Valor: Slight Work Capacity Focus

$59.00

  • 7 weeks, 5 day/week training plan
  • Deploys strength and endurance assessments and follow-on progressions.
  • Designed for Military Athletes looking to make gains across the board – strength, work capacity, Chassis Integrity, and speed-over-ground endurance.
  • This training plan is one of the 250+ Plans included with an Athlete’s Subscription.

Description

Valor is an intense 7-week, 5 day/week training program which combines classic barbell and bodyweight strength training, track-based endurance training, and intense, gym-based multi-modal work capacity efforts.

This plan is designed for Military Athletes looking to make gains across the board – strength, work capacity, Chassis Integrity, and speed-over-ground endurance. Valor represents the latest evolution of our programming theory and deploys strength and endurance assessments and follow-on progressions.

This is Version 4 of the plan, updated in September 2024. 

FITNESS ATTRIBUTES

Strength
Valor deploys two assessed and progressed strength programming. Weeks 1-4 you’ll train MTI’s Barbell Complex. The Barbell Complex is an intense complex of 6 barbell exercises completed in a row, without rest. Research we’ve completed in-house has shown that 4 weeks of a progressed barbell complex increased max effort strength over several exercises. Weeks 4-7 you’ll assess 1RM Back Squat, Bench Press and max rep pull ups, then complete MTI’s Density Strength programming and re-assess week 7.

Work Capacity
Trained via intense, 10-minute multi-modal efforts and shuttle sprint repeats.

Chassis Integrity
3-Exercise Circuit, trained one day/week. Chassis Integrity is MTI’s proprietary functional core strength training methodology.

Endurance
Speed over ground focus, but includes weekly recovery runs. Rucking is trained via a 3-Mile Ruck Run assessment with follow-on threshold intervals. Running is trained via a 1.5-mile run assessment with follow-on intervals. The plan includes an extended, mid-week, recovery run.

WEEKLY SCHEDULE

  • Monday: Strength, Chassis Integrity
  • Tuesday: Ruck Run Assessment or Threshold Intervals
  • Wednesday: 45-75 Minute Recovery Run
  • Thursday: Strength, Work Capacity
  • Friday: Run Assessment or Threshold Intervals

COMMON QUESTIONS

What equipment is required?

  • Fully Equipped Functional Fitness Gym including barbells, racks, bumper plates, sandbags (40# for women, 60# for men), Dumbbells and/or kettlebells, plyo boxes, etc.
  • Ruck and 45# of filler/load
  • 10# dumbbell, rubber rifle or sledge hammer to Ruck Run with
  • Stopwatch
  • Foam Roller

Who is this plan appropriate for?
Valor is not appropriate for severely de-conditioned athletes. It is appropriate for fit athletes who want to concurrently build strength, endurance work capacity, and chassis integrity.

How long do the training sessions last?
Gym-based sessions are designed to last 45-60 minutes. Endurance sessions will last 50-75 minutes.

What does “4/8x” mean? How about “15/25#”?
First number is for women, second is for men, both for reps, and loading. Examples:
4/8x Chin Ups = Women do 4x, Men do 8x
15/25# = Women use 15#, Men use 25#.

What does “Grind” Mean?
Work briskly, not frantically. Keep moving and work steady through the circuit.

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 for the remainder of the plan.

What if I don’t have Dumbbells or I don’t have kettlebells?
All the dumbbell/kettlebell exercises in the training plan are interchangeable. For example, if the training session calls for a “5x Slasher @ 16/20kg” and you don’t have kettlebells, women use a 35# dumbbell and men use a 45# dumbbell. You’ll need to make the pound to kg conversion. Use google.

My gym doesn’t have sandbags. What should I do?
Make one and take it to the gym when you train … a sandbag (40# for women, 60# for men) is required for this program. We sell sandbags at mtntactical.com, other vendors sell them, and you can make your own. Be resourceful.

Where do I find unfamiliar exercises?
See our Exercise Library HERE. The Run/Ruck Calculator is listed as an exercise

What about nutrition?
See our Nutritional Guidelines HERE.

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 log in 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.

More Questions? Email: coach@mtntactical.com

 

DISCLAIMER
Before beginning any exercise program, consult with your physician to ensure that you are in proper health. Physical training contains inherent risks including, but not limited to, muscle strains, tears, physical and bodily injury up to and including death. This training program is not meant to provide medical advice; you should obtain medical advice from your private health care practitioner. If you are unable to assume these risks then you should not engage in this training program. No liability is assumed by Mountain Tactical Institute, Inc, its owners or employees, and you train at your own risk. Mountain Tactical Institute makes no warranty, express or implied, of any kind in connection with this training program.

Required Equipment


  • Fully Equipped Functional Fitness Gym including barbells, racks, bumper plates, sandbags (40# for women, 60# for men), Dumbbells and/or kettlebells, plyo boxes, etc.

  • Ruck and 45# of filler/load

  • 10# dumbbell, rubber rifle or sledge hammer to Ruck Run with

  • Stop watch

  • Foam Roller

Sample Training

Below is the First Week from this Training Plan:

MONDAY
SESSION 1
Obj: Strength Assessment, Chassis Integrity

Warm up:

3 Rounds
Barbell Complex @ 45/65#
6x Hand Release Push ups
Instep Stretch
5x Shoulder Dislocate

Training:

(1) 5 Rounds
Barbell Complex - Increase load each round and reach your Barbell Complex Max Load at Round 5
Hip Flexor Stretch

Heavy Barbell Complexes are an intense effort. See example loading below for a strong male athlete:

Example:
Round      Load

1               85#

2               105#

3               115#

4               125#

5               135#

RECORD FINAL BARBELL COMPLEX LOAD

(2) 10 Minute Grind
3x Sandbag Clean @ 40/60#
3x Sandbag Keg Lift @ 40/60#
3x Kneeling Plate Half Moon @ 25/35#

"Grind" = work steadily, not frantically through the exercises in this circuit for the prescribed rounds or time.

(3) 2 Rounds
Toe Touch Complex
Foam Roll Low Back

******************************

 

TUESDAY
SESSION 2
Obj: Ruck Run Assessment

Warm Up:

3 Rounds
5x In-Place Lunges
5x Hand Release Push ups
Run 100m
Instep Stretch

Training:

(1) Ruck Run 3 Miles for Time @ 45# Ruck, plus carrying a 10# dumbbell, plate, sledge hammer or rubber rifle

RECORD FINISH TIME

(2) 2 Rounds
Instep Stretch
Lat + Pec Stretch

******************************

 

WEDNESDAY
SESSION 3
Obj: Recovery Run

Training:

(1) Run 45 Minutes, Easy Pace

"Easy" = you can speak in full sentences while moving

******************************

 

THURSDAY
SESSION 4
Obj: Strength, Work Capacity

Warm up:

2 Rounds
Barbell Complex @ 45/65#
6x Hand Release Push ups
Instep Stretch
5x Shoulder Dislocate

(1) 6 Rounds
Barbell Complex - See loading below

Rest as needed between rounds

Round  Load
1       Finish Load minus 30-40 lbs
2       Finish Load minus 20-30 lbs
3-6    Finish Load minus 10 lbs

Example for Part (1) - assume your Barbell Complex finishing load from SESSION 1 was 135#. Below would be your loading today:

Round  Load
1           95# (135 minus 40#)
2           115# (135 minus 20#)
3-6        125# (135 minus 10#)

(2) 4 Rounds
300m Shuttle Every 2:30

(3) Foam Roll Legs, Low Back

******************************

 

FRIDAY
SESSION 5
Obj: Run Assessment

Warm Up:

3 Rounds
5x In-Place Lunges
5x Hand Release Push ups
Run 100m
Instep Stretch

Training:

(1) Run 1.5 Miles for Time

RECORD FINISH TIME 

(2) 2 Rounds
Instep Stretch
Lat + Pec Stretch
​​​​​​​

 

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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.

 

2) Fitness Solutions Built from the Ground Up

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.

 

3) The MTI Method

→ 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.

→ Deploy & Assess: We deploy the training plan “Lab Rats” at our Wyoming facility. Training session and cycle issues are identified and fixed as we work through the training plan. Post cycle we assess the programming’s effectiveness and efficiency. We keep the stuff that works, and fix or toss the stuff that doesn’t.

→ Publish & Assess Again: Plan is published for purchase as an individual training plan and made available to our subscribers. Feedback/results are assessed.

→ Iterate: We take what we learn from lab rats and athletes, re-visit, update and improve already published training plans. Several of our individual training plans are on their 4th or 5th version.

 

4) Mission-Direct Research

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.

5) Field Proven

Our stuff works. Weekly we receive unsolicited reviews of our programming and testimonials to its effectiveness.

 

6) Programming Breadth

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.

Our Stuff Works. Guaranteed.

By Rob Shaul

I received notes frequently from athletes hesitant to purchase a subscription or training plans asking me to sell them on why they should make the purchase.

While I understand the question, I’m not a salesman – so I can’t put a hard sale on anyone for our programming.

I can tell them the process we go through to design our programming.

We begin with extensive research on the fitness demands of the event, identify the exercises and progressions which sport specifically meet those demands, chose end-of-cycle goals, and program backward to design the plan.

Then we test the cycle on ourselves and our lab rats here in Wyoming. We document, note what works and doesn’t work, re-assess, and make changes and modifications.

Then we publish the programming in the form of one of our plans or as part of our subscription daily training sessions for tactical and mountain athletes.
We don’t stop there – our daily programming is the “tip of the spear” for our programming evolution. We use these sessions to learn and make continuous improvement.

As we learn more and improve, we go back, and update the sport-specific training plans on the website. For example, we’re currently on Version 5 of our Ruck Based Selection Training Plan and Version 3 of our Dryland Ski Training Plan and Version 4 of our Big Game Back Country Hunting Training Plan.

We understand our programing isn’t cheap, but we believe it’s a great value. The $79 for the Ruck Based Selection Training Plan, and $39 for the Dryland Ski Training Plan reflect the, research, work, innovative theory, iteration, testing and feedback we’ve put in and received to make these plans effective.

All that matters for us is outside performance, and we feel strongly that Our Stuff Works in the real world.

Here’s our guarantee:

1) Individual Training Plan Purchase:
If you purchase an individual training plan, follow it as prescribed before your season/event/pft/selection, and if you don’t feel you were physically ready for your season/event/pft/selection, and/or didn’t see dramatic improvements in your early season performance, we’ll refund your money, no questions asked.

2) Athlete’s Subscription
If you purchase an Athletes’ Subscription, follow the training sessions as prescribed, and are not satisfied with the quality of the programming, notify us within 30 days of purchase, and we’ll refund your money, no questions asked.

Questions?
Email: rob@mtntactical.com

COMMON QUESTIONS:

Do you have any reviews or testimonials from athletes who have used your Athlete’s Subscription
Yes. Click HERE.

Is it true you guarantee your stuff works?
Yes. If you purchase an Athletes’ Subscription, follow the training sessions as prescribed, and are not satisfied with the quality of the programming, notify us within 30 days of purchase, and we’ll refund your money, no questions asked.

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.

If I purchase a plan or subscription, how do I access the programming?
All of our plans are online, accessible via username and password.
You can log in through our →Website  or Mobile App →IOS and Android.

Do you have downloadable .pdf’s of the training plans?
No. But you can print the programming, by week, from your browser. You access individual training plans online via a username and password.

Do you have a mobile app?
Yes, we do. Available for IOS and Android.

What is the difference between purchasing an individual training plan, packet of plans or an Athlete’s Subscription?

  • Plan – Like purchasing the DVD of the first Star Wars movie. You own it forever, including any updates we make to the plan.
  • Packet – Like purchasing the DVD’s of all the Star Wars movies. You own them forever, including any updates we make to the plans.
  • Athlete’s Subscription – Like subscribing to Netflix. You get access to all 200+ plan in our library, but lose access if you unsubscribe.

If I purchase an Athletes Subscription Can I cancel on my own, anytime?
Yes.

Do I have to contact MTI to cancel or can I do it myself?
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

Testimonials

"I just wanted to let you know that I finished valor and am moving onto the RASP program. I added 20 pounds to my complex (115 to 135), shaved 5 mins off my 3-mile ruck run (36:00 to 31:00), and 1 minute off my 1.5-mile time (11:30 to 10:30) I loved the plan. Thank you for the awesome plans."

 

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"Hands down the best programming I've tried, and I've done just about everything from crossfit to powerlifting. These guys over at Military Athlete know their shit. After just one 60 min strength/work capacity session I am completely humbled and beat to shit but feeling good. Exciting to see how the endurance work plays out."

 
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