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Mueller Center Glossary
Revised 12/07/06
If you don't know what a particular word means, ask,
and we will try and post its meaning. And feel free to correct any
definite you think we got wrong.
- Abduction/Adduction - Abduction means
the action of either removing something or in this
case, moving your leg away from the center of the body. (Think
absence. Also abnormal, abolish, abolition, abdicate, abandon.)
Adduction means adding something or moving
your leg toward the center.
Confusing, huh!
- Abs - Short for abdominal muscles, the muscles in
the lower stomach area. From Latin, "ab" meaning away and
"dare", to give (huh) or in other words, to hide away. ("Abdere"
is Latin means to hide away, i.e., the cavity in the body
where food is hidden away. Not everyone agrees. Some think
the word abdominal comes from the Latin word for fat, "adeps"
(which gives us "adipose").
- Achilles Tendon - In Greek mythology, when the great
warrior Achilles was an infant, his mother dipped him into the
river Styx to make him so he couldn't be wounded. Since she
held him by one of his heels, this was the one area of his
body still vulnerable and where he got fatally wounded during
the fighting at Troy. The term "Achilles heel" refers to
someone's one weak spot, such as Superman's Achilles heel would
be Kryptonite. The tendon is the one in this area and could (but
isn't) called the "heel tendon".
- Actin - In the smallest unit of a muscle
cell are two types of protein, actin and myosin. "Actin"
probably got its name from "act" and "myosin" comes
from "muscle". The two proteins are filaments. The
myosin has what are called the "myosin heads" which
reach out and grab the actin, then change angle and
in doing so, pull the actin along. The head then
releases (while other heads are still in contact), grabs
the actin again at a new location and then cocks again. (Think of the game
of tug-of-war. Hands reach out, grab the rope, tug it
and then grab further down.) It is the sliding of these
two molecules that makes the muscle contract.
- Addiction - A good definition might be
an inappropriate response to a real problem. For instance, if
you cut your elbow, that's a real problem. The appropriate
response might be to bandage it and maybe
take a couple of aspirin, or if it was real bad, seek
professional treatment.
If on the other hand, an
inappropriate response would be to apply a bandage to
your knee. Then you might look at
your elbow again, note it was still bleeding, apply
more bandages to your knee, and so on, until you
might be still be bleeding, yet unable to walk due to
the weight of all the bandages. Physical
pain is relatively easy to pinpoint and thus
treat appropriately. Mental pain is not,
particularly since it is only "visible" to you.
You can be addicted to anything. For instance, if
you are bored and feeling lonely, you might go to
the kitchen and eat some ice cream. The loneliness
and boredom are real problems, but treating it with
food isn't an appropriate response since it won't fix
the problem. And if you make it a habit to
deal with this problem in this fashion, you may
gain so much weight that you don't want to
leave your home, making the problem worse.
You can be addicted to food, shopping, gambling, work, even
(dare we say it) working out, but the question
becomes do these affect your life in a bad way.
(One disease, many possible symptoms.) The
worse addictions
are to chemical substances (alcohol and/or drugs)
that are so much more powerful
and make you also physically addicted.
If you find yourself with an addiction problem, please
seek help. There is nothing shameful about this, it
is a disease, but it is shameful NOT to deal with
it. The
Counseling
Center at RPI as a good start. There are
also many, many local (but off-campus) 12 Step Program meetings such
Alcoholics Anonymous
and Narcotics Anonymous.
- Aerobic/Anaerobic - "Aerobic"
means, literally, "with air". This
is any type of moderate activity involving your larger
muscles for 90 seconds or more. Less than that and the
body can call on its internal reserves, so you don't
develop your heart and lungs.
"Anaerobic" has the "an" meaning not or without. When you lift
weights, unless you do a complete circuit without resting, your
body has a chance to rest. Your heart and lungs can keep up
without straining themselves, so you don't developed them.
By the way, "cardio", short for "cardiovascular", refers to the
heart and (blood) vessels. When your body calls more oxygen,
not only do your lungs work harder but so does the circulation
system to get the oxygen to the muscles. In other words, the
two terms, "aerobic" and "cardio" are used for basically the
same types of exercise.
- Anatomical Neutral - This means standing upright
with your palms facing inward. Sometimes it is called
"fundamental starting position".
- Anatomical Position - This is a standardized
reference point that has been around for centuries. It
means standing upright with your palms facing forward.
(It is the same as anatomical neutral but with the palms
rotated.)
- Anatomy - From the Greek meaning cutting ("tome")
apart ("ana").
- Antebrachim - The two bones of the
forearm, the radius and ulna. ("Ante" means
before, not to be confused with "anti" which
means opposite. "Brachim" means arms. The
term thus literally means "before arm" or
'forearm.) You are most familiar with
this pair of bones when you eat a chicken wing.
- Anterior Pelvic Tilt - The pelvis
is tilted in such a way to increase the curvature
of the spine. In other words, the top of the
pelvis is tipped toward the front. (And this
makes your butt stick out more.) Going back
a century or more, the corset forced women
into an "S" shape by tilting the (top of the)
pelvis to the front.
- Anterior Sacroiliac Spine
- Anterior Tibialis - Muscle in the
side of the ankle. Allows for dorsiflexion
and eversion.
- Arrhythmia - Abnormal
heartbeat, which might be caused
by change, deviation, or just
a plain ol' malfunction. I think
the term comes from "a" meaning not,
and rhythmia - in other words
loss of rhythm. )"You ain't got
rhythm")
- ASIS - Anterior Sacroiliac Spine.
- ATP - Adenosine Triphosphate. ATP is the main
energy source of the body. This molecule has three
phosphate groups. When one of the phosphate groups
is split off to form ADP (adenosine diphosphate), it
transfers energy that the body's chemical processes
can use.
- Badminton - Named after the county seat of the duke of
Beaufort in Gloucestershire, England, perhaps the region where
the game was first played.
- Biceps - "Two-headed", from Latin (and thus
"triceps" is "three-headed" and "quadriceps" is "four-headed").
But it might be that the "cep" dates back to Greek, "kephale"
for "head", which also gave us "cephalic", meaning of or
relating to the head. ("Forceps" might be only a
form of "force" and not related.)
We use "biceps" as a shortened form of "biceps
brachii", means the two headed muscle of the (upper)
arm. There is the "biceps femoris", the equivalent
muscle group of the thigh.
- Body Image - The mind takes the information
coming in from the eyes and combines it will all
your past experiences to create the image that
you perceive. Thus if you see someone that
reminds you of your kindly grandmother, you
will think that person is a sweet lady, until
you find out that this new person is really
a con artist or serial killer.
Each of us thinks about ourselves constantly
and more than any other individual. (We've
known ourselves since we were babies.) And
unless we work in the fun-house in a carnival,
we see ourselves in a mirror much less than
we see our friends. Thus the image that
the mind creates of what we think we
look like is the most distorted from
reality. So if we believe ourselves to
fat, we are likely to keep seeing that
image no matter how much we lose. Poor
body image creates all sorts of pain
in one's life. It can even lead to
an obsession to keep even losing, even
to the point where we starve to death.
- Brachialis - Latin for arm. Also
gave us "bracket". (A brachiopod is a type
of mollusk-like marine animal with an "arm-foot.)
This is a muscle of the upper arm that is involved
with flexing the elbow such as in a curl. It
works along with the biceps brachii and the
brachioradialis. The brachialis is centered
around the lower part of the humerus bone.
- Brachioradius - This muscle connects
the upper arm bone (brachialis) with the radius
bone of the forearm, allowing you flex your
elbow such as when you are doing a curl (along
with the biceps and brachialis). The bulk of the brachioradius
is on the forearm, while the bulk of the other
two are on the upper arm.
- Caddie - Golf was invented in Scotland back
in the 1400's. King James IV of Scotland was a avid player.
His young granddaughter Mary (later Queen of Scots) also played,
even while getting an education in France. The young men who
attended her on the links were called "cadets." This name came from
diminutive form of the Latin "capit" (literally "little chiefs").
("Capit" also gave
us "Capitol".) "Cadet" was pronounced "cad-day" by the French,
which later was corrupted to "caddy."
- The Cage - Nickname for the room in the southwest
corner of the Armory basement (because of the wire screening)
where you can borrow basketballs and other equipment or clean
towels, in exchange for them holding your RPI ID.
- Calf - Word comes from a Scandinavian word
meaning a iceberg split off from a glacier or larger
iceberg. (You often hear of an iceberg
calving off a glacier.) The baby cow name makes
sense but not name of the muscle, other than maybe because
of its shape.
- Carpal - Bone in the wrist, best known for
"tunnel carpal syndrome".
- Caudal - This is a type of direction, useful
for describing body movements. It means toward the
bottom. It is from the Latin word for "tail". The
same root also gives us "coward" (as in "turn tail"
and/or "tail between the legs"). Also, "queue", meaning
a line (of people). I guess the sense here is also
of a tail.
- Clavicle - These small bones are known
as the collarbones and serve mainly as a brace
to hold the shoulders and arms out at the proper
distance. They also act as a brace. The clavicles
actually get noticeably larger and stronger in response
to long term stress, such as when
you work out regularly. The name means "little keys", not
piano keys but an old-fashion key and key itself
comes from the same root which might be the root
of "cleave" to (split) open. In birds, the two
bones are fused to form the "wishbone".
- Collagen - A protein that is important in bones,
cartilage, muscle, tendons, and blood vessels. The
"gen" comes from the same root that means something
that generates. ("Hydrogen" means the gas that when burned,
forms water.) The "colla" comes from Greek "kolla" meaning
glue. If you boil collagen, you get gelatin, which can be
flavored and sweetened and becomes Jell-O.
(Also "kolla" gives us "collage" and "colloid", but not "collide".
And "protocol", which literally means the first sheet glued
onto a manuscript.)
- Condyloid - One of the different types
of joints, specially the "snyovial" types. The
term literally means "knuckle-like" so there shouldn't
be any doubt where you would find this type
of joint in the body. It is a shallow type of
ball and socket joint.
- Contralateral - Opposite side, from “contra” meaning against or opposite,
as in “contrary”. ("Ipsilateral" means same side, from “ipsi” meaning same or self.)
- Contusion - Bruise caused by a blow to the
muscle, tendon, or ligament. Blood pools around the
injury and discolors the skin. Word comes from Latin
and the same source also gave us "concussion".
- Cooper's Test - This involves seeing how far
someone can go (running and/or walking) in 12 minutes
as a measure of your fitness. It was developed by
Dr. Kenneth Cooper for the U.S. Army and although
well-known, is very hated.
The distance is rounded to the nearest 100 meters.
A distance of 3,000 meters is considered to be good
and 3,500 and above is the sign of a trained athlete.
(Three thousand meters is 9,000 feet - more or less -
or just under two miles. This would be a rate of
10 miles per hour.
From this distance (in meters), you can calculate your VO2 max.
The formula is the distance - 504.9 divided by 44.73.
- Coracobrachialis - Muscle attached to the upper
arm (the "brachia"). "Coraco" is from "coracoid", because the
muscle is cylindrical. ("Coracoid" is Greek for the beak of a
crow or raven.)
- Costal - Relating to the rib,
such as the intercostal muscle.
- Cramps - Painful involuntary
spasms of the muscles, which can come from
too heavy exercise, the most common
among other factors. The most
common sites are the front and back of the leg and
the calves. If
you stretch the muscles, this should help.
- Creatine - This is a chemical
compound that is found in animal proteins. It
is a building block for several amino acids, which
make up protein. It is sold as a powder, in
pill form, even foods like energy bars and drinks.
There are many many claims for different compounds,
herbs, etc., mostly untested. We techie folks
know not to place much value on antidotal stories
of what works - it takes large scale studies
of testing something against a control group
to verify any claims. However, creatine actually
does seem to have some value.
In the April 26, 2003 Science News, there
was a short article "Athletes develop whey-better
muscles." It reported on the study by Paul
Cribb of Victoria University in Australia, using
33 men, all body-builders in their mid-'20's. They
divided the group into four (roughly 8 in each group),
giving them either a carbohydrate drink, a drink
of whey protein, a drink of creatine, or a drink
of both whey and creatine. Each group got the
same drink every day, each drink contained the
same calories, and the men continued to work out.
While all four groups experience strength gains
and increased muscle mass, the group drinking
just the carbs got the least and the group drinking
the combined whey-protein mix got the most, 12 times
as much.
Please note this was such a small scale test and
before you start adding creatine to your diet, you
should wait to see if these results can be replicated
by other researches. Nor do we know the long-term
effects of regular creatine use, but we do know
that too much protein (or their components) cause
kidney problems.
- Croquet - "Little hook", from the French,
probably from the shape of the wire wickets.
- Deltoid - The shoulder muscles.
These are in three parts, front, side and rear
and are used to pull up the arm. The name
means "triangular" because of the three
parts. (The Greek letter delta is
shaped like a diamond and when
rounded, gave us our letter "D". The mouth
of the river Nile was called a delta and
other river mouths, where they widen
and have a series of islands, are also
called deltas.)
- Diarthroses - Freely moving joints, the
name for most of the joints in the skeleton
that we would care about in terms of exercising.
"Dia" meaning through, across, or apart and "arthroses" meaning
joints. ("Diabetes" means passing through of urine, "diarrhea", "diaphragm" -
across a partition, "diagonal"
- across the angle, "diagram" - across or mark out a drawing,
"dialect" - across speaking, "dialysis", "diameter". And
for the "arthroses" part, just remember "arthritis".)
- Dumbbell - A pair of plates
connected by a short bar intended to be
held by one hand. According to An
Etymological Dictionary of Modern English,
this was originally a rope apparatus used to
teach bell-ringers, the "dumb" in this
case meaning silent.
- Endorphins - Here are some links
to an in-depth look at endorphins:
- Erector Spinae - Fancy word for muscles of the lower
back.
- Eversion - Fancy word for turning outward. Opposite
of "inversion". ("Ex" or "e" means out,
as in external, and "vertere"
means turning, such as aversion.)
- Femur - Latin for thigh. This
bone is the longest and strongest bone
in the entire body and accounts for
about a quarter of one's height. It
has to be strong as when someone is
jumping vigorously, the stress can reach
two tons per square inch.
- Fibular - One of two bones in the lower leg. (The other
is the tibia.) Name comes from "pin".
- Fitness - NESTA (National Exercise & Sports Trainers Association)
identifies 6 components of fitness,
which they say just remember
"Big Fitness Bodies Must
Move Actively". These stand for:
- Balance.
- Flexibility.
- Body composition.
- Muscular Endurance.
- Muscular Strength.
- Aerobic Capacity.
Balance means that one can hold or stabilize a
position in space. This is an important objective
in the first few weeks of a training program, where
maintaining one's posture during an exercise is
primary. (If you fall over during a set, you
aren't going to be able to get much out of
the exercise.) But it also means getting
a balance between the various parts and muscles
of the body. (Popeye, with his enormous forearms
and tiny upper arms would NOT be considered to
be in balance.) It is easy to overlook this
part of a training program, to skip it, but this
is a foundation on which to build any future
progress. (Know what they say about a house
built on sand . . . )
Flexibility would be ability to get a full and
sufficient range of motion about each joint
that is going to be worked in order to get
the proper form. In other words, if someone
can't bend deep enough, they can't be any
good out of a squat.
Body composition means what the body
fat ratio is. While this is of most
important to a person working out, it
shouldn't be overly emphasized by
a trainer. It should only be
measured at most every four to 8
weeks. It is near impossible to
lose more than a couple of pounds
a week, or gain more than a pound
or a pound and a half of muscle a week.
Muscular endurance means you can hold
a muscular contraction over a period
of time. During the first one to
three months of a training programs,
muscular endurance should be the
main focus. You want to be
able to decelerate a weight,
stabilize a weight, and to
accelerate a weight. It is
the first two, deceleration
and stabilization, that are
especially important in order to
prevent injury. (The same
consideration when during everyday
activities like lifting a child
or moving furniture) A chronic
imbalance in muscular endurance
is what often leads to a sudden
injury, a sort of "straw that
broke the camel's back" type
of situation.
Muscular strength means one can
exert a maximum force. This
is particularly important
to athletes who are seeking
to be able to do heavy lifting.
Cardiovascular training is the final
component of training to increase
how much oxygen can get delivered to
the muscles, both a function of lung
capacity and heart capacity. Even
athletes aiming for just hypertrophy
need to spend some time on cardio
work, as minimal effects will be
seen by only lifting weights (in
a circuit-type routine where one
moves with little rest from one
machine to another).
- Functional Training - There are a bunch
of ways this term is used, often interchangeably
with "integrated training" and/or "optimum training".
NESTA defines the term "functional movements" as
these movements that we humans have been biomechanically
engineered for everyday living. And therefore,
"functional training" is training the body for
these naturally engineering functions. Functional
training is multi-planar and not isolated (like
the way one tries to isolate an individual muscle
when working out in the standard weight training).
Because more muscles are involved, more
neuromuscular control is required. FT incorporates
full-body movements. Just like in real life,
when we move, we accelerate, stabilize, and decelerate
parts of our body using concentric, isometric,
and eccentric contractions. Just like all
exercise, FT stays within the body's biomechanical
limits.
- Gastrocnemius - Muscle in the
back of the calf, the largest and
one closest to the surface. Allows for plantarflexion
and knee flexion. Pretentious name for the
calf muscle. There are two sets, medial head
and lateral head and together with the soleus,
are called the "triceps surae complex" or the
"leg triceps" for those of you who speak normal
English. The two muscles come together
to form the Achilles tendon. As the gastrocenemius
contracts, it pulls the heel up and thus forces
the foot downward, i.e., a calf raise or to let
us stand on tiptoes. Comes
from Greek meaning calf of the leg. (Actually
the "gastro" part means "belly", not because
it is near the belly - like gastrointestinal - but
from its shape.) The gastrocnemius is one
of the few muscles in the body that doesn't
need much of an opposing muscle. The force
of gravity is sufficient to lower us when we
stand on tiptoe. (The thin "anterior tibialis"
pulls the foot up when we can't use gravity.)
- Gleno-Humeral Joint - Also known
as the rotator cuff. "Humeral" comes
from "humerus", the bone in the upper arm,
the so-called "funny bone". The glenoid is the socket
in the scapula or shoulder blade. The name is
derived from the shape, a rounded or
slightly cupped shape. "Glenoid" comes
from the Greek for eyeball. The socket of
this joint is relatively shallow which allows
for a lot greater movement and flexibility than the related
hip joint, but the gleno-humeral joint is
also much easier to dislocate.
- Glucose - "Glyk" comes
from Greek meaning sweet, so the related
words like glycogen come from the same
source. Glucose is the simplest form
of sugar which can pass into the body.
- Glutes - "Gluteus" comes from Latin which dates back to
Greek meaning rump. Only other modern English word that might
come from the same Greek root is "cloud" (and this is only
a possibility). There are actually three sets of gluts, gluteus maximus,
gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus, which mean maximum, middle, and minimum
respectively. "Glutes" as a nickname almost always refers to just the gluteus
maximus.
The gluteus maximus allow for external rotation, hip extension, and hip abduction.
The glueus medius also is involved abduction and assists in hip flexion,
as well as internal and external rotation. The gluteus minimus also do
abduction, internal rotation and assists in hip flexion.
- Glycemic Index - This is a way
to rate how fast a carbohydrate is digested
and increases the blood glucose (blood sugar)
level. (The higher the number, the faster
it goes into the blood stream and the more
the level of insulin spikes, which is not
a good thing.) Amazingly it is based on
white bread having an arbitrary value
of 100 and pretty much all other foods except
pure glucose is lower.
- Glycogen - Body stores glucose
in the form of glycogen in the liver and
the muscles. Word apparently comes from
"glucose generation".
- Golgi Tendon Organ - This is found
in the tendons and monitors tendon length.
It causes the muscles to relax if there is
too much tension or the tension happens
too quickly. Apparently named after Camillo
Golgi, Italian physician, 1843-1926. In
1906, he got the Nobel Price for medicine.
(There is also something called the Golgi
body, a.k.a. Golgi apparatus, said to be a netlike mass
in animal cells that secrete things. Same doctor,
different thing.)
- Golf - From the Dutch word "kolf", meaning club,
but the game was invented in Scotland game going back at
least to the 1400's. It's popularity was hampered by requiring
close-cropped grass. The lawnmower was not invented until
1831, and not really practical until the machine-tool industry was
able to cut steel gears c. 1880's. Golf wasn't played
in America until 1888, when the St. Andrews Golf Club of Yonkers
was formed.
- GTO - See Golgi Tendon Organ.
- Gym - Short for gymnasium, derived from the
Greek word for school.
- Hamstring - "Ham" comes from a word
meaning "the bend of the knee". On a pig, it
refers to the heavily muscled rear quarters.
Butchers use the tendons to hang the
hams up for smoking, hence the term "ham string".
In exercise, "hamstring" refers to the
muscles of the thigh, the "biceps femoris",
the "semitendinosus", and the "semimembranosus".
All three muscles are attached below the knee
and run up inside the thigh to attach to the
bottom of the pelvis bone to provide knee
flexion, hip extension, and either external
or internal rotation. Knee flexion means
bringing the heel up towards your butt (such
as in a knee curl). Hip
extension is when you move your leg back.
- Hip Flexors - These are the iliacus
and psoas major muscles. They are buried deep
in the torso so they aren't muscles you would
work in order to look better, but nonetheless
they are important muscles to exercise. Hip
flexion means bringing the thighs and abdomen
towards each other, either raising the thighs
in a hanging leg raise, or bringing the abdomen
to the thigh, as in a sit-up. These are
also the muscles that get used when doing
a crunch wrong and not working the rectus
abdominus.
- Hockey - Derived from old French "hoquet"
meaning bent stick, similar to "hook" like a Shepherd's
hook. Actually, "hockey" first appeared in reference
to a game way back in Ireland around 1527 and then not
again until 1838, in England.
- Humerus - The bone in the upper arm,
the so-called "funny bone". From the Latin
(h)umerus for shoulder which goes back to
Greek "omos" for arm and which I think
was the same derivation of "arm". ("Humorous"
comes from the word for wet or moist, like
"humid" and was first used for the supposed four
fluids of the body, blood, phlegm, yellow
bile, and black bile, the balance of which was felt to
determine someone's mood or temper. The idea of it being
a funny mood only was a 1700's shift - and "temper"
came to mean bad temper. And the
"funnybone" is not a bone at all but a nerve which
we can jar and which causes an unpleasant tingle
and certainly not at all funny, so these
are only coincidentally related. The term
"funnybone" dates from about 1840.)
- Hypertrophy - Increase in the myofibrils size.
In other words, getting bigger muscles. "Hyper" means
high, as in "hyperglycemia" (high blood sugar), "hypertension"
(high blood pressure) and "hyperventilation" (high rate
of breathing). (Easy to confuse with "hypo" meaning
the opposite, such as "hypodermic" or under the skin.) "Trophy"
in this case comes from the Greek word for food, meaning
nourishment. If you work out to bulk up or build up muscles,
you want your muscles to "hypertrophy".
- Iliacus - The iliacus and the psoas
major muscles are found internally, informally known
as the hip flexors, or formally as the
illiopsoas. "Iliacus" from the Latin for
loin or flank (psoas, from the Greek for loin).
(There seems to be some relation to "Ilium",
the Greek name for Troy, but it doesn't make
any sense what or why.) Apparently, the
small intestines are supported by the iliac
bone and the old term for small intestines
was "ilia", the plural of "ilium".
- Impingement - This seems to only refer
to a shoulder injury, where the tendons of the
rotator cuff are compressed between a section of
the shoulder blade and the head of the humerus (upper
arm) bone. If not corrected, they could become
inflamed and even result in a torn rotator cuff.
"Impingement, according to the dictionary, is a sharp
collision, but when referring to a shoulder impingement,
it is generally a gradual process. This occurs mainly
when using the hands above the head or out to the sides. The supraspinatus
tendon rubs across part of the shoulder blade, similar to
the way a rope gets frayed if it is rubbed across a rough
pulley. There is even a sack containing a lubricating fluid
to help prevent this, called a "bursa" (found whenever a
tendon runs over a bone). Inflammation of this caused by
on-going shoulder impingement is called "bursitis".
- Infraspinatus - A muscle below ("infra") the spine.
- Innervation - The degree or amount of stimulation
of a muscle (or organ) by nerves.
- Ipsilateral - Same side, from “ipsi” meaning same or self, as
in "ipso facto", meaning by the fact itself.
(“Contralateral” means opposite side, from “contra” meaning against or opposite,
as in “contrary”.)
- Intramural Sports - Sports carried on within
a school. Derived from "murus", Latin for "wall" (which
also gave us "mural", a painting on a wall). Check
the intramural
sports website
for information on Rensselaer's sports.
- Karvonen Equation - An equation for
determining someone's heart rate reserve, the difference
between one's maximum and minimal rates. The maximum
rate (MHR, maximum heart rate) is easy to determine. It
is calculated as 220 minus one's age. (It is calculated
because you wouldn't want to try to measure this by
bringing someone's heart rate up to where they DIE and then
backing off a few beats.) The minimum, also called
the RHR or resting heart rate (because "minimum heart
rate would be MHR, the same initials as for the max rate).
Then you could use this number to figure a percent within
this range to aim for and add it to the resting heart rate.
(Karvonen was a Scandinavian physiologist).
You could also just shoot for a percentage range of your
maximum heart rate, (without having to determine your
resting heart rate) but the Karvonen number gives a
narrower range and is preferred by endurance coaches.
The RHR is determined by measuring your heart rate right
after you wake up in the morning. Do this at least three
times and average it.
- Kinetic Chain - Nerves, muscles, and skeleton all
must work together to produce motion (kinetic).
- Kinesthesia - Literally the sense of movement or
motion. ("Anesthesia" is the state of being of no senses,
the "an" prefix meaning "no".) Kinesthesia is the ability
to know where one's arms, legs, etc. are without the use
of the traditional five senses. In other words, what is
sometimes called "muscle memory" or "hand-eye coordination.
If for instance you are trying to learn a new sport or
dance movement, you can watch someone perform this, you
can be told what to do, but then your body has to follow
your instructions by getting feedback. (Personally, I
stink at this! Someone will say, "keep your back straight"
and while I understand it intellectually, it is difficult
for me to achieve this without looking in the mirror.)
- Lacrosse - A native American game
adopted by the French Canadians "jeu de la
crosse" from the crook in the stick. The
name dates back to 1763.
- Laceration - A wound that is a jagged or
irregular tear in soft tissue, which typically
is deep and will bleed a lot. Word comes from Latin,
meaning to tear.
- Lactic Acid - From Latin for milk, "lac". Lactic
acid was first obtained from sour milk in 1790. ("Lactose
intolerant" means you can't digest the sugar - "ose" means
sugar - in milk. In anaerobic glycolysis in the muscles,
glycogen is split into two pyruvate molecules and creates
two ATP energy molecules. The pyruvate in turn in
converted to lactic acid and the build up in the muscles
is what is called a "burn". (Lactic acid build-up is
what limits this reaction so your muscles can no longer work.)
Here are some links
to an in-depth look at lactic acid:
- Latissimus Dorsi - These are
the major muscles in the back, normally
called the "lats". "Latissimus" means
broad, which also gave us "latitude", and "dorsi"
meaning back.
- Ligament - Tough fibrous
connective tissue that connects bones
to other bones. Similar to tendons,
which connect bones to muscles. Ligaments
can be gradually lengthen as they have
some elasticity. A dislocated joint
must be set ASAP because if the ligament
lengthens too much, the joint will be
forever weakened and likely to be
dislocated again. Exercise can
also lengthen the ligaments (but in
this case, I guess also strengthen
them), so the person will become
supple.
The term comes from Latin for the word
to tie or bind. Other words from this
same root are "lien" (holding of someone's property
until the debt is paid), "ligature", "rely" (complicated
derivation, but trust me, it comes from that), and "liaison".
- Lumbar - From Latin for "loin", which was the root
of the word "loin". The same root also gave us "sirloin",
"tenderloin", "lumbago", and surprisingly, "lunch" (from the
sense of eating a hunk of meat and later the midday meal
when this is done). This refers to the abdominal
section of the torso, below the diaphragm and above
the pelvis. (My sense is that "lumbar" generally refers
to the back of the torso or at least, near the spine.) The
lumbar section of the spine is the section that bares the
most body weight but also is the most flexible, which is
why this section is subject to injury so often. There
are five lumbar vertebrae which unlike the vertebrae
above, lack ribs, allowing a narrow waist in humans.
- MET - This stands for "one metabolic
unit" at rest. Thus if an exercise is
five times as energy burning as what you do
at rest, it would be five METs. (Normally
you burn one kilocalorie per kilogram of body
weight per hour. A kilocalorie is what we
normally call a calorie in terms of eating.
You can determine this as multiplying your
body weight by 11 to get the number of
calories you burn at total rest, and then
add 400 to 800 more for basic daily activities.)
- Metecarpal Bones - There are five
bones which meet the carpal bone which are
named so from the Latin meaning after ("meta")
the wrist ("carpal"). These are all encased in
a single covered of flesh to form the palm of
the hand.
- MHR - Maximum heart rate. This
is a theoretical number, which can be calculated
from 220 minus one's age. (My age is 56, my
maximum heart rate would be 220-56, or 164.)
But then you want to only get to 85% of this at
most, which is more like 140 beats per minute,
not 164.
- Muscle - This word comes from Latin,
"musculus", the diminutive of "mouse" ("mus") because
the flexing of a muscle under the skin resembled the movement of
a mouse under a sheet. (So you of the masculine gender, if asked
"Are you a man or a mouse?" can take it as a compliment!)
When you see "mys", it means muscle and derives from the
same root. (Such as epimysium, perimysium, endomysium,
myofibrils, myosin, myoglobin, myocardial infarction - fancy
word for heart attack.)
- Myocardial Infarction - fancy
word for heart attack, or in other words, attack
of the heart muscle.
- Myosin - A protein that is part of what
makes a muscle contract. See "actin".
- Natural - "Nature" comes from Latin, from
the word for "born", which also gives us "natal", "navel",
"native", and "nativity". This is a buzzword in today's
advertising, implying something good. Just remember
that floods, tornadoes, and E-coli are all natural.
Playing a symphony on a piano, cell phones, and vaccines
are all man-made.
- NESTA - National Exercise & Sports Trainers
Association.
- Neutral Spine - This is the way the spine curves
naturally, but the ears, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles
are in alignment as if a plumb bob was attached to the ears.
This second part is only valid when standing up in the neutral
spine position. You can also aim for a neutral spine when
bent over or doing some exercise. One way to make sure you
are maintaining a neutral spine is to put a yardstick or
other stick against your back. The top should be against
the back of your head, the stick should touch between the
shoulder blades and again at the "tailbone", but there
will be a small arch in your lower back where the stick
doesn't touch. It also shouldn't be touching the back
of the neck as there is a small arch between the shoulders
and head.
- Nia - Neuromuscular Integrative Action. For
more info, http://www.nia-nia.com.
- Nociceptors - From "noci" for harmful
or pain, these are the types of nerves that
feel pain. (The other four types are fairly
obvious from their name, mechanoreceptors
respond to touch, pressure, vibrations, or
stretch, thermoreceptors respond to heat and
cold, photoreceptors (in the retinas of the eyes)
respond to light, and chemoreceptors, which
respond to any chemical stimuli. (Chemoreceptors
are concentrated on the tongue and nose, but also
are found in the body monitoring oxygen, carbon
dioxide, glucose and electrolyte concentrations
in the blood.)
- Overload Principle - This is the basic
idea behind all workouts, i.e., that of continuing
to add stress to a muscle as it gets stronger and/or
has more endurance. The muscle grows stronger as
a result. The stress can be greater weight, but it
can also be increased speed, "time-under-tension" (TUT),
less rest between sets.
- PAR-Q - Physical Activity
Readiness Questionnaire. This is
a test which many consider to
measure the minimal fitness for
beginning a moderate-intensity
exercise program and to identify those
few individuals who might have a medical
problem or need a doctor's consent to
start a fitness routine.
- Patella - Small flat moveable bone at the
front of the knee. Pretentious name for kneecap. From the
Latin, meaning literally "small pan". (If you ever hear
someone use this term, whack 'em in the kneecap!)
- PCr - Phosphocreatine, a.k.a. creatine
phosphate. Small amounts of this are stored in
the muscles. The phosphate group can be split
off and transferred to an adenosine disphosphate
molecule to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which
can provide energy directly to the muscle. This
only provides about five to 10 seconds and takes
several minutes to replenish.
- Pecs - Short for pectorals, from the Latin
for "breast."
- PEMS - Post exercise muscle soreness.
Normal and not often harmful. Lasts for
24-48 hours. (Past 48 hours it becomes
DOMS, delayed onset muscle soreness,
and should be avoided.)
- Periosteum - A fibrous sheath
that surrounds a long bone and is the
site where muscle tissue is attached.
- Peroneus Longus - Muscle in the
back of the ankle. Allows for plantarflexion
and eversion.
- Phalanges - Finger and toe bones. I thought
this was from the root that gives us "flange", but
apparently it means soldiers in close order, from the
Greek "phalanx" (singular), which also came to mean a group
of people banded together for a common cause.
The same root also gave us "plank".
- Pilates - This is a technique invented 70 years
ago by Joseph H. Pilates. (I read somewhere he developed
this while in an interment camp during WWI and had no
equipment with which to work out with.) According to
The
Pilates Studio,
pilates (pronounced puh-LAH-teez) focuses on improving flexibility
and strength for the overall body, but doesn't build bulk.
Some of the first people to
use pilates were legendary dancers Martha Graham and George Balanchine.
More than just exercise, pilates are a series of controlled
movements to engage one's body and mind. The Mueller Center offers
classes for both beginners and those more advanced. See the
home page for the schedule for classes,
for times and fees.
- Plantar Fasciitis - Inflammation of the fascia
in the arch of the foot. "Fascia" comes from "face". Used
as an adjective but not as a noun. From Latin "planta", meaning
sole of the foot, and for some odd reason, also means a
sprout or twig, in other words, a plant, probably from the
sense of driving something into the ground, to plant something. (I think "planta"
also gave us "plane" or flat surface, "plan" from "ground plan",
"supplant", i.e., trip up or overthrow from "sub" meaning under.)
- Plantarflexion - This means lowering your foot by bending
the ankle. In a sense of "planting" your foot. ("Dorsiflexion"
means the opposite, bending your foot up.)
- Plyometrics - From "plio" (related to "plus") and "metrics", but it
means exercises with repeated and rapid stretching and
contracting muscles as a way to increase power. For example,
if one was to jump and rebound repeatedly. ("Plio" also gave
us "pliocene", meaning "more new" as well as "plus" itself.)
- PNF - Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation.
(WHAT!) "Proprioceptive" comes from the Latin
"prorius" meaning "one's own" and perception.
("Prorius" might have led to "property" - or not.)
PNF is use of a partner to perform stretching. (The
partner must be qualified and experienced.)
- Posterior Pelvic Tilt - This is where
the top of the pelvis is tilted to the
back and in effect it straightens out the
curve of the spine. When you are sitting and
you start to slouch, you are causing a posterior
pelvic tilt.
- PRICE Method - Acronym for treating musculoskeletal
injuries:
- Protect the injured area from more stress
or trauma by avoiding working/moving the hurt area.
- Rest the body/area so it has time to heal.
- Ice.
- Compression. (Ace bandage wrap.)
- Elevate. Raise the area above the level
of the heart.
The above is most effective when done ASAP. (No,
dummy, do this three years after!) Folklore
says to only use the ice for the first day
or two (24 to 48 hours) after the injury, but
actually it should be continued as long as
it provides relief from pain and swelling
(but if possible, check with a doctor).
Ice can be an ice pack, frozen water such as ice cubes
in a plastic bag or even frozen vegetables
(although this latter method is NOT a way to
get vegetables in your diet unless you consume
them after they thaw!. Generally, you'd
apply the cold for about 20 to 25 minutes,
60 minutes off, 20-25 minutes on, as long
as necessary. The time off is to protect
skin and tissue from damage from the cold.
(Needless to say, don't use dry ice in
an ice pack!)
The above anacronym doesn't mention
heat. (It would screw up the word.)
Heat can be used with there is still
pain and tightness in the injury, but
the area is no longer tender and the
discoloring is going away. Heat should
NOT be used in the first 48-72 hours
after an injury. (Again, a doctor
has the final say and should always be
consulted if possible.)
- Pronation - From "prone",
meaning lying face down. There
are two ways to talk about this,
either with the hands or the feet.
And the word seems to be for
both the alignment of either
part, or the twisting movement to bring
about this alignment. (Confused?
Not as much as I am.) Supination
is the opposite alignment/movement.
In terms of the wrists, pronation
means facing down (if the arm is
raised at all), or facing back
if the arm is just hanging down.
Or it can be the rotation of the
wrist to cause the palm to face
down or backwards. There are
two small muscles that pronate
the "radioulnar" joint,
the pronator teres near the elbow
and the pronator quadratus.
(The radioulnar
joints are between the parallel radius
and ulna bones of the forearm.)
In terms of the feet, it means
"movement at the ankle created
by dorsiflexion, eversion of the
tarsals, and abduction of the
forefoot". (!) In real
English, it is where the feet
roll in and the arch gets
flattened, so this can lead
to flat feet and "knock knees".
- Proprioception - This
comes from the Latin
"prorius" meaning "one's own" and perception.
("Prorius" might have led to "property" - or not.)
We have six exteroception senses that are
external clues to the outside world (the five
senses of sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing,
along with balance. Proprioception is the ability
to know where the parts of our body are in relationship
to each other. For instance, we can touch our fingertips
together even if blindfolded. (Or touch one's nose
with your eyes shut to test if you are drunk or not.)
Sometimes the term
"Kinesthesia" is used interchangeably with "proprioceptive"
but some people feel that kinesthesia does not include
balance.
- Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation -
This is the name of a more advanced type of stretching
(and contracting) of the muscle groups. PNP was first
developed to rehab polio and other paralysis patients by
Dr. Herman Kabat and two physical therapists,
Margaret Knott and Dorothy Voss. It involves use
of a partner or a passive element.
- Protein - We know that muscles are made up
of protein, and therefore it makes senses, you might
think, to bulk up on protein if you want your muscles
to grow.
First of all, you should realize that unlike
other parts of the diet such as sodium, vitamins,
fat, etc., protein is a complicated compound.
Remember the typical ransom note where the kidnappers
cut letters out of the newspaper to spell out their
demands? Well, this is sort of what your body does
with protein. It breaks down the protein that you
eat into individual "letters" (amino acids) and recombines
them into new words, sentences, entire books. You
couldn't do much if you just got words of only a few
letters, you need all 26. Jell-O is basically all
protein, but only has a few different types of
amino acids, so you can't get your protein requirements
by eating Jell-O.
Another factor is that while bodybuilders need more
protein, they don't need THAT much more. And the
typical American diet probably contains twice what
you need already. Yet too much can actually
hurt the kidneys and be bad for you.
Finally, those expensive protein powders may
give you lots of grams of protein, but a can
of tuna fish, for under a dollar, has something
like 30 to 40 grams of protein (close
to your daily requirements).
- Psoas major - The psoas and the iliacus
are found internally, informally known
as the hip flexors, or formally as the
illiopsoas. "Psoas" comes from the Greek
meaning loin (and iliacus from the Latin
word for loin). When you sit up, it is
these muscles that pull the pelvis
toward the stomach. These are NOT
the muscles you want to work when
doing crunches.
- Pyruvate - In anaerobic glycolysis,
glycogen is split into two pyruvate molecules
and gives off two ATP molecules. Pyruvate
in turn is metabolized in lactic acid. Comes
from "pyro" from Greek meaning
fire (like pyromaniac) and from "uva", Latin for grape.
Pyruvic acid was originally synthesized by heating the
tartaric acid which is found in grapes.
- Quads - Shortened form of "quadriceps",
literally "four headed", located on the thigh. There
is the "rectus femoris", "vastus intermedius", "vastus
lateralis", and "vastus medialis".
- Radioulnar Joint - The two bones of
the forearm are the radius and ulna and the
joint between the two is called the radioulnar joint. Because
these two bones run parallel, there are actually
three joints with this name. There is the distal
radioulnar joint and the proximal radioulnar one. (Think
the distal one is related to "distance" and is the
joint at the wrist, the one most distant from
the elbow or from the body itself, while the
proximal one is the one at the elbow.)
- Radius - In anatomy, it is one of the two bones of the forearm.
It means ray or rod as in the spoke of a wheel.
(The other bone in the forearm is the ulna.) You are most familiar with
this pair when you eat a chicken wing.
- Rectus Femorus - This is a muscle of the front of the
leg that runs from the ilium ("groin") to the patella
(kneecap) and tibia. "Rectus" means straight or upright, as
in "erect". When this muscle contracts, it causes the knee
to straighten.
- Rectus Abdominis - The straight muscles
of the abdominal. "Rectus" means straight or upright, as
in "erect".
- Rhomboideus - Muscles in the middle of the back.
Shaped like a rhombus, but with only the opposite
sides equal (a rectangle squashed out of square), from
the Greek to revolve. These are a set of muscles, so
are called "rhomboids", in the plural.
- RHR - Resting heart rate. You'd want to
measure this just after you wake up in the morning.
If you woke to an alarm or a clock radio, you'd want
to rest for a few minutes as even this can temporarily
raise your heart rate. If you don't have some type
of fancy electronic heart monitor, you can just count
your pulse for 15 seconds and multiply by four. Do this
over three mornings to get an accurate reading.
- Rotator Cuff - Also known as the
shoulder girdle. There are four sets of muscles
in the rotator cuff, the SITS muscles (supraspinatus,
infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis), that
hold the "gleno-humeral" joint together. These
four muscles often work as stabilizers during any type
of shoulder exercise.
- RPE - Rate of perceived exertion. This
is a subjective scale to help monitor how hard someone
is working out, particularly for someone not in shape.
- Rugby - A town in England ("by" is a corruption
of "bury", "boro", or "burg") gave it's name to a famous
boy's school. W.W. Ellis "first took the ball
and ran with it" in 1823, according to local school legend.
- Saccharine - This means "sugar-like" and
comes from the same root "sarkara" that gave us
the common word "sugar". Also gave us "sucrose",
the chemical name for cane sugar.
- Sacroiliac - There are five vertebrae
bones below the lumbar ones,
the "sacral vertebrae", which for some
unknown reason are named
from the Latin for "sacred". In children, they
are separate bones but fuse together in humans
to from the "sacrum". This bone has such a tight
connection with the "ilium" (Latin for "groin")
that we call the pair the "sacroiliac" as if
they were a single bone. Since humans were
designed by evolution over the course of millions
of years to move on four limbs and only in the
recent past of about one million years to
walk upright, we have lots of back problems
in the area of the sacroiliac.
- Sacromeres - These are the smallest
unit of a muscle that can contract. "Sarco"
comes from "flesh".
- Sagittal Plane - The human body
came be described by three planes (since
we live in a 3-D universe). The horizontal
plane is obvious from the name. The frontal
plane is vertical and would divide the body
into front and back. (I suppose you could
also call this plane the "backal" plane.)
Finally, there is the "sagittal" plane, which
would divide the body into right and left.
The word comes from Latin for "arrow". (Sagittarius,
a sign in the zodiac, means the archer.) I guess
the idea here is that an arrow shot into a person would
typically be from the front and
would split them along this plane. "Sagittal" can
also mean shaped like an arrow or straight, as
I guess in the sense running straight like
an arrow's flight.
- SAID - Specific Adaptation to
Imposed Demands. This is a summary of two
important concepts. One is that the body
compensations over time for increased loads by growing
stronger. (I would think this is pretty obvious
as the backbone of why one works out to get
stronger, the so-called "Overload principle".) But the other part of this is
that the increase is specific to the workout
(or load). In other words, if you curl dumbbells,
which put a load on your biceps and "work" them,
they will grow stronger over several weeks or
more. But your legs won't grow stronger no
matter how many arm curls you do. And if your
goal is to play basketball, which involves coordination
and speed of many many muscles, just lifting
weights won't do much except peripheral.
- Scapula - A large bone plate at the
top and back of the ribs to provide attachment for
the bones that move the arm, commonly known as the
shoulder blade. Comes from Latin for shoulder, but
going back further, it comes from an ancient word
for spade or shovel, as originally the scapula
bone of large animals was used as a shovel.
- Semimembranosus - See Semitendinosus.
- Semitendinosus - One of three muscle
groups of the thigh or hamstring. This allows
the knee to flex, and for hip extension and internal
rotation. (Semimembranosus, the second of the
three, appears to be the same set and provides the
same function.)
- SMFR - Self-myofascial release. The
self is obvious and the "myo" is muscle. Using
a Styrofoam roller to put pressure on a muscle.
- Smith Machine - This has a free weight
barbell that rides inside a rack so its travel
is restricted to up and down. There are
stops along the way. The machine is named
after 1970's fitness guru Randy Smith.
- Soccer - Derived from "association
football", if you can believe it.
- Soleus - Muscle in the
back of the ankle. Allows for plantarfexion. Named
after the word for fish, probably a "sole", a "flatfish".
Also from Latin "solea", sandal, which probably led to
the sole of a shoe. But don't be confused as the
soleus is NOT a muscle in the foot.
- Splenius - A muscle under the
sternocleidomastoid muscle that allows
us to turn our head to indicate "no".
From the Greek word for bandage, from
its shape. (But the organ, the "spleen",
does not take its name from this root.)
- Spine - Derived from "spiny bones" because
each vertebrae has several projections like spines. (And
the word "spine/spiny" comes from the same root that
gives us "spike" and "porcupine", the second which
literally means spiny pig ("pork - spine").
- Sternocleidomastoid - What a mouthful!
It literally means "sternum-clavicle-breast" since this
muscle is attached to each of these three bones.
("Sternum" refers to the breastbone - see below. The
clavicle is the collar bone and means "little key" from
its shape. "Mastoid" means breast-like and the same
root gives us "mastectomy".) This muscle is on
the side of the neck and lets us pull our head to the side.
- Sternum - Originally from the Greek
for a word meaning breast or breastplate and which
also gave us "stethoscope". But the root goes
back further to one meaning stretch and futher
back meaning spread out (and gave use "structure"
and quite a lot of other related words).
- Supination - From Latin
"to bend or lay backward". There
are two ways to talk about this,
either with the hands or the feet.
And the word seems to be for
both the alignment of either
part, or the twisting movement to bring
about this alignment. (Confused?
Not as much as I am.) To help you
remember, think of cupping your hand
like a soup bowl or "sup" bowl, or
think the word contains "up".
Pronation
is the opposite alignment/movement.
In terms of the wrists, supination
means facing up (if the arm is
raised at all), or facing forward
if the arm is just hanging down.
Or it can be the rotation of the
wrist to cause the palm to face
up or face front. There are
a small muscle that supinate
the "radioulnar" joints,
the supinator. (The radioulnar
joints are between the parallel radius
and ulna bones of the forearm.)
In terms of the feet, it means
"triplane motion which combines
by inversion, adduction, plantarflexion". (!) In real
English, it is where the feet
roll out and you walk on the outer
section of your feet. Sometimes
supination is called "underpronation".
- Subscapuaris - One of the four small muscles
that are part of the rotator cuff. Named because
it is under ("sub") the scapula.
- Supraspinatus - One of the four small muscles
that are part of the rotator cuff. So named because it
is over ("supra", similar to "super") the spine ("spin").
- Synarthrocial - Immovable joints
(from "syn" meaning together and "arthro",
joints as in "arthritis"). (NESTA says this
the name for semi-moveable joints.)
- Syncope - Fainting or loss of consciousness.
Often preceded by lightheadness or dizziness, which
can be treated by just sitting or lying down. However,
any period of unconsciousness, no matter how brief,
warrants some type of professional evaluation, such
as calling 911.
By the way, "syncope" also means the loss of sound(s)
or letter(s) in the middle of a word.
Originally the word comes from Latin "syn", together
or this case, completely, and "koptein", to cut. So
this means a cutting off (of the heart's action).
(Very complicated explanation - sorry.)
- Synovial Fluid - The fluid that is
found in the joints that acts like a lubricant
(and also doubles by supplying nutrients to the
surfaces of the joint). "Syn" comes from
joint or junction and also gives us
"synapse", the gap or junction between a pair of
nerves. (The prefix "syn" functions the
same as "co".) Other words that come
from "sny" - "synagogue" (the joining
of people in an assembly), "synchronize"
(and the shortened form, being in "sync"),
"syndicate", "synergy", "synopsis", "synonym",
and "synthesis".
- Tachycardia - This is a form
of arrhythmia or loss of steady rhythm where
the heat beats way too fast. (The blood doesn't have
time to fill the chambers between each beat.)
This would be over 100 beats per minute.
The "tach" comes from the same Greek root
meaning swift that gives us "tachometer", the
meter that measures the rpm in a car.
- Tarsus - There are 7 of these bones
that make up the back part of the foot. From
the Greek for "flat". "Tarsal" means of
the foot. The Greek word actually meant
"ankle, sole of foot, or rim of the eyelid"
and comes from the root "ters", which going
way back means a flat surface, particularly
one for drying something. This is the same
root that gives us "terra firma", "territory",
"terrain" and even "torrid".
- Tendon - Most muscles are wrapped in a
wrapping which extends past the muscle cells and
is attached to a bone. The term comes
from the same root that gives us "tension". (Also
"tendril", "tendency", "tenacity".) A tendon
is mostly collagen. (A ligament is similar but
only connects a bone to another bone, not to a
muscle as the tendon does. But a tendon can
also be called a sinew.) In some lab tests,
a tendon can withstand a pull of over 9 tons
per square inch and normally, a bone will
break before the associated tendon will.
- Tennis - From the French word "tenir," to hold,
supposedly from the shout used by the server (like "fore" in golf) for the
opponent to get ready to receive the serve. (Also see
"tendon", above.) This was for
a game called "real tennis" or "court tennis", a much different game
than it is today. "Lawn tennis", the game we know, was invented by
Major Walter Wingfield in 1873 in England. It was introduced into
this country the following year and the name
later was shortened to just tennis.
- Teres Major - Muscles under the armpits.
Sometimes called the "lats little helper." "Teres"
comes from Latin meaning smooth, major, or big. (Why
this muscle is called this isn't too clear.) The root
apparently came from the Greek for a flat frame for drying
cheese, and thus gave us all sorts of words referring to
dry ("thirst," "terra firma" - literally firm dry land, "terrace,"
"terrain," "territory"). (Also, apparently "teres" means
rounded, but where this came from, I still don't know.)
And by the way, the teres minor is one of the four sets of
muscles in the rotator cuff.
- THR - Training heart rate. Somewhere between
resting heart rate and maximum heart rate. The percentage
that one aims for is different, depending on the goals (and
the fitness level of the person).
- Tibia - One of two bones in the lower leg. (The other
is the fibular.) The tibia is second only to the femur
in size and strength (since the fibular is there
to carry some load.) "Tibia" comes from the word for
"shinbone" but apparently also the same Latin word meaning
"flute".
- Transverse Abdominus - These act like a corset in that
by connecting with the spine and pelvis on all sides, they are
the biggest stabilizer of the spine, allowing it to remain vertical. ANY time you
go to move a section of your body, the transverse abdominus
contracts first in order to stiffen the core. Even for tiny
muscle movements like working your fingers, first the trans abs fire.
In popular nomenclature, working the trans abs is
referred to as "scooping the belly", "sucking in your gut" or
imagine trying to pull the belly button in to touch the backbone.
You should do this EVERY time you do any exercise which will
noticeably increase overall body strength.
- Trapezuis - These are the muscles of the
upper back and back of the neck. The word comes
from Greek meaning table, which in turn is
a contraction of tetrapeza, meaning four-legged.
(Related to "trapezoid", a four sized figure with
no sides parallel and "trapeze", probably because
the crossbar, ropes and ceiling form a four-sized
figure.) There are three sets of muscles here,
upper, middle, and lower. The upper fibers elevate
the scapular or shoulder blades, the middle ones
retract the shoulder blades, the lower ones depress
them. (Which makes sense if you think about it,
the muscles below the shoulder would work to pull
down the shoulders, and the ones above, would work
to pull up.)
- TUT - Time under tension, or in other words, the
time that the muscles are working. This can refer to
the time during a single exercise or for the workout
as a whole. As the weight increases, the TUT will
decrease.
- TVA Activation - Contracting or activating
the transverse abdominus first to stiffen the torso.
See transverse abdominus, above.
- Ulna - One of the two bones of the forearm.
It means elbow (and "ulna" evolved into
elbow). The bony end of the ulna
IS the elbow. (The other bone in the forearm is the radius.)
You are most familiar with
this pair when you eat a chicken wing.
- Umpire - In medieval times, fights or other
violent games were staged with the two teams as evenly
matched as possible. Each person had a specific opposing
team member on the other side. To settle disputes, someone
was chosen as a judge who was not in either camp, sort of
an odd man out, in other words, not paired or "unpaired".
The word was corrupted into "umpire".
- Varsity - Variation on (uni)versity, meaning
teams that represent the school (as opposed to
intramural sports, played "in-house"). (Gee, Since RPI
is not called a university, should
we refer to our varsity teams here as "tutes"?)
- Valsalva Maneuver - If you hold your breath
(closing the glottis of the throat) when you try to
perform an intensive exercise or lift, this will
raise the blood pressure and allow a little
more effort. This, however, is not recommended,
in fact, is considered very dangerous. (You can
pop your eardrums plus any of the problems of
high blood pressure. (The name comes from
Antonio Maria Valsalva, an Italian physician/scientist
in the 1600's. The term actually refers to a
way to test the cardiovascular system while under a doctor's
care.) Actually, you should do an "anti-Valsalsa maneuver"
each time you strain, in other words, exhaling during the
exertion phase of a routine.
- Vastus Lateralis - Large ("vast") lateral muscle
on the thigh.
- Vastus Medialix - Large ("vast") middle ("medial") muscle
on the thigh.
- Venous Pooling - When you exercise really hard, you
raise your blood pressure and this forces blood out to the
extremities. If you stop suddenly, this blood which has
pooled in the veins can't return fast enough, so the blood
pressure drops plummets and you can feel light-headed and
dizzy.
- Vertebra - From the Latin root meaning
to turn, which also gives us "reverse", probably
because the vertebral column is just flexible
enough to let us twist and turn.
- Vitamins -
Over the course of evolution, animals can lose the ability
to manufacture certain organic compounds found in their diet.
Humans evolved from the primate family, whose diet was high in
fruits and vegetables, and the particular nutrients we
lack are found in those foods. Cats and meat eaters have a
different set of nutritional requirements.
(Of course, animals may lose the ability to make
compounds not found in their diet, but then they don't
prosper to pass on those genes to the whole population.
If insulin-containing foods were part of our diet, but
citrus fruits weren't, we might consider diabetes a vitamin
deficiency from lack of "vitamin I" affecting everyone,
and scurvy would be a rare hereditary disease.)
Studies of nutrition around WWI showed the relation
between certain vital nutrients needed in trace amounts
and diseases such as beriberi or rickets. These were at
first mistakenly thought to be part of the amine class
of chemicals, hence "vital amines" or "vitamines", a name
coined by C. Funk.
There are at least 23 compounds classified as vitamins
(and probably others that are needed in such small
amounts and that we easily get in our diet scientists
haven't even identified yet). Because vitamins are
consumed in such trace amounts, their calorie content
is negligible.
- Whey Protein - The first step
in making cheese is to curdle the milk. The
whey is the watery liquid that separates from
the curds. In the nursery rhyme, little
Ms. Muffet was scared by a spider as she
sat "eating her curds and whey", in other
words, cottage cheese. Whey is
a waste-product of cheese making. When dried and
powdered, it is considered a good source of
protein.
- Yoga - This name comes from a Hindu philosophy
used to attain spiritual insight and
harmony, but generally refers in common use to a system of exercises
that is practiced as part of this discipline. The word
itself is derived from the Sanskrit "yeung", meaning to
join. A yoke as used on oxen is closely related, but
also the same root gives us "join", "junction", "junta",
"adjust", "joust", and "juxapose" to name a few.
The Mueller Center offers
classes for both beginners and those more advanced. See the
home page for the current schedule for classes
for times and fees.
- Zottman Curl - Named after George
Zottman, it involves twisting the dumbbells at the
top of the movement, although there seems to be
several variations. One is to bring each dumbbell
up in standard fashion with the palm facing up, twist
it 180 degrees so the palm is facing down, bring it
down in that orientation and back up, and twist
it around again to palm up again.
Zottman was born way back in 1867. At his peak
c. 1900 he had 14 inch forearms.
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