TERMINOLOGY
This introductory chapter will go over all the basic terminology and concepts that you should know. I know some readers are beginners, so I will try to be as thorough as possible. I would first like to cover some weight training terminology. You will hear these words used quite often, so please make sure you understand what they mean, and when they are used.
Hardgainer : Anyone who has a very difficult time putting on weight, especially muscle mass. This is usually pre-determined by genetics and bone structure. Typically, the smaller your wrists and ankles are, the harder it will be for you to gain weight.
Rep : A rep or repetition is one complete motion of a particular exercise. For example, if you did one push-up (from the up position to down and back up), that would be one rep.
Forced Reps : This is when you can no longer do an entire repetition of the exercise yourself
and someone (usually your spotter) helps you to continue doing reps. This is a waste of time. Once you reach muscular failure, that’s enough.
Sets : A set is the specific number of reps you will perform before you rest. So, in the above push-up example, if I wanted you to do 4 sets of 10 reps, you would do 10 reps, then rest, then repeat three more times.
Strip Sets : To do strip sets you start using heavy weight, then after your muscles fail at that weight, you immediately lower the weight and continue to do reps until your muscles fail again. Then you lower the weight and continue, without resting. You will keep lowering the weight until you run out of weight. This is one of my favorite techniques for working my calves. I also use it as a final exercise to blast my biceps. I sometimes refer to these as burnouts or drop sets. It's like one long set where you keep reducing the weight until you just can't do any more reps. I also do these going from light to heavy to light.
Tempo : Tempo refers to the speed at which you perform a rep. It can be further broken down into the positive motion (the pressing up motion in push-ups), and the negative or eccentric motion (when doing pushups, it is the resistance against gravity as you are going down). I usually express the particular tempo for an exercise like this: 3/0/1. The first number is the negative motion, the middle number is the pause before you return to the starting position, and the last number is the positive motion. So, if we used this tempo for pull-ups, you would pull-up for a count of one (the positive) and then without pausing, return back down for a count of three for the negative.
Negative Reps: When you only perform the negative or eccentric portion of the exercise.
Progressive
Overload: The training concept in which you consistently increase your work load at regular intervals. This is the most efficient and reliable method of gaining muscle mass and strength.
Failure : When you can no longer do another rep in good form. You try to complete the next rep, but you cannot. Your muscles have been exhausted. Most bodybuilders and personal trainers advocate training to failure for muscle growth.
Spotter : Someone who watches to make sure you can re-rack the weight once your muscles fail. That’s all they do. You will usually need a spotter if you train to failure, although there are many exercise that do not require spotters. Typically, any exercise that does not require you to lift weight over your head does not require a spotter. For most machines and dumbbell exercises you will not need a spotter.
Contraction : This can mean several things, but in weight training, it simply means squeezing or tightening the muscle you are working, at completion of the positive motion.
Supersets : A superset is when you complete a set of your main exercise, and then immediately, without resting, do one set of a different exercise that works the same muscle group. For example, if you are doing bench presses (which works your chest muscles) after a set, you could immediately start doing dumbbell flyes — which also work the chest in a different way. Supersets area safe and reliable way to fatigue your muscles.
Burn-out set : When you use a much lighter weight than your last set, and do as many reps
as you can until your muscles fail. I usually use this for the last set of a compound exercise.
Compound Exercises:
Movements that work a number of large muscle groups simultaneously. These are best for gaining mass as they put stress on many areas of the body at once. Some examples of these include squats, deadlifts and bench press.
Isolation Exercises:
Movements that work a small, specific muscle. For example, bicep curls only work the bicep, and leg extensions only work the quadricep muscles.
Metabolism: The rate at which your body burns calories. The faster your metabolism, themore difficult it is to gain muscle or fat. If you have a slow metabolism, your body gains weight very easily. It's not easy, but we can alter our metabolism, to help suit our needs.
How to increase your metabolism:
¨ Increase your meal frequency
¨ Cardiovascular exercise, done at a moderate pace
¨ Increase your amount of muscle mass. Muscle burns more calories than fat
¨ Increase your protein intake
What will decrease your metabolism:
¨ Eating sporadically and infrequently
¨ Having a high percentage of body fat
¨ Inactivity
¨ Low calorie dieting (this is your body's response the lack of calories)
¨ Intense aerobic activity (works your endurance — your body responds by lowering your resting heartbeat, which means a slower metabolism)
BMR : BMR stands for Basil Metabolic Rate. It is a number that tells you how many calories your body needs just to sustain basic functions.
1RM : Stands for One Rep Max. It is the maximum amount you can lift for one rep of a particular exercise. This is difficult to determine exactly, since so many factors (fatigue, illness, stress, diet) come into play.
Target Heart Rate :
The number of heartbeats per minute (bpm) needed to achieve a particular fitness "zone." The target heart rate for fat loss is 140 bpm, while the desired bpm for cardiovascular endurance is 180 or higher. To calculate your current heartrate, simply place two fingers on your carotid artery (on the side of your neck, next to your adams apple), then count the number of beats for six seconds. Now simply add a zero onto that number, and you have your total number of heartbeats per minute.
Aerobic : Literally means "requiring oxygen." Generally used to refer to exercise that requires you to use more oxygen for a prolonged period of time, like running.
From the Desk of A n t h o n y E l l i s
This introductory chapter will go over all the basic terminology and concepts that you should know. I know some readers are beginners, so I will try to be as thorough as possible. I would first like to cover some weight training terminology. You will hear these words used quite often, so please make sure you understand what they mean, and when they are used.
Hardgainer : Anyone who has a very difficult time putting on weight, especially muscle mass. This is usually pre-determined by genetics and bone structure. Typically, the smaller your wrists and ankles are, the harder it will be for you to gain weight.
Rep : A rep or repetition is one complete motion of a particular exercise. For example, if you did one push-up (from the up position to down and back up), that would be one rep.
Forced Reps : This is when you can no longer do an entire repetition of the exercise yourself
and someone (usually your spotter) helps you to continue doing reps. This is a waste of time. Once you reach muscular failure, that’s enough.
Sets : A set is the specific number of reps you will perform before you rest. So, in the above push-up example, if I wanted you to do 4 sets of 10 reps, you would do 10 reps, then rest, then repeat three more times.
Strip Sets : To do strip sets you start using heavy weight, then after your muscles fail at that weight, you immediately lower the weight and continue to do reps until your muscles fail again. Then you lower the weight and continue, without resting. You will keep lowering the weight until you run out of weight. This is one of my favorite techniques for working my calves. I also use it as a final exercise to blast my biceps. I sometimes refer to these as burnouts or drop sets. It's like one long set where you keep reducing the weight until you just can't do any more reps. I also do these going from light to heavy to light.
Tempo : Tempo refers to the speed at which you perform a rep. It can be further broken down into the positive motion (the pressing up motion in push-ups), and the negative or eccentric motion (when doing pushups, it is the resistance against gravity as you are going down). I usually express the particular tempo for an exercise like this: 3/0/1. The first number is the negative motion, the middle number is the pause before you return to the starting position, and the last number is the positive motion. So, if we used this tempo for pull-ups, you would pull-up for a count of one (the positive) and then without pausing, return back down for a count of three for the negative.
Negative Reps: When you only perform the negative or eccentric portion of the exercise.
Progressive
Overload: The training concept in which you consistently increase your work load at regular intervals. This is the most efficient and reliable method of gaining muscle mass and strength.
Failure : When you can no longer do another rep in good form. You try to complete the next rep, but you cannot. Your muscles have been exhausted. Most bodybuilders and personal trainers advocate training to failure for muscle growth.
Spotter : Someone who watches to make sure you can re-rack the weight once your muscles fail. That’s all they do. You will usually need a spotter if you train to failure, although there are many exercise that do not require spotters. Typically, any exercise that does not require you to lift weight over your head does not require a spotter. For most machines and dumbbell exercises you will not need a spotter.
Contraction : This can mean several things, but in weight training, it simply means squeezing or tightening the muscle you are working, at completion of the positive motion.
Supersets : A superset is when you complete a set of your main exercise, and then immediately, without resting, do one set of a different exercise that works the same muscle group. For example, if you are doing bench presses (which works your chest muscles) after a set, you could immediately start doing dumbbell flyes — which also work the chest in a different way. Supersets area safe and reliable way to fatigue your muscles.
Burn-out set : When you use a much lighter weight than your last set, and do as many reps
as you can until your muscles fail. I usually use this for the last set of a compound exercise.
Compound Exercises:
Movements that work a number of large muscle groups simultaneously. These are best for gaining mass as they put stress on many areas of the body at once. Some examples of these include squats, deadlifts and bench press.
Isolation Exercises:
Movements that work a small, specific muscle. For example, bicep curls only work the bicep, and leg extensions only work the quadricep muscles.
Metabolism: The rate at which your body burns calories. The faster your metabolism, themore difficult it is to gain muscle or fat. If you have a slow metabolism, your body gains weight very easily. It's not easy, but we can alter our metabolism, to help suit our needs.
How to increase your metabolism:
¨ Increase your meal frequency
¨ Cardiovascular exercise, done at a moderate pace
¨ Increase your amount of muscle mass. Muscle burns more calories than fat
¨ Increase your protein intake
What will decrease your metabolism:
¨ Eating sporadically and infrequently
¨ Having a high percentage of body fat
¨ Inactivity
¨ Low calorie dieting (this is your body's response the lack of calories)
¨ Intense aerobic activity (works your endurance — your body responds by lowering your resting heartbeat, which means a slower metabolism)
BMR : BMR stands for Basil Metabolic Rate. It is a number that tells you how many calories your body needs just to sustain basic functions.
1RM : Stands for One Rep Max. It is the maximum amount you can lift for one rep of a particular exercise. This is difficult to determine exactly, since so many factors (fatigue, illness, stress, diet) come into play.
Target Heart Rate :
The number of heartbeats per minute (bpm) needed to achieve a particular fitness "zone." The target heart rate for fat loss is 140 bpm, while the desired bpm for cardiovascular endurance is 180 or higher. To calculate your current heartrate, simply place two fingers on your carotid artery (on the side of your neck, next to your adams apple), then count the number of beats for six seconds. Now simply add a zero onto that number, and you have your total number of heartbeats per minute.
Aerobic : Literally means "requiring oxygen." Generally used to refer to exercise that requires you to use more oxygen for a prolonged period of time, like running.
From the Desk of A n t h o n y E l l i s
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