Common and not so common running terms you may have heard (courtesy of Runners world)
Achilles tendon: The tendon along the back of your foot that attaches your calf muscles to your heel bone.
Achilles tendinitis can occur in new runners who increase their distance and/or intensity too quickly. This is especially true of new runners who have been inactive in recent years and who often wear heeled shoes (which can make the Achilles tendon shorter and tighter). Good flexibility in your calves and ankles can help to take some of the load off the Achilles tendon.
Bandit: Someone who is participating in the race unofficially, without having registered or paid for an entry.
Black toenails: Lots of downhill running and too-small shoes can cause these, because both situations cause your toes to slam into the front of your shoe. They typically heal on their own within a few months.
Body Mass Index (BMI): A simple estimation of body fat that can be used to determine whether or not your weight is healthy. BMI is derived by comparing your height to your weight. It can be used by men and women of all ages.
Carb-loading: The practice of increasing the percentage of carbohydrates in your diet during the days leading up to an endurance event such as a marathon, half-marathon, or even a long training run. (Note: Carb-loading is not simply eating more of everything.) Carb-loading stores glycogen in the muscles and liver so that it can be used during the race; it is most effective when done along with a taper.
Chafing: Bloodied, blistered skin caused by friction that happens after clothing-on-skin or skin-on-skin rubbing.
Corral: A sectioned area at the lineup of a race that helps separate athletes into different pace groups. The faster an individual is, the more likely he or she will end up in one of the first few corrals. These corrals are especially important at large races, such as marathons, where elite athletes are running.
Fartlek: Speed play, or fartlek in Swedish (the concept originated in Sweden), is a speedwork format in which you run faster for however long (or short) you want.
5K: A race that’s 3.1 miles (or 5 kilometers) long. It’s the most popular race distance in the United States, and a good distance for your first race.
Iliotibial band: A thick, fibrous band that connects your hips and knees. It helps to flex and rotate your hips and stabilize and extend your knees. It can become easily strained, leading to iliotibial band syndrome, if you increase your mileage too quickly. The iliotibial band is also often irritated on the leg farther away from traffic if you regularly run on canted roads.
Interval training: Technically, this refers to the time you spend recovering between speed segments. But the term is commonly used to refer to track workouts in general or fast bouts of running.
Long slow distance runs (LSD): Any run that’s longer than a weekly run, which is the foundation of marathon and half-marathon training. These workouts help build endurance and psychological toughness that can help you get through race day.
Negative splits: Running the second half of a race faster than the first half.
Out-and-back: A course that entails running out to a turnaround spot, then running back to the starting point. Out-and-backs are a convenient way to get in runs in unfamiliar locales. They’re also a good option when you’re trying to run a little farther than you have before, because you don’t have the option of cutting the run short.
Overpronation: Excessive inward roll of the foot, which can cause pain in the foot, shin, and knee.
Personal record (PR): Term used to describe a runner’s farthest or fastest time in a race. Also called a Personal Best (PB).
Repeats: The fast segments of running that are repeated during a workout, with recovery in between. If you’re training for a marathon, you might run 1000-meter repeats six times. For shorter races, like 5Ks, you might do shorter repeats of 400 meters or so at your goal race pace.
Run/walk: Method popularized by Olympian Jeff Galloway, columnist and author of Runner’s World’s monthly “Starting Line” column. Walk breaks allow a runner to feel strong to the end and recover fast, while providing the same stamina and conditioning as a continuous run. By shifting back and forth between walking and running, you work a variety of different muscle groups, which helps fend off fatigue. To receive the maximum benefit, you must start the walk breaks before you feel any fatigue, during the first mile. If you wait until you feel the need for a walk break, then you’ve already let yourself get fatigued and defeated the purpose of the walk break.
Splits: The time it takes to complete any defined distance. If you’re running 800 meters, or two laps, you might check your split after the first lap to shoot for an even pace.
Streaker: Typically refers to someone who has completed a race multiple years in a row.
Supination: The insufficient inward roll of the foot after landing. This places extra stress on the foot and can result iliotibial (IT) band syndrome, Achilles tendinitis, and plantar fasciitis. Runners with high arches and tight Achilles tendons tend to supinate.
Technical clothing: This typically refers to clothing made of synthetic fibers that wick moisture away from the skin. These fibers do not absorb moisture, like cotton does, and they help prevent uncomfortable chafing.
Tempo: When runners talk about doing a “tempo run” they usually mean a sustained, faster-than-usual run of 3 to 6 miles at the pace they could sustain for an hour in a race. Tempo runs are said to feel “comfortably hard”—you have to concentrate to keep the effort going, but aren’t running with as much effort as a sprint or 5-K race. Tempo runs are a good way to boost your fitness without doing hard track workouts.
There you have it. A pretty inclusive list of running terms, I’d say. Now when you hear your co-worker talk about their speedwork over the weekend, you won’t snicker under your breath.
Go. Run. Fitness anywhere. – Jen