Common Running Acronyms
PB: Personal Best.
DNS: Did Not Start.
DNF: Did Not Finish.
NR: National Record.
WR: World Record.
GPS: Running watches / Apps with a tracking function track your distance with a high degree of accuracy.
LSD: Long Slow Distance.
BPM: Beats Per Minute.
ITB: Iliotibial band syndrome. A painful injury which runs from the hip, down the thigh, across the knee, and through the shin.
BQ: Boston Qualifier. Runners trying to achieve a finish time that gets them entry into the Boston Marathon.
MUT: Mountain. Ultra. Trail.
Common Running Terms
Fartlek: A speed workout in which you add short, variable speed burst.
Pronation: The way the foot strikes the ground while running. If a runner is an overpronator, their foot rolls inward. If a runner has excessive wear on the outside of their running shoes, they are likely to be an underpronator.
Chafing: Rubbing cause painful skin un-comfort in areas such as inner thighs and armpits.
Drafting: A race strategy where you run behind another runner. As they block the wind and you cruise through the kilometres.
Hitting the Wall: Also known as “bonking” during a race. A sudden loss of energy.
Taper: Weeks before a big race, a runner will decrease their total running mileage to store energy.
Runner’s High: A term given to the feeling of euphoria that is induced by running.
Carbo Loading: Consuming pasta and bread prior to a big race.
Minimalise: Lower, lighter running shoes as compared to cushioned and highly heeled models.
Plantar fasciitis: A common runner’s medical condition. Pain and stiffness in the heel.
VO2 Max: A runner aerobic capacity. A runner’s maximum oxygen intake.
Negative Splits: A runner runs the second half faster than the first.
Aerobic Exercise: Long in duration but low in intensity.
Anaerobic Exercise: Short in duration but high in intensity.
Tempo Run: Holding a hard pace for twenty minutes period during a run.
