When the countdown clock hits that last five minutes, it can be tough to keep your head in the game of a strength workout — raise your hand if you’ve ended a session with an Instagram scroll rather than one final push. EMOM finishers are the perfect solution, helping you to top off your workout on a high (and supersweaty!) note.
“Every minute on the minute — aka EMOM — workouts challenge you to complete an exercise for a certain number of reps in less than 60 seconds. The remaining time within the minute serves as your recovery,” Sophie Folts-Mercure, the creator of Ballet Fit Theory at Fit Atelier and NASM-certified personal trainer, explained.
EMOM workouts allow you to log in a lot of quality work quickly and efficiently, Folts-Mercure said. The resting and working periods during an EMOM workout are also programmed with a purpose — to keep you moving and to prevent your heart rate from falling too much in between sets.
“These workouts are excellent for metabolic conditioning and are an awesome way to end a training session, especially one that has been mostly strength or toning.”
Wrap up your next strength workout with this five-minute cardio EMOM finisher curated by Folts-Mercure. While all of the rest intervals are listed next to each move, remember to listen to your body and take breaks as you need to prevent any injuries. Each move should be performed using proper form, so think quality over quantity. If you need to drop reps in order to keep your form, that’s OK! And don’t skip your cooldown, either. “A proper cooldown, especially after all this cardio, should consist of five to 10 mins walking or cycling, starting off with a brisk pace and gradually decreasing the speed every 30 seconds to a minute so your heart rate can come down slowly,” Folts-Mercure said. “This should be followed by light, easy stretching of the calves and quads.”
