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Crossfit Barbell Workouts to Improve Strength and Build Muscle for Athletes

For those who love a good barbell workout.

CrossFit Barbell Workouts are a great way to build and improve strength, power and technique. Find your next WOD now. 

These 6 barbell workouts will test your endurance, mental game and get you fit in no time.

CrossFit Barbell Workouts

EMOM” stands for Every Minute On the Minute, which is when you begin a specified number of repetitions of some movements or exercises at the start of one minute and then rest for whatever time you have left until the top of the next minute.

EMOM barbell workouts annie thorisdottirSource: BOXROX

“EMOM 12 min” means: every minute on the minute for 12 minutes, do the specified exercises.

EMOM workouts are usually short, 10-20 minutes long (but can be shorter or longer), and are typically designed to allow for some rest before the top of each work interval. These built-in work and rest periods make EMOM a form of interval workout. They can be great for practising pacing and working on conditioning, but are also a good format for strength training, to force attempts of a lift on a specified cadence.

EMOMs can be every minute, every 2 minutes, every 3 minutes, etc. For example, “E2MOM” means each 2 minutes, where you have 2 minutes to perform some amount of work. This can also be written as EOMOM (every other minute on the minute). “E3MOM” means each 3 minutes, etc.

Depending on the workout an EMOM workout may be simply scored as the total number of full rounds completed, or the weight used.

Camille-Squat breathing exercisesSource: CrossFit Games

Browse through these EMOM Barbell Workouts and choose your next workout.

1. CrossFit Barbell Workouts – BERGERON BLEEP TEST

EMOM for as Long as Possible
7 Thrusters (75/55 lb)
7 Pull-Ups
7 Burpees
Each minute on the minute (EMOM), starting at the top of the minute, complete one round. Rest the remainder of the minute. Repeat and continue until no longer able to complete a full round in under 1 minute.

Score is total number of rounds completed before becoming unable to complete a round before the start of the next minute.

Tips and Strategy

Strategy for this one is slow down and aim to have each round done in 50 seconds. Don’t go all out at the start. Be ready to pick up the barbell as soon as the next minute starts. And remember to breathe!

Intended Stimulus

Creator, coach Ben Bergeron says the following about this conditioning test: “This test makes it easy to compare athletes across a spectrum of sizes, locations, and regardless of skill or equipment…This is also an incredible test of mental toughness, as it is very easy to give up on this workout mentally before your body actually reaches failure. Basically, this is a test of ‘Whatcha-got?’”

Scaling Options

Scale the volume as needed to get a minimum of 10 minutes of work. The athlete can also scale the skill level (see: Pull-Up Scaling).

Intermediate
EMOM for as Long as Possible
5 Thrusters (75/55 lb)
5 Pull-Ups
5 Burpees

CrossFit Games Burpee WorkoutSource: Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.

Beginner
EMOM for as Long as Possible
3 Thrusters (75/55 lb)
3 Ring Rows
3 Burpees

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