HIIT your weight loss goals with an EMOM workout

April 19, 2017 Ashley 0 Comments

I love playing brain games with myself to get my best workout in.

(Just pretend the pain’s happening to the chick who took the last of the matcha powder at Starbucks…)

Why? Well, whether it’s trying to beat the clock or reminding yourself not to take training quite so seriously (nada’s worth giving yourself a brain hernia over), there are so many ways to jedi mind trick yourself into an awesome hour (or three) of body pumping. It’s great. You not only do your workout, but you actually depart, feeling empowered. Which is why I adore this new approach to HIIT (high intensity interval training) that I just read recently (in one of those few chick fitness magazines that doesn’t make you feel bad about your body). It’s called EMOM (each minute on the minute.) And, designed by a trainer who hails from New York City, the concept rests specifically on two objectives: get in your reps quickly – and then try to beat your best time.

What you do, is start with a five minute warmup. And at the top of each minute, you power through a few body weight moves. (Though, if you’ve got an injury, there are workarounds for the given moves.) Then, you pause and take a breather for the remainder of that minute. But, the moment minute number next arrives, you’re back at it again, going HAM on the moves. The idea, initially, is to get those reps done as fast as you’re mortally capable of doing – so that you’ve got more time remaining to rest at the end. This is actually exactly what my Muay Thai instructor says every time he has us doing pyramid kick drills: “The sooner you finish, the longer you get to rest!” Except, here, instead of pad punting with your shin, this warm up comprises the likes of planks, air squats, and tuck jumps.

But that’s just the warm-up.

Then comes the strengthening phase. As you proceed with thirty second intervals, swinging around dumbbelles, the idea is to beat the figure you reached previously on the warm up phase – by at least one. You bang out about five different moves during this stage, rapidfire, for 30 seconds (this time with weights) before 30 seconds of rest and repeating. Obviously, there are variations. You can add or subtract the weights as you see fit… or even keep it super simple, like this.

(’til you’re ready to level up.)

See, I love this as a new sub for my other brain games. Why? Because, aside from the fact that you can always shuffle in new moves to do (when the old ones get boring), you eradicate concern about how long you have left and difficultly level altogether. All you’re focused on is winning. On beating yester-minute you’s best number.

And, most importantly, on HIIT’ing your new goal.