The Fit-ish Global Decoder

Kenyanisms, Colombian Spanish and other expressions collected along the journey—with a little gym and swimming lingo thrown in.

From Kenya

From Kenya
Expression	Origin	Meaning	The Fit-ish interpretation
Wueh!	Kenyan expression	Shock, exhaustion or disbelief	The official sound of discovering muscles you didn't know existed.
Kwa ground, vitu ni different	Kiswahili/Sheng-English blend	Things are different in reality	It looked much easier on Instagram.
Nani kama mimi?	Kiswahili	Who else but me?	Apparently, I volunteered for Pilates.
Haiya, kwani?	Kenyan Kiswahili	Wait—what is happening?	Are you people seriously not planning to feed me?
Sijui	Kiswahili	I don't know	Lemon water, black coffee, sijui what other slim-girl nonsense.
Kama mbaya, mbaya	Kiswahili/Sheng usage	If it goes badly, let it go badly	We have already ordered dessert.
Cucu	Kikuyu	Grandmother	The woman you visit with nyama choma in hand and grandchildren in tow.
Nyama choma	Kiswahili	Roasted or grilled meat	A perfectly reasonable threat to any weight-loss plan.
Boda boda	East African expression	Motorcycle taxi	A fast-moving obstacle that does not necessarily respect your walking path.
Eish!	Southern African expression, also used in Kenya	Frustration, surprise or disbelief	Four workouts, thousands of steps—and the scale has absolutely nothing to say.
At our big age	Colloquial English, used in Kenya and beyond	At our age—usually said with humour about being old enough to know better	Old enough to need a warm-up. Apparently not old enough to stop volunteering for leg day.

Wueh!
Origin
Kenyan expression
Meaning
Shock, exhaustion or disbelief
The Fit-ish interpretation
The official sound of discovering muscles you didn't know existed.
Kwa ground, vitu ni different
Origin
Kiswahili/Sheng-English blend
Meaning
Things are different in reality
The Fit-ish interpretation
It looked much easier on Instagram.
Nani kama mimi?
Origin
Kiswahili
Meaning
Who else but me?
The Fit-ish interpretation
Apparently, I volunteered for Pilates.
Haiya, kwani?
Origin
Kenyan Kiswahili
Meaning
Wait—what is happening?
The Fit-ish interpretation
Are you people seriously not planning to feed me?
Sijui
Origin
Kiswahili
Meaning
I don't know
The Fit-ish interpretation
Lemon water, black coffee, sijui what other slim-girl nonsense.
Kama mbaya, mbaya
Origin
Kiswahili/Sheng usage
Meaning
If it goes badly, let it go badly
The Fit-ish interpretation
We have already ordered dessert.
Cucu
Origin
Kikuyu
Meaning
Grandmother
The Fit-ish interpretation
The woman you visit with nyama choma in hand and grandchildren in tow.
Nyama choma
Origin
Kiswahili
Meaning
Roasted or grilled meat
The Fit-ish interpretation
A perfectly reasonable threat to any weight-loss plan.
Boda boda
Origin
East African expression
Meaning
Motorcycle taxi
The Fit-ish interpretation
A fast-moving obstacle that does not necessarily respect your walking path.
Eish!
Origin
Southern African expression, also used in Kenya
Meaning
Frustration, surprise or disbelief
The Fit-ish interpretation
Four workouts, thousands of steps—and the scale has absolutely nothing to say.
At our big age
Origin
Colloquial English, used in Kenya and beyond
Meaning
At our age—usually said with humour about being old enough to know better
The Fit-ish interpretation
Old enough to need a warm-up. Apparently not old enough to stop volunteering for leg day.

From the Rest of the World

From the Rest of the World
Expression	Origin	Meaning	The Fit-ish interpretation
Abuela	Spanish	Grandmother	The lady enjoying the Ciclovía while you are still negotiating with your knees.
Panadería	Spanish	Bakery	The place you walk to for exercise—and return from carrying bread and sometimes cake.
Fruver	Colombian Spanish	A shop selling fresh fruit and vegetables	Where healthy intentions begin before the panadería interferes.
Ciclovía	Spanish; associated with Bogotá's Sunday tradition	Cycleway; in Bogotá, also the streets opened for walking, cycling, skating and recreation	Bogotá's weekly reminder that the entire city is fitter than you.
Vamos	Spanish	Let's go	What you tell yourself before discovering that your muscles have other plans.
Listo	Spanish	Ready; also used to mean "okay" or "done"	What you confidently say before the workout actually begins.
Qué pena	Spanish	What a shame; in Colombia, also commonly used when apologising	What you say after occupying a gym machine for slightly too long.
Rico/Rica	Spanish	Delicious, pleasant or enjoyable	Usually used to describe something that is not helping the diet.
Barre	French; adopted into fitness terminology	"Bar"—the ballet support rail; also a workout blending ballet-inspired movement with other exercises	In my head, I am a ballerina. In the mirror, I am negotiating with gravity.
Tumble turn	English swimming terminology	An underwater somersault at the pool wall to change direction	Some swimmers turn gracefully. I tap the wall and protect my street credibility.
Freestyle	English swimming terminology	Here, front crawl—the stroke I mostly swim	My chosen method of getting across the pool before my appetite gets across to the bakery.
Hand paddles	English swimming terminology	Devices worn on the hands to increase resistance against the water	A little assistance with speed. Absolutely no assistance with post-swim hunger.
Leg day	English gym terminology	A workout focused on the lower body	One hundred squats and lunges later, I finally understand what all the fuss was about.
Upper-body day	English gym terminology	A workout focused on areas such as the chest, back, shoulders and arms	Giving my legs a break while introducing the rest of me to the complaints department.
Adductor machine	Anatomical and gym terminology	A machine that works the inner thighs as you squeeze your legs together	Close your legs. Open negotiations with previously unknown muscles.
Abductor machine	Anatomical and gym terminology	A machine that works the outer hips as you push your legs apart	Not a typo. Not the same machine. Unfortunately, another opportunity to ache.

Abuela
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
Grandmother
The Fit-ish interpretation
The lady enjoying the Ciclovía while you are still negotiating with your knees.
Panadería
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
Bakery
The Fit-ish interpretation
The place you walk to for exercise—and return from carrying bread and sometimes cake.
Fruver
Origin
Colombian Spanish
Meaning
A shop selling fresh fruit and vegetables
The Fit-ish interpretation
Where healthy intentions begin before the panadería interferes.
Ciclovía
Origin
Spanish; associated with Bogotá's Sunday tradition
Meaning
Cycleway; in Bogotá, also the streets opened for walking, cycling, skating and recreation
The Fit-ish interpretation
Bogotá's weekly reminder that the entire city is fitter than you.
Vamos
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
Let's go
The Fit-ish interpretation
What you tell yourself before discovering that your muscles have other plans.
Listo
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
Ready; also used to mean "okay" or "done"
The Fit-ish interpretation
What you confidently say before the workout actually begins.
Qué pena
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
What a shame; in Colombia, also commonly used when apologising
The Fit-ish interpretation
What you say after occupying a gym machine for slightly too long.
Rico/Rica
Origin
Spanish
Meaning
Delicious, pleasant or enjoyable
The Fit-ish interpretation
Usually used to describe something that is not helping the diet.
Barre
Origin
French; adopted into fitness terminology
Meaning
"Bar"—the ballet support rail; also a workout blending ballet-inspired movement with other exercises
The Fit-ish interpretation
In my head, I am a ballerina. In the mirror, I am negotiating with gravity.
Tumble turn
Origin
English swimming terminology
Meaning
An underwater somersault at the pool wall to change direction
The Fit-ish interpretation
Some swimmers turn gracefully. I tap the wall and protect my street credibility.
Freestyle
Origin
English swimming terminology
Meaning
Here, front crawl—the stroke I mostly swim
The Fit-ish interpretation
My chosen method of getting across the pool before my appetite gets across to the bakery.
Hand paddles
Origin
English swimming terminology
Meaning
Devices worn on the hands to increase resistance against the water
The Fit-ish interpretation
A little assistance with speed. Absolutely no assistance with post-swim hunger.
Leg day
Origin
English gym terminology
Meaning
A workout focused on the lower body
The Fit-ish interpretation
One hundred squats and lunges later, I finally understand what all the fuss was about.
Upper-body day
Origin
English gym terminology
Meaning
A workout focused on areas such as the chest, back, shoulders and arms
The Fit-ish interpretation
Giving my legs a break while introducing the rest of me to the complaints department.
Adductor machine
Origin
Anatomical and gym terminology
Meaning
A machine that works the inner thighs as you squeeze your legs together
The Fit-ish interpretation
Close your legs. Open negotiations with previously unknown muscles.
Abductor machine
Origin
Anatomical and gym terminology
Meaning
A machine that works the outer hips as you push your legs apart
The Fit-ish interpretation
Not a typo. Not the same machine. Unfortunately, another opportunity to ache.

Spotted an expression you don't recognise?

Visit the Fit-ish Global Decoder—where Kenyanisms, Colombian Spanish and the occasional intimidating gym term are translated into something resembling English.

If I have missed one, send it to me and I'll add it to the Decoder.