When I first started SPT (specific physical training), I didn’t follow a plan. A typical session was 6 reps of 30-second holds with 30-second breaks, a 10-minute rest, then the same set again. I trained two to four times a week, but without consistency. Some weeks I doubled up, other weeks I skipped entirely.

It gave me time under tension, but no real progression. I couldn’t tell if I was building strength or just tiring myself out. After months of the same routine, I was still struggling after 6 reps. Proof I wasn’t getting any stronger.

Step 1: Find Your Baseline

The first step in building a protocol is finding the point just before form breaks down. Hold the bow at full draw for 15 seconds, then let down and rest for 25 seconds. Repeat this cycle until you can no longer maintain proper alignment. If the shoulders collapse, the draw hand drifts, or the anchor cannot be maintained, stop there.

The rep where form fails becomes your baseline. If you manage 12 reps with clean form, then 12 is your starting capacity. If you only get to 6, that is fine. You build from where you are.

Step 2: Structure the Week

SPT loads the same muscles and joints as shooting. Done too often, it interferes with recovery and can blunt shooting performance. Three sessions per week are enough to build strength and endurance while still allowing adaptation.

The structure also tapers naturally into the weekend. By training Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, fatigue is reduced by Saturday and Sunday, which are the days competitions usually take place. This makes the work complementary to shooting rather than in conflict with it.

• Monday: Build day – highest workload
• Wednesday: Overload day – still heavy, but slightly reduced
• Friday: Recovery day – lighter session to taper into the weekend

Each rep is a reversal: draw and hold for 15 seconds, lower for 25 seconds, then repeat.

Step 3: Progression

Progression is set, not guessed. For me, the cycle looked like this:

• Week 1 – Monday 16 reps, Wednesday 14, Friday 12
• Week 2 – Monday 18 reps, Wednesday 16, Friday 14
• Week 3 – Monday 20 reps, Wednesday 18, Friday 16
• Week 4 – Deload: Monday 12, Wednesday 10, Friday 8

The pattern repeats, adding about 2 reps per day each block before a deload week. This is roughly a 5 to 10 percent increase per week, enough to drive adaptation without overload.

Step 4: Track the Results

The benefit of SPT is that it is as measurable as shooting. You can log reps, sets, and total time under tension with the same clarity as arrow scores. This makes progress easy to see week by week.

It hurts, but it works. Follow the progression until your workout adds up to roughly 15 minutes you can begin to increase the hold duration. The long-term goal is to work up to 30 minutes of reversals at a rhythm of 30 seconds holding at full draw followed by 30 seconds of rest.