Sets, reps and rest: the vocabulary of a gym programme

Plain definitions of the terms printed on every routine, so a written programme reads like instructions instead of code.

Open any gym routine and you meet a line such as "Bench press 3 x 8, rest 2 min". To someone new it looks like shorthand from another trade. It is, and it only takes a few minutes to learn. This page explains the words so that any programme, from an app or a coach or a friend, becomes readable.

Repetition

A repetition, or rep, is one complete movement of an exercise: lowering into a squat and standing back up is one rep. A rep has a start position, a finish position and a path between them. A programme assumes each rep covers the same range of motion. Cutting the range short to finish the count changes the exercise, even if the number in your log looks the same.

Set

A set is a group of repetitions performed without stopping. "3 x 8" means three sets of eight reps. Convention in most English-language programmes puts sets first and reps second, but not every author follows it, so check for a key. If a routine says "8 x 3" and you are unsure, ask or look for an explanation before loading the bar.

Rest

Rest is the pause between sets. It exists so that the next set can be done properly. Programmes give different rest lengths for different goals, and the right figure depends on the exercise and the person. What matters for logging is consistency: if you rest for very different lengths from week to week, two sessions with the same numbers are not really the same session.

Load and intensity

Load is the weight you move. Intensity, in strength training, usually describes how heavy that load is relative to what you could lift once. That single maximum lift is called the one-repetition maximum, the greatest weight a person can lift for one repetition of a given exercise. Many programmes express loads as a percentage of it. Beginners do not need to test a true maximum; a coach can estimate one from lighter sets, and many routines avoid percentages entirely.

Volume

Volume is the amount of work done. People count it in different ways: total sets per muscle group per week, or sets multiplied by reps multiplied by load. Neither is the single correct method. Pick one, keep to it, and you can compare one month with the next.

Warm-up sets and working sets

Warming up prepares the body for the heavier work to come. In a routine, warm-up sets use lighter loads and are not usually counted in the "3 x 8". The counted sets are the working sets. In your log, mark which is which, or simply record only the working sets.

Reading a full line

Put together, "Bench press 3 x 8, rest 2 min" says: after warming up, perform eight repetitions of the bench press, rest two minutes, and repeat until three sets are done. (The numbers are an illustration of the notation, not a prescription.) Once you can read that sentence, every routine is the same sentence with different words in the slots.

Technique matters more than vocabulary. If you are new to lifting, have a qualified instructor check your form on the main movements.

By Tessa Hallgren · Logged 2026-11-12