Exercise Science and Kinesiology Vocabulary

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, definitions, formulas, and concepts from exercise science, measurement of human movement, exercise training principles, bioenergetics, and skeletal muscle physiology.

Physical Activity

Any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscle contraction with an increase in energy expenditure.

Exercise

A type of physical activity that is planned, structured, repetitive, and purposeful, and aims to impact physical fitness.

Physical Fitness

A set of attributes that people have or achieve that relates to the ability to perform physical activity.

Sedentary Behavior

Any waking behavior characterized by a low level of energy expenditure ($<1.5\,\text{METs}$) while sitting, reclining, or lying, excluding sleeping.

Insufficiently Active

Engaging in some moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity, but not enough to meet current recommendations for US adults.

Musculoskeletal Injury (MSI)

The most common exercise-related complication, often associated with exercise intensity, nature of the activity, preexisting conditions, and musculoskeletal anomalies.

Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD)

A severe exercise-related cardiovascular complication associated with vigorous-intensity activity, occurring far less commonly than musculoskeletal injury.

Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI)

A severe exercise-related cardiovascular event whose risk during or immediately following vigorous exercise is $50$ times higher for habitually sedentary individuals compared to those exercising vigorously for $60\,\text{min}$ on $>5\,\text{d/wk}$.

Work

The product of force and distance ($\text{Work} = \text{Force} \times \text{Distance}$), defined in SI units as joules ($\text{J}$) or newton-meters ($\text{N}\cdot\text{m}$).

Power

The amount of work accomplished per unit of time ($\text{Power} = \text{Work} / \text{Time}$), describing work rate or exercise intensity in watts ($\text{W}$) or joules per second ($\text{J/s}$).

Ergometry

The measurement of work output during exercise.

Ergometer

An apparatus or device used to measure a specific type of work.

Calorie

A unit of heat production defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of $1\,\text{g}$ of water by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$.

Kilocalorie (kcal)

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of $1\,\text{kg}$ of water by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$, equal to $4186\,\text{J}$.

Direct Calorimetry

The measurement of a person's metabolic rate via the direct measurement of heat production.

Indirect Calorimetry

The measurement of oxygen consumption ($\text{V}\dot{\text{O}}_2$) as an estimate of resting metabolic rate.

MET (Metabolic Equivalent)

A unit used to compare relative exercise intensity, where $1\,\text{MET}$ is taken to be $3.5\,\text{mL/kg/min O}_2$.

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)

The minimum energy requirement for living, measured at rest in a supine position, thermoneutral environment, after $8\,\text{h}$ of sleep and $12\,\text{h}$ of fasting.

Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR)

The rate of energy expenditure at rest under less stringent standardized conditions than BMR, typically ranging from $1,200\text{ to }2,400\,\text{kcal/day}$.

Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE)

The overall daily energy expenditure including normal daily activities, normally ranging from $1,800\text{ to }3,000\,\text{kcal/day}$ for average individuals and up to $10,000\,\text{kcal/day}$ for competitive athletes.

$$\text{V}\dot{\text{O}}_{2\text{max}}$$

Maximal oxygen uptake, representing the point at which oxygen consumption no longer increases with further increases in intensity; considered the best single measurement of aerobic fitness.

Cardiorespiratory Fitness

The ability of the circulatory and respiratory systems to supply oxygen to working muscles during sustained physical activity, enabling large-muscle whole-body exercise at moderate-to-vigorous intensity.

Muscular Strength

The ability of a muscle or muscle group to exert force, typically measured using a 1 repetition max (1RM).

Muscular Endurance

The ability of a muscle to develop or maintain repeated or sustained submaximal force contractions over time while resisting fatigue.

Flexibility

The range of motion possible at a joint, which is joint-specific and measured using a goniometer.

Body Composition

The relative amounts of fat mass versus fat-free (lean) mass in the body.

Agility

The ability to change the position of the body rapidly and accurately in space.

Speed

The ability to perform a movement within a short period of time.

Reaction Time

The amount of time between the stimulus for movement and the beginning of the movement.

Balance

The ability to maintain equilibrium while stationary or moving.

Coordination

The ability to perform complex movements smoothly and accurately.

Overload

Applying a training stimulus greater than what the body is accustomed to in order to stimulate physiological adaptation.

Adaptation

The process by which the body changes in response to repeated training stress, making the same workload easier over time.

Progression

The purposeful, gradual adjustment of the exercise prescription (increasing frequency, intensity, time, or volume) as fitness improves.

SAID Principle

Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands; the principle stating that the body adapts specifically to the exact stresses placed upon it.

Recovery

The period of rest supporting energy replenishment, tissue repair, nervous-system recovery, and adaptation following training stress.

Overreaching

Short-term fatigue and performance decline occurring after heavy training that can resolve with adequate recovery.

Overtraining Syndrome

A prolonged maladaptive state involving persistent performance decline, disturbed sleep, mood changes, and broader physiological symptoms.

Detraining

The decline or reversal of training adaptations (reversibility) that occurs when the training stimulus is significantly reduced or stopped.

FITT-VP Principle

A framework for developing and progressing an exercise prescription encompassing Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type, Volume, and Progression.

Bioenergetics

The cellular metabolic pathways that convert foodstuffs (carbohydrates, fats, proteins) into biologically usable energy ($\text{ATP}$).

Endergonic Reactions

Chemical reactions that require energy to be added before the reaction will proceed.

Exergonic Reactions

Chemical reactions that give off energy as a result of chemical processes.

Metabolism

The sum total of all cellular chemical reactions (anabolic and catabolic) occurring inside the body daily.

Anabolism

Chemical pathways involving the synthesis of larger molecules from smaller ones, usually requiring energy input.

Catabolism

Chemical pathways involving the breakdown of larger molecules into smaller ones, usually releasing energy.

Enzymes

Specialized proteins that regulate the rate of cellular metabolic pathways by lowering activation energy without directly causing reactions to occur.

Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP)

The primary and immediate source of energy for muscle contraction and cellular work, composed of adenine, ribose, and three linked phosphates.

Glucose

The circulating form of carbohydrate (blood sugar) with chemical formula $\text{C}_6\text{H}_{12}\text{O}_6$, yielding $4.1\,\text{kcal/g}$.

Glycogen

The stored form of carbohydrate formed by linking glucose molecules together, stored in muscle fibers and the liver.

ATP-PCr System

An immediate anaerobic metabolic pathway using stored $\text{ATP}$ and phosphocreatine breakdown to supply energy for $3\text{ to }15\,\text{seconds}$.

Glycolysis

An anaerobic metabolic pathway that breaks down glucose or glycogen for quick energy production lasting up to $2\,\text{minutes}$.

Oxidative Phosphorylation

An aerobic metabolic pathway involving the Krebs cycle and Electron Transport Chain to generate $\text{ATP}$ using oxygen for activity lasting $\ge 2\,\text{minutes}$.

Agonist

The primary mover muscle that contracts to provide the main force required for a desired movement.

Antagonist

The opposing muscle that relaxes or lengthens to allow the agonist muscle to contract.

Synergist

A muscle that assists the primary mover by providing additional force or stabilizing the joint during movement.

Sarcolemma

The cell membrane surrounding a muscle fiber.

Sarcomere

The smallest functional unit of skeletal muscle, located within myofibrils and composed of organized myofilaments.

Sliding Filament Mechanism (SFM)

The physiological mechanism of muscle contraction where cross-bridges form between myosin and actin, pulling actin toward the M-line to generate force.

Isometric Contraction

A muscle contraction in which force is generated with no visible change in joint angle or muscle length.

Isotonic Contraction

A muscle contraction where muscle length changes while producing force, categorized into concentric and eccentric contractions.

Concentric Contraction

A type of isotonic contraction in which the muscle actively shortens to cause movement.

Eccentric Contraction

A type of isotonic contraction in which the muscle actively lengthens to control or slow movement.

Type I Muscle Fibers

Slow-twitch, slow oxidative muscle fibers with high mitochondrial density and capillary density, reliant on aerobic metabolism and resistant to fatigue.

Type II Muscle Fibers

Fast-twitch muscle fibers with lower mitochondrial density, faster ATPase activity, and higher force production, relying primarily on anaerobic metabolism.

Neuromuscular Junction

The synaptic junction site between a motor neuron and a muscle cell across which chemical transmission occurs without physical contact.

Acetylcholine (ACh)

The neurotransmitter released at the neuromuscular junction that binds to the sarcolemma, causing depolarization and triggering calcium release to initiate muscle contraction.