conditioning

Definition

The process of training your mind or body to respond a certain way through repeated exposure—Pavlov's dogs knew this instinctively, and now your fitness instructor won't shut up about it. It's behavioral modification wearing a gym membership.

Example Usage

The athlete underwent intensive conditioning to build explosive power for the upcoming season.

Source: Psychology and sports science terminology

Related Terms

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supinated grip

A hand position where palms face toward the body, also called an underhand grip. The grip that makes curls more comfortable and pull-ups slightly less soul-crushing.

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the sled

A weighted training implement pushed or pulled across the ground, beloved by strength coaches for building power and conditioning while destroying athletes' will to live. Also known as a prowler, which is appropriately named given how it stalks your nightmares.

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smoke show

An athlete who looks incredibly fit and impressive but whose performance doesn't match their aesthetic. All show, minimal go—the Instagram model of athletic performance.

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composition

In fitness circles, this refers to the ratio of fat, muscle, bone, and water in your body—basically your body's ingredient list. It's what trainers obsess over instead of just looking at the scale, because apparently weighing 150 pounds of muscle is vastly superior to weighing 150 pounds of anything else. The buzzword that launched a thousand DEXA scans.

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the grind

The unglamorous daily repetition of training—showing up when motivation is dead, doing the work nobody sees, and trusting the process when results aren't visible. Where champions are actually made.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

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bodybuilding

A competitive sport where the goal is to sculpt your muscles into such cartoonish proportions that you need to turn sideways to fit through doorways. Participants spend years eating chicken breast and lifting heavy things repeatedly, all to be judged on whose muscles look the most aesthetically pleasing while slathered in bronzer. It's basically professional muscle modeling with a side of extreme dedication.

⚽ Sports / Fitness

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