much! I never knew I was joffler until I read this 🤣🤣🤣

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