Important Terms for Personal Trainers

Hi, and welcome to this review video for important terms every personal trainer should know!

Important Terms:

Dynamic Constant External Resistance: When a mass is moved against the force of gravity.

Passive Stretching: Stretching that is done with the help of a partner. The partner provides the stimulus for the stretch.

Periodization: A system of changing training variables to increase performance.

Progressive Overload: The method of increasing the stress created by a resistance training program in order to continually build muscle and increase strength. Stress can be increased through greater resistance, more repetitions, or slower movements.

Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation: A specific stretching technique that involves contracting the muscle and then engaging it in a passive stretch.

Functional Biomechanics: Biomechanics is the field of study that examines the physics of the forces that act internally and externally upon the human body. Important elements of biomechanics include joint motion, the movement of muscles, force, and leverage, among other concepts. It is often considered the quantitative evaluation of what happens within the Kinetic Chain.

Kinetic Chain: The kinetic chain refers to the system of bones, joints, and muscles connected through the nervous system that allows the human body to move. The health and stability of the kinetic chain directly correlate to the “alignment” and functionality of every part in the chain.

Muscle Imbalance: Muscle imbalance is unhealthy lengthening or shortening of a muscle around a joint, which causes improper movement. This can be the result of any disruption of the kinetic chain, such as an improper length-tension relationship or force-couple relationship. When there is a muscle imbalance, instead of muscles working together synergistically as they are designed to, a muscle, or group of muscles, works harder than it should, resulting in overactivity or tightness, while another muscle or muscle group works less than it should, resulting in it being underactive or weak. Causes can include poor posture, stress, repetitive motions, etc.

Planes of motion:

Sagittal is an imaginary line that creates a left and right half of the body.
Frontal is an imaginary line that divides the body into front and back halves and you have the frontal plane.
Transverse is the transverse plane, which divides the body into top and bottom halves.

Thanks for watching this video on key terms that every personal trainer should know!