Reading an article about effective technical training in sports, I noticed that  the same overall rules of thumb can be used for orienteering technical training as well. Or what do you think?

You need to have a targeted focus for developing/improving your technique on all “normal” trainings.

The simple rules set up in the article are:

• You need to have a targeted focus for developing/improving your technique on all “normal” trainings. I.e. every time you run a training, local race etc., you need a targeted focus. “All training is technical training” characterizes the best. Trainings in which it is possible to target the most important challenges you have as an orienteer will therefore be the best trainings for you. And remember: You don’t only need o-technical training as an orienteer, you also need to consider your running technique, intake of fluids/food during competitions, etc.
• Train technique in over-speed. If you can use your technique in a relaxed way in 10-20% higher speed, you will manage to apply your technique relaxed in competition speed in competitions.
• “Learn from the master”. Run behind/together with another athlete in order to learn from eachothers strenghts.

Don’t forget these useful elements when planning your technical training!

Orienteering specific exercises

To specifically improve your orienteering technique, we have got a lot of exercises here at O-training.net:

1st control training	Many courses with only start and one or two controls. Several people start together (minimum of two), and the goal is to locate your position and run to the first control as fast as possible after turning the map around.	Overspeed orienteering, Sprint orienteering
Attackpoint identification training	A special course is made in OCAD in which the area around the control is whited out. The runner must identify an attackpoint outside the whited out area, use the compass to get through the whited out area and into the control circle, and then orienteer accurately the last part to the control location.	Compass, Attackpoints, Inside the control circle
Book reading while running	The best orienteers read the map at close to maximum speed. They also have a high map reading frequency, i.e. they look at the map very often. Reading a book or a comic (or even a map) while running is a good exercise in order to train map reading frequency.	Map reading
Brown map	A course on a contour-only map (brown map). The runner must focus on the contours in his/her orienteering as this is the only information on the map. Many variants are given.	Contours, Map reading
Build contours in sand	Build the contours contained in a map either in sand or snow in order to show that you understand the concept of contours. This is a beginner exercise.	Contours
Circular contour map	Course on a circular contour-only map without north-lines. As the map is without north-lines, the runners can not use the compass to adjust the map to north, and thus it is necessary to concentrate more on reading the contours.	Contours, Map reading
Circular map	Course on a circular contour-only map without north-lines. As the map is without north-lines, the runners can not use the compass to adjust the map to north, and thus it is necessary to concentrate more on the map reading.	Map reading
Compass between paths	Compass-training in which the legs to be run are between two roads/paths. This makes evaluation easier as you can easily measure how far you are from the control. You also avoid big mistakes / a lot of searching.	Compass
Compass training in pairs	The front runner has a white paper with only the course. The runner behind has a normal map with the same course. The front runner shall run on compass while the runner behind controls where they are. Exchange maps at each control.	Compass
Control location memory	Variant of map memory where you get a certain time to memorize a number of control locations. Then after a pause, you shall draw the controls on a blank map. Typically done with a physical work period (e.g. running) in the pause between memorizing and drawing on the map.	Map memory, Theoretical exercise
Control picking	Run a course consisting of a lot of short legs with many changes in direction.	Compass, Map reading, Flow
Corridor orienteering	A corridor is drawn on the map, and the runner is to be inside the corridor at all times. The difficulty of the exercise can be adjusted by varying the width of the corridor, the terrain, the intensity etc. It is best to use GPS for evaluation of the exercise.	Compass, Map reading, Flow, GPS evaluation
Course planner for competition	Take the job as course planner for a competition.	Route choice, Theoretical exercise, Route planning
Downhill intervals	Run fast uphill and orienteer downhill while you are tired (overspeed). There are many variants – some of them are described below. Also called Sævig intervals in Norway.	Concentration, Overspeed orienteering
Downhill orienteering	Run a downhill orienteering course in overspeed, i.e.faster than you normally would do in a competition.	Flow, Overspeed orienteering
Draw simplification map	Draw a simplification map of a leg / a course. A simplification map is a map containing only the details which are necessary to use in the orienteering. There is also a variant involving map memory. It is instructive to run the course on the simplification map afterwards.	Map memory, Simplification, Theoretical exercise
Fast relocation	A group of 3-6 runners run together. Only the leader is allowed to read the map. When approaching the area around a control, everybody is allowed to look at the map, and shall relocate and find the control as fast as possible. Take turn on being the leader.	Map reading, Map memory, Relocation, Terrain memory
Fog training	The map is removed in most parts of the course – only some circles of the map is left in some places. The runner must use the compass to get between the areas with details. There may/may not be map inside the control circles.	Compass
Follow the contour	Course where only a single contour is shown between controls (or between some of the controls). Good to use GPS in evaluation of the training.	Contours, GPS evaluation
GPS Distance evaluation	Build up an accurate feeling for distance evaluation in different terrain types using your GPS. Try to run a specified distance in the forest (without looking at your map or GPS), e.g. 100 meters, and check your GPS when you think you have run this distance. Repeat in different terrain types / on paths etc.	Distance evaluation, GPS evaluation
Head-up training	Take a normal course and run it. However, instead of actually going to the control, just go to a spot where you can see the control (or the feature if there aren’t markers put out).	Simplification, Terrain memory
Indoor orienteering	Orienteering race indoors, typically in a gym. Good exercise if it is not possible to run outside – also a good exercise for beginners.	Map reading, Concentration
Keep the pen running	Take any map, and draw your planned route choice while keeping the pen running all the way from start to finish – never stopping even for half a second, planning your route as you draw.	Route choice, Flow, Theoretical exercise, Route planning
Leg splitting	Run a course with several long/half-long legs. Before leaving a control, have your attackpoints for the leg and your route for the leg ready. Method: For each leg, divide the leg into parts by identifying your attackpoints, i.e. the points on the leg which are your safe points where you need to be 100% sure about where you are. Mark these attackpoints mentally.	Attackpoints, Route planning
Leg splitting – theoretical	Take a course with several long/half-long legs. For each leg, divide the leg into parts by identifying your attackpoints, i.e. the points on the leg which are your safe points where you need to be 100% sure about where you are. Mark these attackpoints on the map, and then continue with drawing your planned route for the leg. Repeat for all legs in the course.	Simplification, Route choice, Theoretical exercise, Route planning
Line orienteering	A line is drawn on the map, and the runner is to be on the line at all times. The difficulty of the exercise can be adjusted by varying the terrain, the intensity etc. It is best to use GPS for evaluation of the exercise.	Contours, Map reading
Map memory	The runner gets a map showing the next control, and must memorize the leg. At each control, the runner gets another control.	Map memory, Concentration
Map memory duo	Map memory exercise in which two runners run together. At the start, the first runner memorizes the leg to the first control – then gives the map to the second runner. The first runner then runs to the first control – the second runner memorizes the leg to the second control while running behind. At the second control, the first runner gets the map again. Continue this way through the course, never stopping at the control.	Map memory, Simplification
Map surveying	Map surveying is a good exercise in order to understand properly how a map is built up.	Map reading, Theoretical exercise, Distance evaluation, Map understanding
Map without paths	Make a course on a map from which all paths have been removed.	Map reading, Map contact
Mass-start legs	You have a normal orienteering course. A group of 3-6 runners run together, and at each control there is a new mass-start. The goal is to be the first to the control each time. For 4 runners, you can e.g. have a scoring 4-2-1-0. Restart as soon as possible.	Overspeed orienteering, Pressure handling
Micro	A normal course is made, but for each control, there are several other controls within the control circle. There is no code on the controls, so the runner must decide which control is the correct one by studying the map and the control description. Some kind of penalty (penalty loop running, time penalty etc.) is given for each wrong control.	Map reading, Simplification, Attackpoints, Map contact, Inside the control circle, Control description
Multi-mass-start relay	Relay with very short legs, in which there is a new mass-start for each leg. Each runner runs 4 legs, and there are 3-4 runners in each team. The first team coming in on each leg gets 4 points, the second 2 points, the third 1 point – the rest zero points. Points are added for the team. The next leg starts when the second last runner returns from the previous leg. Very intensive relay training with a lot of pressure on the runners. We usually get several DSQ’es as the runners do not tackle the pressure. This relay training is a lot of fun!	Overspeed orienteering, Pressure handling
Never stop	Run a normal course, but you are never allowed to stop! That is, you have to keep running all the time. If you don’t know where to run or need to relocate, you have to keep running on the spot (but this should be avoided, you should rather run more slowly ahead of this point).	Map reading, Flow, Sprint orienteering, Map contact, Speed adaption
Night orienteering	Running at night with limited visibility, is a very good map reading exercise as one has to be more exact in ones orienteering. Compass is also more important at night than in daytime. A normal course will do, but e.g. a corridor is even more interesting.	Compass, Map reading
No-map compass training	A course on a white sheet of paper with only the course drawn (no details at all).	Compass, Distance evaluation, GPS evaluation
One man relay	Several courses from the same starting point – one runner runs all courses. Mass start. Typically some parts of the courses overlap.	Concentration, Overspeed orienteering
Orienteering intervals	Several short courses (alternatively parts of a long course) which are run at high speed, with a pause between each course. Several variants are described.	Concentration, Overspeed orienteering, Speed adaption
Play Catching Features	Play the computer game Catching Features.	Map memory, Theoretical exercise, Mental exercise, Terrain memory
Prolong the control	Focus on making each control easier by “prolonging the control”. Prolonging the control means to find features close to the control which are wider than the feature the control is placed on, i.e. you can have a larger error in your compass course and still find the control easily. There are several variants of this training – also a theoretical exercise.	Simplification, Theoretical exercise, Attackpoints, Inside the control circle
Reduced map compass training	Make a course on a reduced map, where the reduced map is made by removing many details in such a way that the compass is the only option for orienteering. For example, you can have a map with only black details left. Use this for compass training.	Compass
Reduced map training	Make a course on a reduced map, where the reduced map is made by removing many details. For example, you can have a map with only vegetation details left.	Map reading, Map understanding, Map contact
Remove map between controls	Exercise for compass orienteering in which the area between controls is erased using OCAD or drawn black using a covering marker pen. You need to relocate with the features available when you come into the part with map.	Compass, Relocation
Route choice testing	Course with many long legs with route choice alternatives. The time for the different routes are compared. See below for several variants. Comparing GPS tracks after the training is a very good way to evaluate the training.	Route choice
Route to Christmas	The Route to Christmas series gives you a lot of Route Choice cases to solve. You first get to see a leg without routes, and then the routes of the runners.	Route choice, Theoretical exercise, Route planning
Run on simplification map	You get a map in which only the details which are needed for the orienteering are included. This exercise should be followed up with comparison of the full map and the simplified map, and an exercise where you shall draw your own simplification map.	Simplification
Small circle – Big circle	A course is given, and for each control in the course, there is a small ring denoting the attackpoint. In the forest, the attackpoint is marked by an orienteering flag, and the real control is only mared using a piece of paper. The runner shall run with relatively high speed to the attackpoint, and then continue carefully to the control.	Simplification, Attackpoints, Inside the control circle
Speed adaption O-intervals	Interval training on map in which the first part of each interval is very easy orienteering (typically one long leg with only straight road/path) – the second part tricky orienteering (slow speed). Run high speed in the easy part, and adapt speed to orienteering in the second part. Especially good as sprint training by simulating the change between urban and forest orienteering in a sprint race.	Overspeed orienteering, Sprint orienteering, Speed adaption
Step counting	Distance evaluation through step counting. Measure a distance on the map (e.g. 100 meters), and run the same distance in different terrain types and count your steps. Repeat until you get familiar with how many steps you need for a certain distance.	Distance evaluation, GPS evaluation
Straight line orienteering	Straight lines are drawn between objects on a normal map. Use compass to go straight between the controls while reading the map along the line. For skilled orienteers, run at high intensity. Both compass and map reading exercise.	Compass, Map reading

All of the exercises are sorted on type here:

• Orienteering Exercises at o-training.net