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Free OCR training plan.

Run. Hang. Carry. Repeat.

Improve your fitness and learn how to train smart, run fast, and be strong.

A structured, periodized, scientific, and educational exercise training plan.

For obstacle course racers (OCR) or Spartan race newbies.

Informed by experimental and empirical evidence.

Designed by me, Thomas Solomon PhD.

IMPORTANT: If you have never exercised before, this training may not appropriate for you. By voluntarily opting to complete the fitness tests and use the free sessions, you do so at your own risk and you are confirming that for the last 3-months you have engaged in at least 30-minutes of moderate-intensity exercise on at least 3-days per week, and that you are medically-cleared to participate in structured exercise. If there are any reasons that increasing your activity levels may impose a health risk (existing injury, illness, or cardiovascular, metabolic, or renal disease), you should consult your GP before joining this training. If you incur any illness or injury you must stop exercising and consult your GP immediately.

FITNESS TESTS:

Before joining this free weekly training for the first time, complete the following 3 fitness tests. The results will help ensure you are working at the correct absolute intensities during the sessions, which will help maximise your performance gains. "Fitness test" weeks recur during the training cycle to see how things are improving and to re-calibrate your absolute training intensities. If you are re-joining the training after a break (due to illness, injury, or apathy), please repeat the tests.

Start with Run Warm-up (see suggestion here), then:
Race 3 km as fast as you can — e.g. run 7.5 laps of a 400 metre running track, or find a flat and uninterrupted route using Mapmyrun, or set a 3 km distance function on your GPS watch.
Compare your finish time against the pacing table (see chart here) to see what your training paces should be.
Finish with 5-mins of EASY running followed by Cool-down exercises (see suggestion here).

Start with Grip Warm-up (see suggestion here), then:
Dead-hang on a pull-up bar with a closed-grip (thumbs wrapped), record time to failure.
This time will be used to determine your hangtime in the grip training sessions. Finish with Cool-down exercises (see suggestion here).

Start with Circuit Warm-up (see suggestion here), then:
Wide-arm pull-ups to failure, palms facing forwards, closed-grip (thumbs wrapped), chin-over-bar, no kipping.
Study this video for correct pull-up form.
Record the total number of unbroken reps you can complete.
Finish with Cool-down exercise (see suggestion here).

NOTE: if you cannot do a pull-up, start with these:
→ Scapular pull-ups. Progressing to
→ Self-assisted pull-ups. Progressing to
→ Band-assisted pull-ups. Progressing to
→ Machine-assisted pull-ups.
It will take time but STICK AT IT! Doing this progression, combined with the exercises prescribed in the circuit sessions, will help build the strength you need to eventually nail your pull-up.

NOTE: all Warm-up and Cool-down exercises are described in a section further down this page.

Once you have completed the fitness tests, you are ready to rock!

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The training plan above is structured around two macrocycles each with three mesocycles:

Macrocycle 1: Base-phase (Dec to Feb), Transition-phase (Mar and Apr), Race-phase (May and Jun).

Macrocycle 2: Base-phase (Jul), Transition-phase (Aug), Race-phase (Sept and Oct). November is a "rest phase".

Every training block within a mesocycle runs in 4-week cycles: "stress", "stress", "taper", "recovery".

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A personalised, structured, scientific, and educational training approach, informed by empirical and experimental evidence, designed by exercise physiologist Dr Thomas Solomon, and produced for anyone wanting to train smarter, get stronger, and run faster.

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RPE (Rating of Perceived Exertion).

Learn to set your training intensities according to your Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) out of 10, where 1 out of 10 is being sat down doing nothing and 10 out of 10 is maximal. Study the RPE scale below to learn what level of effort to give for the various training intensities.

RPE scale Training paces for free running and OCR training from Thomas Solomon at Veohtu

Use the following guidelines to maximise your long-term gains for endurance racing:

→ 80% to 95% of your weekly running time should be spent in the "Easy" domain at RPE 2-4/10. Increasing your weekly volume, by gradually increasing the number of Easy runs and gradually increasing their duration, will help condition your body to move faster for longer during your harder runs. Any hiking, running, riding, etc, that you add on top of the prescribed training should be kept in the "Easy" intensity domain at RPE 2-4/10.

→ Just 5% to 20% of your weekly running time should be spent in the "Hard" domain at or above RPE 6/10. These types of sessions are taxing, add a lot of strain to your body, and take longer to recover from. Sure, training hard every day will acutely increase your fitness but it will also increase your risk of injury and accumulate fatigue, making subsequent sessions feel harder and needing more time to recover from them. Don't aim to be mighty by tomorrow. Play the long-game. Be sensible. Train smart.

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Running pace chart.

When you have completed the 3 km Time Trial, find your finishing time in the first column of the chart below, then read across the row to find out what paces you should aim to run during your "Easy" and "Threshold" sessions when running on Flat terrain.

IMPORTANT: When running on hilly/mountainous terrain or doing uphill efforts, these estimated "flat terrain" paces are useless and should not be used as targets. In such circumstances, ignore pace and use the RPE scale along with the Breathing and Talk test descriptions (see section above) to exert the correct level of effort.

When going up steep inclines on an "Easy" run, it is very likely that you will have to lower your pace to a hike in order to keep the intensity low. That is totally fine! Even Jon Albon, Kilian Jornet, Lindsay Webster, and Courtney Dauwalter hike when the grade gets steep.

Why run at different paces?

EASY runs build your "endurance" and should be run no harder than RPE 4 / 10.

= totally comfortable, really slow jogging (or hiking on challenging terrain) that slightly increases your heart rate (HR) and breathing rate (BR).
You could sustain this level of effort for several hours, without fatigue.

THRESHOLD sessions build your "Fatigue resistance" and should be run at ~ RPE 6 to 8 / 10.

= a comfortably-hard effort that induces a highly-noticeable increase in HR and BR after a few minutes of running, where you are right on the edge of fatigue.
This is the kind of pace you could sustain for 30- to 40-minutes but, if you went any quicker, you would fatigue quickly.

S.H.I.T. sessions build your "Speed and power" and should be run harder than RPE 8 / 10.

= an uncomfortably hard effort that induces high HR and BR and makes you hyperventilate.
There is no pace assigned to S.H.I.T. but it is the kind of effort you could only sustain for a short time (e.g. just a few seconds if you are sprinting or up to a few minutes if you are running at your 1-mile race pace).

Training paces for free running and OCR training from Thomas Solomon at Veohtu

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Circuit exercises

(clickable links to instructional videos)

IMPORTANT: If you are new to using this training plan, spend the first couple of weeks simply studying the exercises below and practising proper technique (click links for videos). This will enable you to get stronger in a safe and healthy manner. Always "train smart to get fast and strong".

Main exercises:

Ab walk out. ¦ Alternating bird dog. ¦ Bench dip. ¦ Forward lunge (alternating legs). ¦ Glute bridge. ¦ Hip hinge. ¦ Incline push-up. ¦ Inverted row (high bar). ¦ Lying knee raise. ¦ Pike press. ¦ Plank. ¦ Russian twist. ¦ Seated calf raise. ¦ Side plank. ¦ Squat ¦ Standing calf-raise. ¦ Step-up. ¦ Superman. ¦ Underhand inverted row (High bar). ¦ Wall sit. ¦ Wrist to knee crunch.

Static holds to failure:

Arch-hold ¦ Hollow-hold ¦ L-sit ¦ L-hang ¦ Plank ¦ Wall sit.

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Warm-up and cool-down for running, circuits, carry, and grip sessions.

(clickable links to instructional videos)

RUNNING SESSIONS

WARM-UP

Progressive effort walk-jog-run on flat terrain:
Start with 2-minutes Brisk walking with purpose, no harder than RPE 2/10.
Then 2-minutes of Easy paced jogging, no harder than RPE 4/10.
Then 2-minutes of running, progressing up to Threshold, no harder than RPE 8/10.

Dynamic drills:
Complete 2 x (5-secs, 15-sec rest) of each exercise at a moderate- to vigorous-intensity (RPE 6-8/10).
Butt-kicks. ¦ High-knees. ¦ High-knee skips.

Strides:
Run up to 6 x 10-second accelerations, with 1 min rest between each.
Accelerate to ~95% of maximal speed (not an all-out sprint).
Focus on running tall, looking forwards, and being light on your feet with a fast foot turnover.

Warm-up complete. You are ready to rock!

COOL-DOWN

Super Easy jogging or brisk walking.

CIRCUITS SESSIONS

WARM-UP

Activation exercises:
Complete 10-reps of each exercise at a low-intensity (RPE 2/10), and move on to the next exercise.
Rocking frog. ¦ Lying hip abduction. ¦ Lying hip adduction ¦ Lying hip internal rotation ¦ Lying hip external rotation ¦ Walking knee hugs.. ¦ Walking ankle grabs. ¦ Walking squats. ¦ Resistance band shoulder rotations. ¦ Resistance band pull-aparts. ¦ Scapular pull-ups.

Progressive effort walk-jog-run, or treadmill / x-trainer / elliptical / row-ergo:
2-mins Super Easy (RPE 2/10)
2-mins Easy (RPE 4/10)
2-min progression up to Threshold (RPE 8/10).

NOTE: If you plan to do an Easy run on a Circuit day, integrate it into your Circuit session warm-up and cool-down.

Warm-up complete. You are ready to rock!

COOL-DOWN

Super Easy jogging or brisk walking, outside or treadmill / x-trainer / elliptical / row-ergo. Whatever you choose, keep the intensity easy (RPE 2 to 4 / 10).

CARRY SESSIONS

WARM-UP

Activation exercises:
Complete 5-reps of each exercise at a low-intensity (RPE 2/10) using a full range of motion, and move on to the next exercise.
Rocking frog. ¦ Alternating cossack squats. ¦ Walking knee hugs.. ¦ Walking ankle grabs. ¦ Walking squats. ¦ Walking lunges. ¦ Walking leg-swings. ¦ Lateral leg swings. ¦ Ball squeezes in hand (tennis ball / rubber ball). ¦ Finger extensions (in a rubber band or compression sock). ¦ Resistance band shoulder rotations. ¦ Resistance band pull-aparts. ¦ Windmill arm swings (both directions). ¦ Lateral cross-body arm swings.

Dynamic drills:
Complete 2 x (5-secs, 15-sec rest) of each exercise at a moderate- to vigorous-intensity (RPE 6-8/10).
Butt-kicks.
High-knees.
High-knee skips.
Push-ups or Incline Push-ups if cannot do push-up.
Pull-ups or Self-assisted pull-ups if cannot do pull-ups.
Mountain climbers.

Strides:
Run 8 x 15-second accelerations, with ~1-min rest between each.
Accelerate to ~95% of maximal speed (not an all-out sprint).
Focus on running tall, looking forwards, and being light on your feet with a fast foot turnover, but not sprinting.

Warm-up complete. You are ready to rock!

COOL-DOWN

Super Easy jogging or brisk walking.

GRIP SESSIONS

WARM-UP

Activation exercises:
Complete 5-reps of each exercise at a low-intensity (RPE 2/10) using a full range of motion, and move on to the next exercise.
Ball squeezes in hand (tennis ball / rubber ball). ¦ Finger extensions (in a rubber band or compression sock). ¦ Resistance band shoulder rotations. ¦ Resistance band pull-aparts. ¦ Windmill arm swings (both directions).

Dynamic drills:
Complete up to 10-reps of each exercise at a moderate-intensity (RPE 4 to 6/10), have ~10-seconds rest, move on to next exercise.
The number of reps you choose, should be easy and not take you anywhere near failure (i.e. at least 5-reps left in reserve).
Scapular pull-ups.
Push-ups or Incline Push-ups if cannot do push-up.
Pull-ups or Self-assisted pull-ups if cannot do pull-ups.

Warm-up complete. Your hulk-hands are ready!

NOTE: look at these videos to see example of a Deadhang and a Towel deadhang.

COOL-DOWN

Static stretching, holding each position for 20-30-seconds and relaxing for 5-seconds.
Abdominal stretch. ¦ Seated lower-back stretch. ¦ Lat stretch. ¦ Front deltoid stretch. ¦ Side deltoid stretch. ¦ Rear deltoid stretch. ¦ Brachioradialis stretch. ¦ Wrist extensor stretch. ¦ Wrist flexor stretch.

This is a free training tool.
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The Veohtu Training Framework for runners and obstacle racers from Thomas Solomon PhD