9 Challenging EMOM Exercises and Workout To Try

How To Do Heel Elevated Squats

1. Place a set of dumbbells on the ground behind your feet. Stand with your feet hip width apart, placing your heels on the bar of each dumbbell. Hold two dumbbell by your sides. Engage your core.
2. Inhale as you bend your knees and sit your hips back (as if sitting down in a chair). Aim for 90 degree bends at each knee, focusing on pushing your knees out (not letting them cave in). Keep your torso in an upright position.
3. Exhale as you press through your heels to stand tall, driving your hips forward to return to the standing position.

Modification: Perform this move with feet flat on the floor if heels raised isn’t comfortable for you.

How To Do A Dumbbell Touch and Jack

1. Start in an athletic stance or loaded squat position, with your feet shoulder-width distance apart and a slight bend in your knees. Hold one dumbbell in your left hand in front of you.
2. With your chest upright and your core engaged, “jack” your feet out into a wide squat or sumo squat stance (feet are wider than your shoulders). As you jack your feet out, lower the dumbbell towards the ground.
3. Land softly in a low squat, tapping the head of the dumbbell to the ground if you can.
4. Then transfer the dumbbell to the opposite (right) hand as you “jack” your feet into a narrow stance. Feet are hip-width distance apart as you stand tall, pulling the dumbbell up and in line with your hips.
5. Repeat, transferring the dumbbell to the opposite hand each time you perform a squat jack.

Modification: Option to omit the jump and step in and out. You can also make this a bodyweight exercise, omitting the dumbbell transfer.

How To Do A Push Press

1. Stand with feet shoulder-width distance apart, slight bend in your knees. Hold a pair of dumbbells at shoulder height, elbows pointing straight ahead and palms facing in towards each other (neutral grip).
2. Drop into a shallow squat; about a two-inch dip. Then press through your heels, and push the dumbbells overhead until arms are fully extended, biceps by ears.
3. Lower the dumbbells down to the starting position at shoulder-level.

How To Do Pull Ups

1. Start standing underneath your pull up bar, feet hip-width apart, neck and shoulders relaxed.
2. Reach up and grip the pull-up bar with your palms facing away from your body (overhand grip), hands slightly wider than shoulder-width distance apart.
3. Allow your body to hang freely with your arms fully extended.
4. Initiate the pull up by squeezing your shoulder blades together and pulling your chest towards the bar. Keep your elbows pointed downward throughout the movement.
5. Continue to pull your body, pulling your chest up until your chin is above the bar, or as high as you can comfortably go. Keep your core engaged and your body straight throughout the movement.
6. Slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position, extending your arms fully.

Modification: Option to perform assisted pull ups with a long loop resistance band. Or, perform a dumbbell back row and clean (demonstrated on the left in the above image).

How To Do A Push Up and Plank Jack

1. Start in a high plank position with your shoulders stacked over your wrists, weight evenly distributed amongst all 10 fingers. Pull your kneecaps up towards your belly, feet hip-width apart. 
2. Hold this plank position, maintaining a straight line with your body, gaze slightly in front of you.
3. Lower your body down towards the mat, leading with your chest as you perform a push up. Elbows fall back towards your body.
4. Once at the bottom of your push up, exhale as you push back up into high plank position 
5. Hold high plank as you “jack” your feet out wide, then jack them back to center, returning to the starting position.
6. Repeat the sequence of one push up to one plank jack.

Modification: For a standing option, hold one dumbbell horizontally at your chest and perform an alternating overhead press to dumbbell press out, tapping the right and left toes out to the side as you alternate the dumbbell press.

How To Do Lateral Squats

1. Start standing, feet wider than shoulder-width (lateral squat stance), with toes facing forward or slightly turned out. Hold one dumbbell vertically at your chest in a goblet hold.
2. Sit your hips back, bending your right knee while leaving your left leg straight. Think of performing a single leg squat with your right leg while your left leg remains straight.
3. Then, drive off your right foot to reverse the movement, pushing back to center.
4. Immediately push to the left side, bending your left knee while leaving your right leg straight. This time, think of performing a single leg squat with your left leg while your right leg remains straight.

How To Do Dumbbell Swings

1. Start standing with your feet wider than shoulder-width apart; engage your core. Hold one dumbbell, both hands stacked between the heads of the dumbbell and gripping the bar.
2. With a slight bend in your knees and weight in your heels, hinge forward at the hips as you ‘hike’ the dumbbell back between your legs to start the swing movement.
3. Drive through your heels to stand tall, pushing your hips forward as you squeeze your glutes to swing the weight up to shoulder height (full hip extension at the top). Aim for shoulder height, with arms extended out away from the body. Think long, loose arms (your arms are just a vehicle for moving the dumbbell, your hips and glutes generate the power to move the dumbbell).
4. As the dumbbell begins to descend, think of catching the weight with your hip hinge movement, loading the glutes and hamstrings.

How To Do A Dumbbell Squat Thruster

1. Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold one dumbbell in each hand. Dumbbells rests on your shoulders, in a front-racked position, overhand grip, palms facing in.
2. With your weight in your heels, sit your hips back as you lower into a squat, striving for a 90-degree angle between your hips and knees.
3. Then, drive through your heels, squeezing your glutes to stand tall. As you stand, perform an overhead thruster, pressing the dumbbells straight overhead. Your biceps should be near your ears.
4. Bring the weights back down to shoulder height and repeat.

How To Do A Burpee and Lateral Jump Over

1. Start standing, feet shoulder-width apart, arms at your sides. Option to place a dumbbell or two in the middle of your space. Position yourself so that you are standing to the right of the dumbbells.
2. Bend your knees and drop your hips as you lower into a squat position, then place your hands on the floor directly in front of your feet.
3. Shift your weight into your hands as you jump your feet back to softly land on the balls of your feet in a high plank position. Your body should form a straight line from your head to heels.
4. Elbows fall back towards your body as you lower your chest towards the ground, bringing your chest to meet the floor. Press back up and return to high plank.
5. Jump your feet up, landing outside your hands in a loaded squat position. Then drive through your legs to explode up. As you stand tall, jump laterally to the left and over the dumbbells, landing softly so that you’re now to the left of the dumbbells rather than to the right.
6. Repeat the burpee and alternate your lateral hops throughout the timed interval.

Modification: Omit the burpee and perform a run in place and lateral hop.