Strength training glossary

RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion)

A 1 to 10 score of how hard a set was, where 10 means no more reps were possible and 8 means two were left in the tank.

RIR (Reps in Reserve)

How many more reps a lifter could have done at the end of a set; 2 RIR means they stopped two reps short of failure.

One-rep max (1RM)

The heaviest weight a lifter can move for a single rep through the full range of motion with acceptable technique.

Training to failure

Continuing a set until another rep with good form is impossible.

Training intensity

How heavy the load is relative to a one-rep max, not how hard the session feels.

Autoregulation

Adjusting the day's load or volume to how the lifter actually performs, using a rule agreed in advance.

Progressive overload

Gradually increasing the demand on the body over time, through more weight, reps, sets or better quality, so it keeps adapting.

Double progression

Add reps inside a rep range first; when every set reaches the top of the range, add weight and start again at the bottom.

Linear progression

Adding a fixed amount of weight to the bar every session or every week while sets and reps stay the same.

Periodization

Planning training in phases so volume, intensity and exercises change on purpose over weeks and months instead of staying the same.

Undulating periodization (DUP)

Varying rep range and load within the week (daily undulating) or from week to week, rather than holding one scheme for a whole block.

Block periodization

Dividing training into blocks of three to six weeks, each with one main goal, such as volume, then strength, then a peak.

Mesocycle

A training block of roughly three to six weeks built around one goal and usually ending in a deload.

Microcycle

The smallest repeating unit of a programme, almost always one week of sessions.

Deload week

A planned week of reduced training, usually 40 to 60% less volume or load, that clears fatigue while keeping the habit.

Training volume

The total amount of work done, counted as hard sets per muscle per week, or as sets times reps times load.

Training frequency

How often a muscle or a lift is trained each week.

Specificity principle (SAID)

The body adapts to the exact demand placed on it, so training should look like the goal: heavy for strength, longer sets for size, the sport's own pattern for sport.

Cumulative fatigue

Fatigue that builds across sessions faster than recovery clears it, so performance drops even though each session felt fine.

Density training

Doing more work in the same time, or the same work in less time, by shortening rests or adding sets inside a fixed window.

Strength endurance

The ability to keep producing force over many reps or a long time, such as sets of 20 or a loaded carry for distance.

AMRAP (As Many Reps or Rounds As Possible)

A set or a block in which the lifter does as many reps, or as many rounds, as possible at the given weight or in the given time.

EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute)

Start a set at the top of every minute; whatever is left of the minute is the rest.

Superset

Two exercises done back to back with little or no rest between them, then a rest before the next pair.

Drop set

Take a set to near failure, immediately reduce the weight by 20 to 30%, and continue without rest, once or more.

Rest-pause

A set taken close to failure, then 10 to 20 seconds of rest, then more reps with the same weight, repeated once or twice.

Cluster set

One set broken into small groups of reps with short rests inside it, such as 5 reps done as 2, 2 and 1 with 15 seconds between the groups.

Tempo

The speed of each phase of a rep, written as four numbers in seconds: lowering, pause at the bottom, lifting, pause at the top.

Time under tension (TUT)

How long a muscle works during a set, which is the reps multiplied by the tempo.

Forced reps

Reps completed after failure with a spotter lifting just enough of the load to keep the bar moving.

Eccentric loading

Emphasising the lowering phase of a lift, by slowing it down or loading it heavier than the lifting phase.

Isometric contraction

Producing force without the muscle changing length: holding a position still, or pushing against something that does not move.

Range of motion (ROM)

How far a joint moves during an exercise, from the start position to the end and back.

Compound exercise

A movement that uses more than one joint and muscle group at once, such as a squat, press or row, as opposed to an isolation exercise like a curl.

Bracing

Tightening the trunk before a lift by breathing into the belly and pushing out against it, so the spine stays stable under load.

Active recovery

Low-intensity movement on a rest day or after hard training, such as walking, easy cycling or mobility work, that aids recovery without adding fatigue.

DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness)

Muscle soreness that peaks 24 to 72 hours after unfamiliar or eccentric-heavy training.

Supercompensation

The bounce above the previous baseline that follows a training stress and enough recovery, which is the adaptation the next session builds on.

Grease the groove (GTG)

Practising a movement many times a day at an easy effort, far from failure, to improve strength and skill through frequency.

Body recomposition

Losing fat and gaining muscle over the same period, so the scale may barely move while the body changes.