AMRAP, EMOM, HIIT, & PR: The Workout Acronyms You Should Know

While working out at the gym you’ve probably heard terms being thrown out like AMRAP, EMOM, HIIT, and PR, but what do they actually mean? With this guide, you’ll learn the most common fitness terms, so you’ll be prepared to chat with your gym buddies.

AMRAP

AMRAP stands for As Many Reps/Rounds As Possible, and it’s a way to make your workout high-intensity and/or add cardio components to a strength workout. To do an AMRAP, just performs as many reps of an exercise as possible or as many rounds of multiple exercises as you can in a given time period.

EMOM

EMOM, Every Minute on the Minute, is another way to structure your workouts and they’re used to push the cardio elements of a workout. You’re supposed to push yourself through the rep counts every minute so you’re constantly working your way to a deadline. You can either set a number of reps of an exercise within one minute and then use the rest of the time to rest or you do as many reps of an exercise as possible within one minute and then switch to a different exercise the next minute. The second way has a designated minute for rest as well.

HIIT

HIIT stands for High-Intensity Interval Training and it’s all about using maximum effort in a short period of time and then taking a break before exerting maximum effort again. For example, you can sprint for 20 seconds and then rest for 60 seconds and then repeat for four to six sets.

PR

PR, or Personal Record, is your best performance in a given exercise. It can refer to runners when they hit a PR by covering a distance more quickly than usual or weightlifters when they lift the most weight they’ve lifted or done more reps than they have before.