This is a focused, intense, limited equipment, 7-week, lift-assisted alpine skiing training plan specifically designed with efficient and effective exercises to prepare for skiing. Complete this program and the included ski fit exercises 7 weeks directly before your ski trip or season. Week 7 is a taper/unload week.
This is Version 6 of our Dryland Ski Training Plan – updated in September 2025.
Program Goals
- Build the eccentric strength and strength endurance in your legs through ski fit exercises to prepare you for the eccentric loading which occurs during alpine skiing.
- Build the lactate tolerance and recovery in your legs so you can ski harder longer, and recover quicker during stops or between runs.
- Build your core/midsection strength and overall strength to add stability during skiing and increase overall durability.
- Build your lower body connective tissue, landing mechanics, hamstring strength and overall stability to help protect your knees from injury during the ski season.
Progressing Through The Program
This training program is set up to be completed sequentially. Exercises to prepare for skiing as well as volumes build as it progresses, so don’t skip around. Start at the beginning and follow the sessions in order.
Here is the weekly schedule:
- Monday – Leg Lactate Tolerance, Total Body Strength, Hamstring balance work
- Tuesday – Eccentric Leg Strength, Total Body Strength, Chassis Integrity (core)
- Wednesday – Recovery Run or Bike/Spin
- Thursday – Leg Lactate Tolerance, Total Body Strength, Hamstring balance work
- Friday – Eccentric Leg Strength, Total Body Strength, Chassis Integrity (core)
Common Questions
How long should the training sessions take?
50-60 minutes.
What if I can’t keep up the Monday to Friday Training Schedule?
The days you train are not as important as completing the training sessions sequentially and taking 2 full day’s rest between weeks.
What if I can’t complete the ski fit exercises using the prescribed loads?
Drop, or “scale” the load or weight as necessary to meet the prescribed number of reps. For example, if the training session calls for 6x Sandbag Cleans with 60# and this is too, heavy, drop down to 40#, – whatever is required, to get 6 reps.
What if I miss a training day?
Ideally, you will train 5 days in a row, and take 2 full days off for rest. If for some reason miss a session, do not skip ahead. Start again where you left off and complete the sessions in order throughout the plan.
Where do I find unfamiliar exercises to prepare for skiing?
See our Exercise Library HERE.
What about nutrition?
See our Nutritional Guidelines HERE.
What if I can’t do the whole session?
If you don’t have enough time to complete the whole session, you can split the session into two.
Can I see sample training?
Yes. Click the “Sample Training” tab to see the entire first week of programming.
How do I access the plan?
Access is online, via username and password. You can login either through our website or through our app (Mtn Tactical Fitness) available for IOS and Android.
Can I print out sessions to take to the gym?
Yes – you can print a week of programming at a time.
What if I have more questions?
Email coach@mtntactical.com
- 12-15" Box or step for touch/jump/touch intervals.
- 60-pound sandbag for Men. 40-pound Sandbag for women. You can purchase one by clicking here.
- 25-pound pair of dumbbells for Men. 15-pound pair of dumbbells for women.
- Pull Up Bar
- Foam Roller
Below is the entire first week of programming from the plan:
********
MONDAY
SESSION 1
Obj: Leg Lactate Tolerance, Upper Body Strength, Total Body Strength, Hamstring Strength
Warm up:
3 Rounds
10 Squats
5x Walking Lunges
10x Box Jumps – 12-15” Box
5x Hand Release Push Ups
Instep Stretch
Training:
(1) TJT To Box Assessment
Max Reps in 2 Minutes Touch Jump Touch To Box
RECORD RESULTS
(2) 10 Rounds, EMOM
25% Max Rep Touch Jump Touch To Box – From Session 1's TJT Assessment
"EMOM" = Every Minute On the Minute
So if you completed 50 Reps in Session 1's Assessment, you will complete 13 Reps (50 x .25 =12.5, round up to 13).
The faster you finish, the more rest you get.
(3) 5 Rounds
4x Sandbag Clean & Press – 40/60#
2/5x Pull Ups
Lat + Pec Stretch
(4) 3 Rounds
15x Poor Man's Leg Curl
Pigeon Stretch
TUESDAY
SESSION 2
Obj: Eccentric Leg Strength, Upper Body Strength, Chassis Integrity
Warm up:
3 Rounds
10 Squats
5x Walking Lunges
5x Hand Release Push Ups
Instep Stretch
Training:
(1) 8 Rounds
Mini Leg Blaster
3x Scotty Bob – 15/25#
Hip Flexor Stretch
(2) 4 Round Grind …
5x Backwards Sandbag Drag – 40/60#
10x Kneeling Slasher – 15/25# Dumbbell
10x Sandbag Good Morning – 40/60#
“Grind” = work steadily, not frantically
(3) Foam Roll Complex
WEDNESDAY
SESSION 3
Obj: Recovery Run/Bike
Warm up:
Training:
Run 3 Miles or Bike/Spin for 30-40 minutes at an Easy Pace
"Easy" = you can speak in full sentences
(1) 2 Rounds
Instep Stretch
Hip Flexor Stretch
THURSDAY
SESSION 4
Obj: Leg Lactate Tolerance, Upper Body Strength, Total Body Strength, Hamstring Strength
Warm up:
3 Rounds
10 Squats
5x Walking Lunges
10x Box Jumps – 12-15” Box
5x Hand Release Push Ups
Instep Stretch
Training:
(1) 20 Rounds, EMOM
25% Max Rep Touch Jump Touch To Box – From Session 1's TJT Assessment
"EMOM" = Every Minute On the Minute
So if you completed 50 Reps in Session 1's Assessment, you will complete 13 Reps (50 x .25 =12.5, round up to 13).
The faster you finish, the more rest you get.
(2) 5 Rounds
4x Mr. Spectacular – 15/25# Dumbbells
2/5x Pull Ups
Lat + Pec Stretch
(3) 3 Rounds
15x Poor Man's Leg Curl
Pigeon Stretch
FRIDAY
SESSION 5
Obj: Eccentric Leg Strength, Upper Body Strength, Chassis Integrity
Warm up:
3 Rounds
10 Squats
5x Walking Lunges
5x Hand Release Push Ups
Instep Stretch
Training:
(1) 8 Rounds
Mini Leg Blaster
3x Scotty Bob – 15/25#
Hip Flexor Stretch
(2) 4 Round Grind …
5x Backwards Sandbag Drag – 40/60#
10x Kneeling Slasher – 15/25# Dumbbell
10x Sandbag Good Morning – 40/60#
“Grind” = work steadily, not frantically
(3) Foam Roll Complex
Keep up the great work.
*****************************
Rob, Back in October I did the Dry land ski training program which was awesome, I had a great year highlighted by a trip to Colorado where I skied 6 days in a row, charging all day long. Thanks. --J
*****************************
Thank you for this program. I used to compete in the IFSA comps, coached the Winter Park Juniors and now patrol at Vail. I use this program for injury-prevention as well as to further enhance my working ability and skiing. I cannot sell this program enough to my friends and co-workers (though most of my co-workers are old curmudgeons who are stuck in their own ways). My strength has improved dramatically with each training session. My injury recovery time is almost nothing (I had an old knee injury resurface last winter and was back within the week), and my general fitness is the best it has ever been. I trail-run on my lunch breaks at work in the summer, on the hill and have never been able to run as far, as fast or enjoy myself as much as I do since starting Mountain Athlete. Gym-wise, my bench has gone from a 135# 3rep max to a 180# 4rep max (I have never been able to bench my weight, let alone more), and my squats are now up 50#, my cleans are up 30# and my sprints are faster than ever. My job requires everything from skiing hard, fast and safely, to carrying everything heavy on skis or in boots, to hiking, to running rigs in the winter and I am stronger than most of my co-workers, even at 168# of personal weight. Thank you again. --J
1) Mission Direct
Gym numbers mean nothing. All that matters is mission performance.
To this end, MTI's fitness solutions and programming are not boxed in by convention, tradition, orthodoxy, public opinion or any other artificial constraint driven by inside or outside forces.
We begin with the raw fitness demands of the mission and build a fitness solution which directly prepares the athlete for those demands.
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MTI's programming is not "re-tread" bodybuilding, football, CrossFit, kettlebell, strength or general fitness programming. We've built our fitness programming for mountain and tactical athletes from the ground up.
The Fluid Periodization methodology we deploy to concurrently train multiple fitness attributes is completely original and has continued to evolve and improve over the years.
Our mid-section training methodology, Chassis Integrity, is also original, as is our endurance programming, 7 strength training progressions, tactical agility, and work capacity programming.
Our mountain sports pre-season training plans, tactical PFT, selection, school, course, and fitness improvement training plans across military, LE and Fire Rescue are MTI-developed, tested and athlete-proven.
Over the years hundreds of athletes and coaches have taken our advanced programming and unit fitness leader programming courses and MTI is widely recognized within the mountain and tactical professions and fitness media as a thought leader in fitness programming for military and tactical athletes.
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→ Research: MTI begins program design with extensive research of the fitness demands of the mission, sport or event, identifies the exercises and progressions which sport-specifically meet those demands, chose end-of-cycle goals, and program backward to design the training plan.
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MTI exists to "Improve Mountain and Tactical Athletes mission performance and keep them safe." To that end, we have developed a unique research methodology aimed at identifying real world areas of improvement and identifying immediately deployable mission-direct solutions. Click HERE to learn more about MTI's Mission-Direct Research methodology, and Here to read about just few of our research efforts.
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MTI's library of 200+ sport-specific fitness plans for mountain and tactical athletes is unmatched. Resources range from specific programming for tactical special forces selections, to specific plans for climbing Rainier and Denali, to general fitness solutions such as running improvement, to post-rehab from injury.
Over the past decade, MTI has partnered with hundreds of athletes throughout their individual mountain and tactical careers, and provided fitness solutions as they face new mountain objectives, tactical schools, selections, PFTs and deployments, and came back from injury.
7) Worldwide Influence
Our work is not limited to US Athletes.
We've developed selection-specific training plans for Canadian, UK, Australian and German Special Forces Selections and worked with individual military personnel from Scandinavia, South, and Central America.
Canadian, Australian, UK and western European law enforcement and fire/rescue athletes have used MTI programming for mission-direct fitness.
On the mountain side, Alpinists from Japan to Slovakia have consulted with MTI and used MTI's programming to prepare for mountain objectives.
8) Mission Performance beyond Fitness
MTI’s exists is to improve Mission Performance for mountain and tactical athletes and keep them safe.
This focus on “mission direct” solutions, enhancements and improvements drives our work and research and extends beyond fitness solutions to include training, leadership, gear, team culture, and safety.
Fitness is just one area of our work.
Our non-fitness research has included tactical cultures, combat uniforms, and gore-tex performance, and effect of stress on marksmanship.
Our work on defining what it means to be a Quiet Professional has had penetrating influence and driven healthy conversations with both mountain and tactical professionals.
9) Direct, Honest, Clear Answers
Since 2007 we've taken and answered dozens of questions weekly from mountain and tactical athletes. We've saved these individual Q&A's and now thousands are archived on our site.
We're not salesmen, and our answers are noted for their directness, honesty, and clarity. Our stuff isn't for everyone. If we can help, we'll let you know. If we can't, we'll let you know that, too.
- Rob Shaul, Founder
All of the Above is Backed Up By Our Promise: Our Stuff Works. Guaranteed.
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How is MTI programming different than CrossFit?
This is a common question. Read our answer HERE.
You have a lot of competitors. Why should I choose MTI?
MTI is driven to improve mountain and tactical athletes' mission performance and keep them safe. This emphasis and focus on mission performance sets us apart. Read about more that sets us apart HERE.
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You can log in through our →Website or Mobile App →IOS and Android.
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No. But you can print the programming, by week, from your browser. You access individual training plans online via a username and password.
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Yes, we do. Available for IOS and Android.
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Yes.
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You can do it yourself. Instructions HERE.
If I purchase a subscription and have questions about where to start or what plans(s) to use for my goals, will you help?
Yes. We answer dozens of training questions from athletes weekly. Email coach@mtntactical.com.
If you add new plans or update existing plans after I subscribe will I have access to them?
Yes. We are continuously adding training plans and packets (2-5/month) and updating plans. With your subscription you'll have access to all new plans, new courses and plan updates.
What Equipment is Required?
Click the "Required Equipment" tab to find out what equipment is required for the specific plan you are interested in.
Where do I find unfamiliar exercises?
See our Exercise Library HERE. The Run and Ruck Calculators are listed as exercises.
What about nutrition?
See our Nutritional Guidelines HERE.
Can I see sample training?
Click the “Sample Training” tab to see the entire first week of programming. You are encouraged to do it before purchasing.
What if I have more questions?
Email rob@mtntactical.com