Lexique

Discover what abduction is in bodybuilding, this movement which moves a limb away from the central axis of the body to develop the stabilizing muscles.

Active recovery uses light activity to speed muscle recovery. Find out how to effectively integrate it into your routine.

Adduction is a movement that brings a body part toward the body's midline. Opposite of abduction.

The aerobic system produces energy with oxygen, fueling long-duration efforts. It's the foundation of endurance and recovery.

AMRAP is a high-intensity training format: do as many reps or rounds as possible in a fixed time. CrossFit favorite.

The anabolic window is the post-workout period considered ideal for nutrition. The reality: it's much longer than thought.

The anaerobic system produces energy without oxygen — for explosive, intense efforts. Limited but powerful, it fuels strength and sprints.

ATP is the universal energy currency of the body. Every muscle contraction, every cellular function depends on it.

BCAAs are 3 essential branched-chain amino acids: leucine, isoleucine, valine. Discover their real usefulness, timing, and whether you actually need them.

BMI (Body Mass Index) is a quick health screening tool, but it doesn't account for body composition. Limited but useful.

BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is your resting metabolism — the calories burned just to stay alive. Learn how to calculate and optimize it for your fitness goals.

Body fat percentage measures the share of fat in your total body mass. A key indicator of body composition.

Body recomposition is gaining muscle and losing fat at the same time. Possible but slow — discover the conditions for success.

Bodyweight training uses your own body as resistance. No equipment, anywhere, scalable to any level.

A caloric deficit means consuming fewer calories than you burn. It's the only proven mechanism for fat loss. Learn how to set yours up properly.

Caloric maintenance is the calorie level keeping your weight stable. Foundation of any nutritional plan.

Calories measure the energy provided by food. Understanding your caloric needs is the foundation of every fitness goal.

A caloric surplus means consuming more calories than you burn. Mandatory mechanism for serious muscle building.

Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for intense training. Discover your needs, the different types and their role in performance.

Circuit training chains several exercises with little rest. Ideal for burning calories and improving cardiovascular fitness while keeping muscle.

The concentric phase is the lifting movement, where the muscle shortens under load. It's the active phase that produces force.

Creatine is the most studied supplement in sports nutrition, proven to boost strength, power and muscle mass. Learn dosage, timing and real benefits.

A cutting phase is a period of caloric deficit aimed at losing fat while preserving muscle. Discover how to do it without losing your hard-earned gains.

Deload is an active recovery week where you intentionally reduce volume and intensity to allow your body to fully recover and come back stronger.

DOMS is the muscle soreness that appears 24-72h after exercise. Discover its causes, how to manage it, and what it really means for your progress.

A dropset extends a set by reducing the load when failure hits. Powerful intensification method for hypertrophy.

The eccentric phase is the lowering movement, where the muscle lengthens under tension. It's the most damaging phase and the key driver of hypertrophy.

EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute) is a training format where you start a set at the top of each minute and rest until the next.

Extension is the anatomical movement that increases the angle between two body segments. Opposite of flexion.

Fat mass is the total weight of fat tissue. Essential for survival, but excess harms health and aesthetics.

Muscle fibers are the cells that make up muscle. Two main types — Type I (slow) and Type II (fast) — define your physical potential.

Flexion is the anatomical movement that decreases the angle between two body segments. Opposite of extension.

Foam rolling is a myofascial self-massage technique to release muscle tension. Find out how to use it effectively to improve recovery and mobility.

For Time is a training format where you complete a fixed amount of work as fast as possible. Race against the clock.

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A full body program trains all major muscle groups in each session, 2-4 times per week. Ideal for beginners and strength training.

Muscle hypertrophy is the increase in muscle fiber size. It's the primary mechanism behind muscle growth from resistance training.

Hypertrophy training aims to maximize muscle growth using moderate loads (65-85% 1RM) with 8-15 repetitions per set.

Intra-workout refers to nutrition consumed during training to maintain energy, hydration and performance on long sessions.

Isometric contraction is when the muscle produces tension without changing length. No visible movement, intense work.

Lean mass is everything in your body except fat: muscles, bones, organs, water. A real performance indicator.

Lipids are essential for hormone production and vitamin absorption. Discover your needs, the right sources and their role in bodybuilding.

A macrocycle is the global organization of your training over 3-12 months. The highest level of periodization, your annual game plan.

Macronutrients are the 3 main types of nutrients: proteins, carbohydrates and lipids. Their balance is crucial for performance and body composition.

Maintenance is the calorie level at which your weight remains stable. The neutral baseline for any nutritional strategy.

Mass gain (or bulk) is a controlled caloric surplus phase aimed at building muscle. Discover how to do it without gaining excess fat.

Meal timing is the strategic distribution of your meals around training and through the day to optimize performance and recovery.

A mesocycle is a 4-8 week training block with a specific objective (hypertrophy, strength, peak, deload). The cornerstone of periodization.

A microcycle is the smallest planning unit in bodybuilding: generally 1 week of training. This is your weekly routine.

Mobility is the ability to actively control range of motion. Find out how to improve your mobility to optimize your performance.

Muscle mass is the total weight of muscles in the body. Key indicator of strength, metabolism, and longevity.

Muscular endurance is a muscle's capacity to sustain repeated or prolonged contractions without excessive fatigue. Foundation of many sports.

Muscular endurance training develops the ability to sustain prolonged effort. Light loads, high reps, short rests.

Muscular strength is the maximum force a muscle (or group) can produce. The fundamental physical quality of any athlete.

NEAT is the energy you burn through all your daily activities outside of training. The most underestimated lever of your body composition.

Passive recovery links on complete rest to allow the body to regenerate. Find out when and how to use it effectively.

Periodization is the cyclical organization of training into distinct phases to optimize progression, prevent plateaus, and avoid injuries.

A plateau is a period of stagnation despite consistent training. Identifying the cause is the key to breaking it.

The post-workout is the nutrition right after training to optimize recovery and growth. Protein, carbs, hydration.

The pre-workout is the meal or supplement taken before training to optimize performance. Energy, focus, and pump.

Progressive overload is the foundational principle of training: gradually increasing the demand on your muscles to keep gaining strength and size.

Protein is the essential macronutrient for building and repairing muscle. Discover your needs, the best sources and the optimal timing.

Protein powders are concentrated protein supplements. Practical for hitting daily protein needs.

A PR (Personal Record) is your best performance ever on a movement. The fundamental progress marker.

The Push/Pull/Legs program divides the workout into 3 types of sessions: push (chests/shoulders/triceps), pull (back/biceps) and legs. Optimal for all levels with frequency 2x/week per muscle.

Range of motion (ROM) is the amplitude through which a joint or muscle can move during an exercise. Crucial for hypertrophy and joint health.

A rep is one complete execution of an exercise. The rep range determines whether you primarily develop strength, hypertrophy, or muscular endurance.

Rest between sets is critical and depends on the goal. Strength: 3-5 min. Hypertrophy: 1-3 min. Endurance: 30-60 sec.

Rest-pause is an intensification method using ultra-short pauses to extend a set. Powerful tool for hypertrophy.

RIR (Reps in Reserve) measures how many reps you have left before failure. Modern, intuitive tool to manage intensity.

RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) is a 1-10 scale to measure subjective effort. Essential tool for managing intensity.

The sarcomere is the basic contractile unit of muscle. Composed of actin and myosin, it produces all your movements.

A series (or set) is a group of consecutive reps without rest. The basic unit of training programming.

Sleep is the most underrated training variable. It's during sleep that recovery, muscle building, and hormonal regulation happen.

A split workout involves dividing muscle groups over different days. The classic split trains each muscle once a week for 5-6 days.

Strength training aims to develop maximal strength using heavy loads (80-95% of 1RM) with few repetitions (1-6 reps).

Stretching improves flexibility and range of motion. Learn about the different types and how to effectively incorporate them into your routine.

A superset chains two exercises with no rest between them. Time-efficient method that boosts intensity and density.

Tabata is a 4-minute HIIT protocol: 20 seconds max effort, 10 seconds rest, 8 rounds. Maximum efficiency in minimum time.

TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) represents your total daily energy expenditure. Find out how to calculate it precisely to optimize your results.

Tempo is the controlled speed of each phase of a movement. Powerful tool to maximize stimulus and control.

Training density measures the amount of work done per unit of time. Increase it to boost intensity and metabolic stress.

Training frequency defines how many times per week you work a muscle. Discover the optimal frequency to progress.

Bodybuilding intensity measures the difficulty of the effort. Find out how to calculate it with % of 1RM, RPE, and RIR.

Training volume represents the total amount of work performed. Discover the optimal volumes per muscle per week to progress.

TUT (Time Under Tension) measures the total time the muscle is under load during a set. Key variable for hypertrophy.

Type II fibers (fast-twitch) are powerful muscle fibers optimized for explosive efforts. Essential for strength and power.

Type I fibers (slow-twitch) are endurance-oriented muscle fibers. Resistant to fatigue, they sustain prolonged efforts.

The Upper/Lower program divides training into upper body and lower body sessions over 4 days per week. Perfect balance between frequency (2x/week) and volume for all levels.

VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise. It's the gold standard of cardiovascular fitness.