Functional Fitness Timer Guide:AMRAP, EMOM, For Time, and Intervals

Functional fitness timers, like the ones used for CrossFit or Hyrox workouts, have to do more than count down, because each workout format needs the clock to do something different. An AMRAP needs a fixed window, an EMOM needs a signal at the start of every minute, For Time needs a clock that counts up to a cap, and intervals need repeating blocks of work and rest. If the timer mode matches the format, your score means the same thing to you, to your judge, and to you in six months.

Match the timer to the workout

If the mode does not match the format, you have to do the math yourself. An EMOM on a plain stopwatch makes you count minutes in your head while you work, and a For Time workout on a countdown makes you subtract the time left from the cap to find your finish time.

AMRAP timer setup

Set a countdown for the length of the workout, with a short lead-in if you need a few seconds to get to the bar. After that, the clock only has to tell you when to start and when to stop, because an AMRAP has no minute boundaries and a beep every minute is noise that can distract you.

Record:

• The duration
• The rounds you finished
• The reps you completed in the next round
• The version you did, Rx or scaled

See AMRAP Workouts Explained for scoring examples.

EMOM timer setup

An EMOM timer needs a signal at the start of every minute, and it needs to count the intervals for you. A common point of confusion is the start of the last interval, because in a 12-minute EMOM the first interval starts at 0:00 and the twelfth starts at 11:00. If you start another interval at 12:00, you complete 13 intervals.

For an EMOM that alternates movements, write the rotation down before the clock starts, because it is hard to work out whether minute seven is the row or the wall balls while you are out of breath. A timer that shows the current movement does this for you, and if yours does not, put the written rotation where you can read it from the rig.

See EMOM Workouts Explained for alternating and build formats.

For Time timer setup

Use a clock that counts up, and set the cap as an alarm that does not replace the elapsed time on the display. You and your judge both need to read the exact second you finished, from the same clock.

If the workout has a tiebreak, record the time on the clock when you reach the tiebreak point, and keep the main clock running. The CrossFit Games takes tiebreak times this way, and the same method works in your own training.

A useful For Time display shows:

• The elapsed time, large enough to read from the floor
• The cap, and how much of it is left
• A lead-in countdown before the work starts
• A finish button that saves the time instead of resetting the clock

See For Time Workouts Explained for capped scoring.

Interval timer setup

Intervals need three inputs:

1. Work duration
2. Rest duration
3. Number of rounds

For intervals of different lengths, such as a descending ladder, program the whole sequence instead of one repeating block, and check it once before you start, because a timer that repeats one block cannot run a ladder.

Tabata timer setup

Tabata is a fixed pattern of eight rounds of 20 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest, four minutes in total. Set the timer to signal every change, because 10 seconds of rest is not enough time to read a stopwatch and work out how long you have left.

The pattern comes from a 1996 study by Tabata and colleagues, in which seven subjects did seven to eight sets of 20 seconds on a cycle ergometer at about 170% of VO2max, with 10 seconds of rest between sets. Most Tabata workouts in a gym use the 20/10 timing at a lower intensity, so score yours the way the workout asks, which is usually the lowest round or the total reps.

What makes a CrossFit workout timer reliable?

• You can read it from the far end of the rig
• You hear the start, the interval, and the finish over the music
• A sweaty hand does not wipe your result
• Setting it up takes less attention than the workout brief
• It keeps counting when the phone locks, you switch apps, or the app crashes
• Lead-in, work, rest, and finished all look different at a glance

Test that your timer can recover from lock screens or the app closing before you trust it with a workout that matters. Start the timer, lock the phone, close the app, and then check that the clock kept counting as it should.

What a timer app adds

A wall clock shows one number, so anything else you want to know after the workout depends on your memory. A timer app records the workout while it runs, and it can show you:

• The time of every round, so you can see where your pace dropped
• Your current round against the last one, while you are still working
• The time left to the cap, without subtracting it from the clock
• Your result against your previous best on the same workout, round by round

None of this replaces the event clock in a competition, but in your own training it shows you where the time went and not only the final number.

One clock, one source of truth

In a competition, use the clock the event runs and use your own device only to take notes. Two clocks started by two people can disagree, and afterwards the only one that counts is the judge's.

When you train alone, save the result as soon as you finish. Write the movements, the loads, and the rep scheme next to the time, because in three months 8:42 tells you nothing if you cannot say what it was for.

Frequently asked questions

Should a For Time timer count up or down?

Count up, and set the cap as an alarm. A countdown makes you subtract the time left from the cap to find your finish time. Nobody should have to do math just after a workout.

Does an EMOM start at minute zero or minute one?

Minute zero. The first interval starts at 0:00, so in a 10-minute EMOM the tenth and last interval starts at 9:00 and the clock stops at 10:00.

What is the difference between an interval timer and an EMOM timer?

An EMOM timer runs one-minute intervals, and an interval timer runs any work and rest lengths you set. In an EMOM you only choose how many minutes and what goes in them, but an interval timer can also hold blocks of different lengths in one sequence.

Sources

• CrossFit Games Rulebook
• Tabata et al. (1996): Effects of moderate-intensity endurance and high-intensity intermittent training on anaerobic capacity and VO2max