Ballet — Glossary

Every Ballet term explained in plain language: technique, equipment, rules and slang – with tips on avoiding the classic mistakes.

Cuban Motion (Movement): The circling hip action of Latin dance. It doesn't come from swinging the hip, but from alternately bending and straightening the knees – the hip merely follows.
Cypher (Slang): The circle that forms when breakers come together: one person goes to the middle, dances a round, steps back. Practice room, stage and battle in one.
Hoofer (Slang): An insider word for tap dancers in the rhythm tap tradition: close-to-the-floor footwork, sound over looks, improvisation as the default. Closely tied to Harlem's Hoofers' Club.
Isolation (Movement): One body part moves while the rest deliberately stays still – head to the side without the shoulders coming along. That separation is where sharp hits come from.
Pointe Shoe (Equipment): The reinforced ballet shoe, built from a stiffened toe box and a supporting shank. It gets fitted rather than simply bought – and only after you pass the readiness check.
Rise & Fall (Movement): The controlled rise and lowering of the body through ankle, knee and ball of the foot. Four of the five standard dances live on it — only the tango deliberately stays flat.
Shuffle (Movement): Tap dance's basic building block: a brush forward plus a brush back in one motion — two audibly separate tones, with no weight on that foot. Brush plus step with full weight would be a flap.
Spotting (Cheat code): Your head stays on a point at eye level while the body already turns, then snaps around to find it again. It curbs dizziness and centres the turn.
Topline (ballroom frame) (Movement): The upper line of head, neck and shoulders sitting on top of the frame. Its tension comes from the upper back, never from the hands — it is the channel every lead travels through.
Turnout (Movement): The outward rotation of the legs. On average about 60 percent comes from hip external rotation, with only 20 to 30 percent contributed by the ankle.

General

Terms from training theory that apply in every sport.

1RM (One-Repetition Maximum) (Rule): The maximum weight you can move for exactly one clean repetition. The reference value behind almost every training plan.
BMR & TDEE (Rule): BMR is your basal metabolic rate at complete rest; TDEE is total daily expenditure including everyday movement and training. Nutrition targets always work off TDEE.
Cadence (Movement): Steps per minute when running, or pedal revolutions when cycling. For most runners, 170–180 steps per minute sits in the sweet spot.
Core Tension (Movement): Active stabilisation of abdomen, back and pelvis — the bridge that lets force travel between legs and arms at all.
Deload (Cheat code): A deliberately lighter week with volume or intensity clearly reduced, so adaptation can catch up.
DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) (Cheat code): Delayed muscle soreness 12–72 hours after unfamiliar load. Not a measure of training quality.
Knee Valgus (Movement): The knees collapsing inward during squats, jumps and landings. One of the key risk markers in technique analysis.
Progressive Overload (Cheat code): The one principle no training works without long-term: the stimulus has to grow over time, otherwise adaptation stops.
RIR (Reps in Reserve) (Rule): How many clean reps you had left at the end of a set. RIR 2 means two more were available.
RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) (Rule): A scale for perceived effort. In strength training it usually runs 1–10, where RPE 8 means you had two more reps in the tank.
Zone 2 (Aerobic Base) (Cheat code): The easy endurance zone where you can still hold a conversation in full sentences. The base of almost every endurance plan.