Aerobic Exercise Glossary of Terms

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Abdominal: Relating to the abdomen, the belly, that part of the body that contains all of ...

Aerobic: Oxygen-requiring. Aerobic bacteria need oxygen to grow. Aerobic exercise requires...

Aerobic exercise: Brisk exercise that promotes the circulation of oxygen through the blood...

Anaerobic: Not requiring oxygen. Anaerobic bacteria, for example, do not require oxygen to...

Ankle: The ankle joint is complex. It is made up of two joints: the true ankle joint and ...

Arms: An appendage in anatomy and in clinical trials. See: Arm.

Arthritis: Inflammation of a joint. When joints are inflamed they can develop stiffness, w...

Baseline: Information or data gathered at the beginning of a period from which variations ...

Blood pressure: The blood pressure is the pressure of the blood within the arteries. It is...

Bone density: Bone density is the amount of bone tissue in a certain volume of bone. It ca...

Breathing: The process of respiration, during which air is inhaled into the lungs through ...

Calorie: A unit of food energy. The word calorie is ordinarily used instead of the more pr...

Carbohydrate: One of the three nutrient compounds, along with fat and protein, used as ene...

Cardiovascular: Relating to the circulatory system, which comprises the heart and blood ve...

CDC: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the US agency charged with tracking a...

Chest: The area of the body located between the neck and the abdomen. The chest contains t...

Cholesterol: The most common type of steroid in the body. Cholesterol has a reputation for...

Chronic: In medicine, lasting a long time. A chronic condition is one that lasts 3 months ...

Circulatory: Having to do with circulation, the movement of fluid in a regular or circuito...

Circulatory system: The system that moves blood throughout the body. The circulatory syste...

Claudication: Limping. From the Latin claudicare, which means 'to limp.' The Roman emperor...

Colon: The long, coiled, tubelike organ that removes water from digested food. The remaini...

Depression: An illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts and that affects the way...

Diabetes: Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus. Diabetes mell...

Dizziness: Painless head discomfort with many possible causes including disturbances of ...

Edema: The swelling of soft tissues as a result of excess fluid accumulation. Edema is oft...

Father: (1) The male parent. (2) One who originates. For example, "Wilhelm Roentgen is con...

Fatigue: A condition characterized by a lessened capacity for work and reduced efficiency ...

Glucose: The simple sugar that is the chief source of energy. Glucose is found in the bloo...

HDL: High density lipoprotein.

HDL cholesterol: High density lipoprotein cholesterol. Lipoproteins, which are combination...

Heart: The muscle that pumps blood received from veins into arteries throughout the body. ...

Heart attack: The death of heart muscle due to the loss of blood supply. The loss of bloo...

Heart disease: Any disorder that affects the heart. Sometimes the term "heart disease" is ...

Heart murmur: An unusual, 'whooshing' heart sound that may be innocent or may reflect dise...

Heart rate: The number of heartbeats per unit of time, usually per minute. The heart rate ...

High blood pressure: A repeatedly elevated blood pressure exceeding 140 over 90 mmHg. Chro...

Insulin: A natural hormone made by the pancreas that controls the level of the sugar gluco...

Insulin resistance: The diminished ability of cells to respond to the action of insulin in...

Intermittent claudication: An aching, crampy, tired, and sometimes burning pain in the leg...

Ischemia: Inadequate blood supply to a local area due to blockage of blood vessels leading...

Jaw: The movable junction of the bones below the mouth (the mandible) and the bone just ab...

Laboratory: A place for doing tests and research procedures, and for preparing chemicals a...

Lungs: The lungs are a pair of breathing organs located with the chest which remove carbon...

Metabolic: Relating to metabolism, the whole range of biochemical processes that occur wit...

Murmur: A sound due to vibrations from the flow of blood through the heart or great vessel...

Muscle: Muscle is the tissue of the body which primarily functions as a source of power. T...

Neck: The part of the body joining the head to the shoulders. Also, any narrow or constric...

NIH: National Institutes of Health.

Obesity: The state of being well above one's normal weight.

Objective: In a microscope, the objective (also called the objective lens) is the lens nea...

Oxygen: The odorless gas that is present in the air and necessary to maintain life. Oxygen...

Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pa...

Palpitations: Unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. In ...

Posture: The carriage of the body as a whole, the attitude of the body, or the position of...

Probability: The likelihood that something will happen. For example, a probability of less...

Psychotherapy: The treatment of a behavior disorders, mental illness, or any other conditi...

Pulmonary: Having to do with the lungs.

Resistance: Opposition to something, or the ability to withstand something. For example, s...

Shortness of breath: Difficulty in breathing. Medically referred to as dyspnea. Shortness ...

Stress: In a medical or biological context stress is a physical, mental, or emotional fact...

Surgeon: A physician who treats disease, injury, or deformity via operative or manual meth...

Surgeon General: In the United States, the chief medical officer of the U.S. Public Health...

Treadmill: A machine with a moving strip on which one walks without moving forward. A trea...

Triglycerides: The major form of fat stored by the body. A triglyceride consists of three ...

Weight loss: Weight loss is a decrease in body weight resulting from either voluntary (die...