Behind the Whiteboard: Why EMOMs?

EMOMs. Every Minute On the Minute.

They usually show up in our program design anywhere from three to five times per month in some capacity whether its intention is to build muscle, challenge strength endurance, or improve conditioning. While there are many physiological benefits to an EMOM piece, here are three that stand out.

Muscle Hypertrophy
EMOMs are excellent for building muscle because the work to rest ratio favors a build up of all things muscle enhancing. Without the ideal amount of time for your body to recovery, it’s an effective tool to stress the soft tissue (eustress) without damaging it (distress).

From How Muscles Are Made:
The cross-sectional area of the muscle increases but with little to no increase in muscle fiber density. The volume of the plasma between the muscle fibers increases and there is less increase in strength associated with it. These are longer, more high-rep strenuous bouts of resistance training with shorter recovery (**like an EMOM**). More traditional bodybuilding practices are theorized to develop sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, which is what we know as the pump, the result of metabolic stress placed on the muscle and results in a non-dense muscle growth.

Strength Endurance
By nature, the EMOM does not have a ton of rest. Today has a little bit more, but we close that gap by increasing the demand with heavier load (60%) than we normally would in an EMOM. This sort of high output with little rest challenges our ability to hold a position.

Why does that matter?

Because successfully holding a position under fatigue means enhanced strength. Only strong people can achieve repeatable positions when they are tired. A strong body under fatigue is a resilient body.

Increased Work Capacity
The EMOM asks for lots of reps in not a lot of time, meaning our working muscles have very little time to recover. While we explained that physiological benefit as it pertains to adding muscle, it’s also relevant to our anaerobic conditioning. Specifically, Maximal Metabolic Stress Sustainability (MMSS). Instead of copying and pasting the paragraph explaining this, check out our article on conditioning and specifically head to the section on lactate threshold. While an EMOM is not peak lactate training by design, it improves our ability to endure. The reduced rest period creates more stress in a shorter amount of time. Compounded over time, an increased work capacity means more volume, more stimulus, and greater adaptation.