We’ll show you exactly how to create a high-performance cognitive training plan using Soma Analytics. Follow along step-by-step to build a customized program in just minutes!

Designing an effective cognitive training plan is key to optimizing athlete performance. The Soma Analytics Plan Builder is a powerful tool that makes it easy to create tailored cognitive training programs.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the entire process—from setting up your plan to customizing drills—so you can build a structured, effective training program from scratch. Let’s get started!

Name Your Plan

Save the Plan As

We suggest setting up all your sessions first, configuring the scales for the athlete to complete after each task, enabling MoM mode, and naming each session before you start designing the plan.

Create Session

Click on “Add Session” to create a new session.

Name Each Session:

Use names like “Baseline”, “Session 1”, “Session 2”, etc.

Typical Session Layout:

Set Session Cycles

Determine how many times the athlete should repeat a session by entering a value in the “Cycles” field. By default, it is set to 1 cycle.

Recommendation: Set session cycles to 1 for all sessions. If you enable Baseline Comparison, it will automatically set cycles to 2, ensuring the athlete completes the same baseline test at both the start and end of the plan.”

Add Scales

Enhance session feedback by selecting scales from the dropdown menu.

Examples of Scales:

Activate Baseline Comparison (Optional)

Turn on Baseline Comparison to automatically generate and send reports after post-baseline tests. This should only be enabled for baseline sessions.

Note: Enabling this feature automatically sets session cycles to 2, so athletes complete the same baseline test at both the start and end of the plan for accurate comparisons.

Enable Minute-on-Minute Mode (Optional)

For detailed performance analysis, enable “Minute-on-Minute” tracking for each session.

Now that all your sessions are set up, it’s time to design the training plan.

Placement

Decide when you want your athletes to perform their cognitive training:

Soma’s dynamic menu adapts based on your selected placements. If you assign tasks only to “In-Session,” the other two menus will remain hidden within Soma NPT, ensuring athletes always know when to complete their cognitive training.

💡 Tip: You can leave notes for your athlete, but ensure the block contains tasks—otherwise, the note won’t be visible.
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Add Drill to Session

Click on “Add Drill” and select the task.

Set Parameters:

Repeat this process until the session is complete.

Once you’re satisfied with the session, click “Add Session” and repeat the process until the entire plan is complete.

💡 Tip: We recommend designing your athletes’ cognitive training program by consistently repeating a core set of sessions—Session 1, Session 2, and Session 3. Each week, you can either progressively increase the load or vary it through undulating periodization by adjusting the intensity, duration, or frequency.

💡 Tip: If you want to analyze the baseline data before completing all other sessions, we recommend setting up the session names and scales, and enabling MoM (Minute-on-Minute) mode. This preparation will save you time. After reviewing the baseline data, simply return to the plan and continue building it.

👉 How to Design an Effective Cognitive Training Plan

👉 Learn about all of Soma's training modes—when to use them and why

To Schedule the Plan:

📝 All plans are automatically saved as you create them. To find a saved plan, check the Active tab if it’s been assigned to a user. If it hasn’t been assigned to anyone, look in the Inactive tab.

🚨 Deleting Sessions – Important Warning 🚨

If you delete a session that has already been completed by a user (or multiple users), all data from that session will be permanently lost.

⚠️ This action cannot be undone. Once deleted, the data cannot be recovered.

Create a Baseline Session, followed by three core sessions (Session 1, Session 2, and Session 3).

Duplicate each core session, adjusting the duration or intensity as needed for progression.

Follow this naming pattern for a 12-session plan:

Baseline Session

Duplicate Session 1 three times

→ Rename as Session 4, Session 7, and Session 10

Duplicate Session 2 three times

→ Rename as Session 5, Session 8, and Session 11

Duplicate Session 3 three times

→ Rename as Session 6, Session 9, and Session 12

We suggest reordering the sessions first and then periodizing the plan.

Once you’ve adjusted the intensity and/or duration, click the Periodization button to view the entire plans structure..

If you prefer not to use the duplication method above, you can use the copy-and-paste approach instead. Simply create 12 blank sessions and name them as you wish. Start by setting up your three core sessions, then copy and paste each session into the desired position, making adjustments as needed. The choice is yours!

We have created a PDF of plans designed to serve as guidelines, helping you get started with Soma quickly and effectively. These plans offer a flexible framework for structuring a program, allowing you to adapt task placement, duration, intensity, and periodization to meet the unique needs of your athletes.

📥 Download

If you’ve filled up the Plan Builder and can’t see the full dropdown menu, make sure to scroll down.

Task Settings

Task Selection

A cycle determines how many times an athlete should repeat a session.

Setting Cycles for Different Sessions

Baseline Sessions: Set at 2 cycles to ensure the athlete completes a baseline test at the start of the training plan and repeats the same session at the end for comparison.

Standard Training Sessions: Typically set at 1 cycle per session to allow cognitive load adjustments in the following weeks.

Priming Sessions: If an athlete needs to repeat a session for priming or other specific purposes, set the cycle accordingly.

Mental Fatigue Monitoring: Set at 31 cycles to track cognitive readiness on a daily basis.

Example Layouts

Traditional Training Structure

• Baseline Session: Cycles: 2

• Sessions 1–12: Cycles per session: 1

Training with Priming Sessions

• Baseline Session: Cycles: 2

• Sessions 1–12: Cycles per session: 1

• Priming Session: Cycles: 12 (Performed before events or training as needed)

Training with Mental Fatigue Monitoring

• Baseline Session: Cycles: 2

• Sessions 1–12: Cycles per session: 1

• Priming Session: Cycles: 12 (Performed before events or training as needed)

• Mental Fatigue Monitoring: Cycles: 31 (Performed daily)

All plans are automatically saved as you create them. To find a saved plan, check the Active tab if it’s been assigned to a user. If it hasn’t been assigned to anyone, look in the Inactive tab.

Go to My Plans. If the plan has been assigned to a user, it will be in the Active tab. If it hasn’t been assigned to anyone, you’ll find it in the Inactive tab.

Both the PVT-B and PFTT are powerful tools designed to monitor mental fatigue, but their applications differ based on specific training objectives.

PVT-B/PVT (Psychomotor Vigilance Task -Brief)

The PVT-B/PVT is most effectively used when the primary goal is to monitor mental fatigue. This test is specifically designed to assess how mental fatigue affects cognitive alertness and reaction times. By administering the PVT-B/PVT, you can gain detailed insights into an athlete's mental fatigue levels and overall cognitive readiness, making it an essential tool for evaluating how well an athlete can maintain focus and respond to stimuli under conditions of mental strain.

When to Use the PVT-B/PVT

Example of PVT in Action

In the video example below, you can see how challenging the training session was.

📍 At the Start (21:19) – Fresh & Focused

📍 At the End (22:30) – Mentally Fatigued

By monitoring PVT-B/PVT data, you can see that the session was challenging enough to induce mental fatigue. Ideally, you’d want to see PVT-B/PVT return to baseline levels by the next session. If pre-session values rise over the week, this may indicate the athlete needs more recovery time.

Keeping an eye on mental fatigue levels with the PVT-B/PVT is a quick and effective test. We recommend tracking PVT-B/PVT over at least a month to establish a normal baseline for your athletes and adjust training loads accordingly.

PVT-B vs PVT

The Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) and PVT-B both measure sustained attention and reaction time, but they differ in key aspects:

Duration:

Lapse Threshold:

Interstimulus Interval (ISI) – Delay Between Stimuli:

PVT-B is designed for quicker assessments with a higher cognitive load due to reduced response time, while the full PVT provides a more comprehensive evaluation of vigilance over a longer period.

What Is a Lapse?

Lapses are key indicators of mental fatigue in athletes. They represent moments when an athlete responds much slower than usual, often due to a lack of focus. When mental fatigue sets in, athletes tend to have slower reaction times, more variation in their responses, and a higher number of lapses. Therefore, tracking lapses helps measure mental fatigue. If the number of lapses increases, it’s a warning to pay closer attention to the athlete’s data.

Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT)

The psychomotor vigilance test assesses sustained attention and is currently the gold standard in fatigue detection.

🔗 Psychomotor Vigilance Test

🔗 Number of Lapses during the Psychomotor Vigilance Task as an Objective Measure of Fatigue

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