Say any of these top 10 funny runner terms in public, and you'll surely get a stare from non-runners.
#10: PR
1 of 11
noun
1. shorthand for personal record
2. the fastest time for a race that a runner has ever run in his or her life
3. a cause for celebration
Find a
Race#9: Hammer
2 of 11
verb
1. to run hard near the end of a race or workout
2. to muster a surge or hard effort during a race or workout
3. to drive a nail or bolt into a solid object
Find a
Race#8: Balls to the Wall
3 of 11
adjective
1. a term to describe the act of running 'all-out'
2. to throw caution to the wind and run your heart out
3. to run so hard that your crown jewels metaphorically break away from your body
Find a
Race#7: Hit the Wall
4 of 11
verb
1. the point in a long-distance race, like a marathon, when a runner's blood glucose drops significantly and he or she runs out of muscle glycogen
2. the point in a marathon when a runner begins to feel sluggish and fatigued
3. the point in a marathon when a runner feels like calling for a taxi to the finish line
Find a
Race#6: VO2max
5 of 11
noun
1. the maximum volume of oxygen a runner's body consumes per minute
2. the fastest rate at which a runner's body consumes oxygen
3. the size of a runner's aerobic engine
Find a
Race#5: Trackster
6 of 11
noun
1. someone who runs a lot on the track
2. a fan of track and field
3. the track equivalent of a Star Wars "Trekkie"
Find a
Race#4: LSD
7 of 11
noun
1. shorthand for "long, slow distance"
2. an easy, slow long-distance run
3. an illegal drug that causes runners to see and hear things that do not really exist when they run very long distances
Find a
Race#3: Singlet
8 of 11
noun
1. a piece of clothing that runners wear, akin to a tank top, to run a race
2. a skimpy upper body garment worn to run that is so revealing it shows just how skinny runners can be
Find a
Race#2: Snot Rocket
9 of 11
noun
1. the stuff that shoots out of a runner's nose when blown during a run
2. the "unknown substance" that flies through the air from another runner and lands on you while you're running
Find a
RaceAnd the #1 funny runner term... Fartlek
10 of 11
noun
1. a Swedish term meaning speed play
2. continuous runs during which runners pick up the pace at different times, when they reach specific landmarks, or simply based on how they feel, with distances, speeds and recovery periods varied within the same workout
3. the funny-sounding word that makes high school runners giggle on the first day of cross country practice
Find a
Race
Get ACTIVE on the Go
Couch to 5K®
The best way to get new runners off the couch and across the finish line of their first 5K.
Available for iOS | Android
Discuss This Article