Running Terminology for Beginners: A Glossary Guide & Running Socks to Match

The running scene can be uniquely intimidating. People may say it’s as simple as grab your best running shoes and get out the door, but I’d argue that’s an oversimplification. Because while running is simple, it’s certainly not easy. And anyway, that summary is missing a few key details… like the difference between a WU, CD, and LSD... and how to choose running socks for each of those.

My name is Carol, and I’m on our Marketing team here at Darn Tough. I’ve been a runner since, well, birth. With one crazy fast hospital visit, my mom likes to joke I came out of the womb running and haven’t stopped since.

Common runner lingo can be confusing. If you’re new to running, it can help to feel “in the know” before hitting the pavement. Because yeah, rabbits are small, fuzzy mammals, but they’re also some pretty darn fast runners… more on that in a minute.

That’s why I’m here to give you an ultimate glossary guide to running terminology and the best running socks to pair with any effort.

Training Terms: From Fartleks to Yasso 8’s

Whether you’re training for a specific race or just getting started in your running journey, these are some of the training-related terms you’re likely to hear as you get going.

• Zone 2: This is a low-intensity aerobic running effort, in which your heart rate should stay in its Zone 2 range (roughly 60% of maximum capacity); AKA conversation pace. Zone 2 training is intended to build an aerobic base.
• LSD: Probably not what you’re thinking... LSD stands for “Long, Slow Distance” in the running community and serves as another way to build an aerobic base.
• Warm Up (WU): Before a hard effort like a race, runners will jog at an easy pace for a relatively short duration to warm up their muscles before running fast.
• Cool Down (CD): After a hard effort like a workout or race, runners will jog at an easy recovery pace for a relatively short duration to release lactic acid buildup from the effort.
• Strides: Strides are short accelerations, or “pick-ups” that last about 20-30 seconds. They usually build from a slow jog to 85-90% of your maximum effort before slowing down again. They are intended to practice running form while running at speed.
• Hill Repeats: A running workout in which you run hard up a hill for a set distance or time and jog or walk back down in between reps to recover.
• Threshold: A running workout in which you run at a comfortably hard pace (generally a 7/10 effort) for a set amount of time or distance.
• Fartlek: A Swedish word for “speed play,” a fartlek is a running workout in which you alternate between fast speed efforts and slow recovery efforts for a set amount of time or distance.

• Yasso 800s: Bear with me, because this one gets niche… Yasso 800s is an infamous running workout invented by Bart Yasso, a writer for Runner’s World. Originally intended for marathon training, the workout consists of running 800m (two laps around a standard outdoor track), taking rest time equal to the time it took you to run the effort, and repeating up to approximately 10 times. For example, this workout might look like running 10x800 in 3:00, with 3:00 rest between each effort. The original theory behind this workout posits that the average time it takes you to run the reps predicts how fast you could run a marathon. In the example above, our runner could therefore theoretically run a 3-hour marathon. While the running community is split on the accuracy of using Yasso 800s as a race predictor, it remains a classic workout.

How to Match Your Training Socks to Your Effort

With all these different kinds of training runs, it may feel daunting to find the proper running sock to match each effort. Don’t stress, I’ve got you covered with some basic tips to get you out the door:

• For your easy training runs: Aim for a chill, every day running sock with underfoot cushion for added support as you crank out your daily miles. My pick? The No Show Tab cushioned run sock.
• For your long, hard efforts and multi-rep workouts: People say running is an 80% mental for a reason… For your toughest workout days, I suggest picking a running sock that makes you feel fast. My pick? The Pacer Micro Crew cushioned run sock.
• For your short, speed efforts: Best way to feel like you’re floating on air during your speed workouts? Go for the lightest sock you can find. My pick? The No Show Tab no cushion run sock.

Racing Terms: Going to the Well & Trying Not to Bonk

On race day, routine matters.

Runners are often superstitious; lacing your shoes in a certain way, wearing a specific hairdo, or having your favorite pair of lucky running socks, for example, could be the difference between a PR and a DNF (more about those acronyms soon…).

• Going to the well: Digging deep and pushing to total exhaustion by draining the last energy from your metaphorical “well” at the end of a hard race.
• Bonk: Running out of energy during a hard effort. Generally, this is a sign of not having enough consumed enough carbohydrates before or during your race.
• Taper: In the period before a major race, runners will decrease the volume and intensity of training to ensure they show up ready to rip (the run, not their socks) on race day.
• Rabbit: AKA a pacer, this is a designated runner who leads racers through the beginning portion of a race to ensure they are on track for a set goal pace, and then drops out.
• Splits: This is the time it takes you to complete one specific portion of your race distance. For example, in a marathon, splits are often given every mile, every 5k, or both! This helps runners ensure they remain on track for their goal pace.

Runners are, apparently, big fans of acronyms. Let’s dive into a few more you might hear out there on race day:

• PR/PB: Personal Record/Personal Best—AKA running a specific distance in the fastest time you have so far in your whole life. And if it’s not the fastest race of your whole life, but it is the fastest of the season, that’s still worth celebrating! Runners have an acronym for that too: SB, or Seasons Best.
• DNS/DNF: Did Not Start/Did Not Finish—Darn It. S*** happens. Running is tough. Sometimes your training or race doesn’t go according to plan, and you have to pull out before you toe the line or before you reach the finish. It’s all good, you’ll get ’em next time.
• CR: Course Record or Current Record—Refers to the fastest known time someone has run on a specific race course. Course records are achieved during organized races and are verified by race directors or timing companies
• FKT: Fastest Known Time—Generally an independent effort to cover a specific route or trail in the wilderness in the fastest known time. FKTs can be supported, self-supported, or unsupported efforts, and most often refer to endurance-based efforts in trail running.

Race Day Running Socks: The Lucky Pick

That PR doesn’t always come easy, but having the right socks on race day can take you one step closer. Literally. Here are a couple things to consider when choosing your lucky race day socks:

• Cushion or No Cushion? Cushion is generally preferable for longer race distances, but “long race” can mean different things to different people. Runners might spend some time during training deciding what their distance threshold is for wanting cushion on race day.
• Height? Consider what kind of terrain you’ll be covering on race day. Taller socks are generally preferable for debris protection (or to show off those fun designs…).
• Ultra-lightweight or lightweight? Ultra-lightweight and lightweight wool running socks will both be able to manage moisture while still maintaining airflow. Runners who like a truly barely-there feel, or run extra hot, might prefer ultra-lightweight to lightweight.

There’s no right or wrong answer here. As long as your socks are Merino Wool, they’re going to be temperature regulating, moisture wicking, and stink resistant. Pick the sock that makes you feel the best.

Diving In: Disciplines Within Running & the Best Running Socks for Each

Track and Field

Let’s start with the basics.

What is a track? A standard outdoor track is an oval-shaped course for racing that is 400 meters long. It is made of synthetic rubber materials and is most often 8 lanes wide (though 6 and 9 lane tracks are also common). And what races are run on a track? The answer? A lot…

• Sprints: Generally includes the 100m, 200m, and 400m track race distances. Sprint races focus on power and speed. Mid-Distance: Generally includes the 400m, 800m, and 1500m/1600m/mile track race distances. Mid-distance races focus on combining power, speed, and endurance.
• Long-Distance: Generally includes the 1500m/1600m/mile, 3200m/2 mile, 5k, and 10k track race distances. Long distance races focus on endurance.
• Field: I’d be remiss not to mention track’s lesser known (but equally important) counterpart, field. Field includes all jumping and throwing events. Track and field are often referred to together as one entity with the acronym, T&F.

Track and Field Running Socks

Racing on the track generally requires wearing “spikes.” Spikes are specialized race shoes with sharp metal pins on the sole for added traction and speed on race day.

Some folks will try to argue that you shouldn’t wear socks at all with your spikes... I’m here to tell you there’s no need to tough out those nasty race day heel blisters; just get yourself a pair of Darn Tough running socks to prevent blisters altogether.

My pick? The Relay Micro Crew. Packed with colorful racing stripes, the Relay is a sure way to feel fast lapping around the track. These ultra-lightweight, no-cushion performance socks provide a next-to-skin, supportive fit ideal for race day. And at a Micro Crew height, you can kiss race day blisters goodbye.

Road Running

Road running generally gravitates towards the longer distances but is also the most accessible option for most city dwellers and is a great path toward starting your running journey.

Common road race distances include 5ks, 10ks, half marathons, and the coveted 26.2 (marathon). While the roads are generally known for longer, more endurance-based distances, mile road races are also common.

• Pounding pavement: Another way to refer to road running, pounding pavement means running on hard surfaces like concrete sidewalks or paved asphalt roads.
• The marathon (26.2): Originating in Ancient Greece and sitting at 26.2 miles, the marathon is now the road’s most notorious race distance. It’s also the bumper sticker we all know and respect (or fear).
• OTQ: Olympic Trials Qualifier—Generally, this is used in reference to marathons specifically. It means you have run a marathon time fast enough to qualify to compete in the US Olympic Team Trials for the Marathon. The qualifying standard changes annually.
• BQ: Boston Qualifier—The Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annually contested marathon (started in 1897), making it an extremely coveted race in the running community. As such, it’s no wonder that the race gets its own qualifying standard. Like an OTQ, a BQ means you have run a marathon time fast enough to qualify to compete in the Boston Marathon. The qualifying standard changes annually.

Road Running Socks

Road runners are going to want a sock that can support them, as they run on harder surfaces more regularly.

My pick? The Quarter Cushioned run sock. Sitting at a 1/4 height just above your running shoes, there’s no terrain this sock can’t handle. Cushioning underfoot and up the Achilles will be ideal for lasting rebound on your hard surface road runs.

Trail Running

Trail running is all about the views…and the climbs. Trail running is any running done “off-road” on dirt, grass, or trails. It often includes technical features like rocks, roots, and tricky descents.

That all might sound scary, but I promise, it’s not. Trail running doesn’t judge—walk the uphill, stop for snacks, take in the views. Trail running is more about the journey.

There is a lot of distance variety within the trail running discipline races, namely because of the “vert factor.” Often, trail races specifically are referred to by their distance in kilometers.

• Vert: The elevation gain, or total amount of uphill climbing, logged during a run on the trails. This can vary vastly between efforts, but trail runs generally have more vert than track or road runs.
• Cross Country: Commonly known by the acronym XC, and infamous because of the old t-shirts that say, “my sport is your sports punishment.” XC generally includes 4k, 5k, 6k, 8k, or 10k race distances, and is run on grass, trails, and gravel.
• Sub-Ultra: In trail running, these “half-marathon distances” generally refer to races anywhere from 15K-30Ks. Ultra: Short for Ultra-marathon, this is any distance longer than your traditional road 26.2.
• Backyard Ultra: This is a specific style of ultra-marathon in which runners repeatedly complete a loop of 4.167 miles, every hour, on the hour. Why 4.167 miles exactly? Because 24 loops will get you to 100 miles, even. Now that’s tough.

Trail Running Socks

When trail running, you want a sock that offers more debris protection higher up the leg. This is where our Micro Crew height comes in. Trail running also has more varied terrain. This means that cushioned running socks are going to be paramount.

My pick? The Element Micro Crew. The varsity all-pro of socks, these micro crew legends will keep you moving with cushioned support across roots, rocks, and anything else you may encounter in the woods… these socks give you ultra-marathon durability that won’t quit even when you want to.

It’s Just One Foot in Front of the Other. Right?

Like I said at the start, while running is simple, it certainly isn’t easy. Knowing what you’re getting yourself into can help with the fear that often accompanies being “new”—in sports or in life.

All these definitions should tell you two things about runners:

1. We’re all a little crazy. It’s more fun that way. And,
2. The right running sock makes any running discipline or effort feel just a little bit easier.

I hope you learned a new phrase or two. Now it’s time to get out there and run, however you run.

About the Author

Carol is the Jr. Social & Content Specialist at Darn Tough Vermont. She ran on the Division 1 Cross Country and Track and Field teams at the University of Vermont, specializing in the 800m race. When she isn’t responding to your DMs, you can find her out on a run, ride, or hanging with her two cats, Ash and Ember.