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Breathing and one handed pistol shooting
- Thread starter FrommerStop
- Start date
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Rebel_Rider1969
Well Known Nuisance
who needs to aim? I've got 33 shots....
wildrider666
Master
B.R.A.S.S., its fine when you got the time. Urgent situations won't wait for your breathing cycle to get to that period of Zen harmony.
I am fine for knocking down pins or plates fast. especially if I can use both hands on the gun. Does not require the same degree of accuracy and normally I use both hands and if it was urgent I would likely be behind cover. If not I would be moving.
The precision I require is: For the B-6 target at 50 yards, the X-ring is about 1.7 inches and the 10 ring is 3.36 inches.
Proper technique is always good to master.
Some of the best action pistol shots that I knew were expert also in bullseye. It will not harm your shooting score on steel or ability to kill if you train properly. Someone that only does bullseye shooting will be way too slow and will not have much in the way of draw and other skills.
For Combat it will not hurt to be ambidextrous and capable of shooting one handed in case of injuries and also to get the maximum protective use out of cover. I can not do it now, but there was a time that I could hit a pin at 50 ft from the hip using the body to aim.
USAF Sarge
Marksman
I practice in several ways when pistol shooting.
Two handed.
Single handed, strong hand.
Single handed, weak hand.
Aimed.
Non-aimed.
I'll also lay the gun on the shooting bench, look at the target, quickly pick up the gun and squeeze off two rounds. This shows how my shots group, and how my good or bad my quick aim is. I use this to see how my shooting would be if I grabbed my gun and quickly fired two rounds in a self defense situation.
As said breathing control is great for target shooting, hunting etc, but all that is thrown out the window if you are trying to defend yourself all of a sudden.
In most instances a self defense shooting will be close range, so when I practice this I'll have the target no further than 25 feet, then move it in to 20 feet etc. My mentality is that when I was in the military it was pounded into our heads practice like it's for real.
So I practice like I would shoot in a self defense situation. Just my two cents.
Two handed.
Single handed, strong hand.
Single handed, weak hand.
Aimed.
Non-aimed.
I'll also lay the gun on the shooting bench, look at the target, quickly pick up the gun and squeeze off two rounds. This shows how my shots group, and how my good or bad my quick aim is. I use this to see how my shooting would be if I grabbed my gun and quickly fired two rounds in a self defense situation.
As said breathing control is great for target shooting, hunting etc, but all that is thrown out the window if you are trying to defend yourself all of a sudden.
In most instances a self defense shooting will be close range, so when I practice this I'll have the target no further than 25 feet, then move it in to 20 feet etc. My mentality is that when I was in the military it was pounded into our heads practice like it's for real.
So I practice like I would shoot in a self defense situation. Just my two cents.
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USAF Sarge
Marksman
Oh I forgot this.
I also mix in dummy rounds to simulate failures, so that I can practice racking the slide back to clear a dud, failure to feed etc. I might mix two or three dummy rounds in each magazine, then I'll skip a magazine. That way I don't know when or if I'll get the dummy, I just make sure it's not the first or last round in the magazine.
Great tool when teaching others to shoot also.
I also mix in dummy rounds to simulate failures, so that I can practice racking the slide back to clear a dud, failure to feed etc. I might mix two or three dummy rounds in each magazine, then I'll skip a magazine. That way I don't know when or if I'll get the dummy, I just make sure it's not the first or last round in the magazine.
Great tool when teaching others to shoot also.
Makes good sense. What is your objective.
For combat:
You need to practice also under conditions when you can not see your sights. I was taught to call it meat on the metal. It should not be non-aimed unless it is point blank. You are still sighting over the gun, but the precision will obviously not be there. Under some conditions you may actually be able to hit better single handed if you learn to properly point your gun the same way you point you finger with the hand slightly off from a 90 degrees, but not the stupid full homie position.
Many self defense incidents occur after sunset and at close range, often by surprise or with very little time to react.
The bullseye shooting is much of an ego thing in being able to accurately shoot in the classical manner. My point is you will not be at a disadvantage for doing it assuming you practice the other fundamentals. It can be useful if you have use an RMR and are head shooting a terrorist. But most of us do not deal with that kind terrorist that must be head shot.
Any training course they typically will take your mag and put dummy rounds in the mag. But you are getting a warning so it is not the same as in real life.
I need to drill in that go and through the entire sequence.
What is your objective. Mine in the OP was hitting the 10 ring at 50 yards offhand. What you are telling me will not help me with that objective.
USAF Sarge
Marksman
I was taught the finger thing by my dad, he also taught me the center mass thing for self defense.
Back sometime between 68-71 my dad killed an intruder when we were stationed at Sheppard AFB, Texas (We were living off base). My dad popped around the corner, pointed the gun center mass and squeezed two rounds off.
Talk about a mess, the rounds hit the guy in each nipple pretty much. My dad was using a 44 Magnum loaded with hollow points.
My goal is to be able to put two rounds center mass as quickly and accurately as I can. As always, the center mass is a bigger target, they even taught us that in the Air Force.
So if I can consistently put two rounds center mass, when I train, regardless of which hand, technique or position I use, I'm happy. Because unless a home intruder, or the person assaulting me on the street is wearing body armor, it's going slow them down if not stop them.
USAF Sarge
Marksman
For target shooting breathing control keeps you from yo-yoing your rounds up and down the target. Now as for holding it, don't know whether it was correct or not (Different instructors, different techniques), but we were taught to pick either way, to breath out and hold or breath in and hold before pulling the trigger.
I would breath in, hold and squeeze off two or three rounds, then breath a breathe or two then repeat.
The thing is, to find which one works better for you. Some people fire one round per breath hold, I fire two or three. Some people hold their breath after inhaling some when exhaling. Try the different ways, find the way that works best and then practice that way from that point on.
We all have our special quirks when shooting.......I've seen some goofy ones, but if it works who am I to judge.
I would breath in, hold and squeeze off two or three rounds, then breath a breathe or two then repeat.
The thing is, to find which one works better for you. Some people fire one round per breath hold, I fire two or three. Some people hold their breath after inhaling some when exhaling. Try the different ways, find the way that works best and then practice that way from that point on.
We all have our special quirks when shooting.......I've seen some goofy ones, but if it works who am I to judge.
High stress will drop your point of aim, too. Seen it at IDPA. People wind up point shooting and before you know it theres no holes in the targets and all sorts of impact craters in the dirt in front of the targets. Can be because of a bad grip angle, too. So try a different pistol with a different grip angle
USAF Sarge
Marksman
Real good points there.......
If you have a pulse/oxygen meter, you can put it on and watch what happens when you breathe a few times and then hold it. For me, if I breathe deeply in and out three times, and then fully in and hold it, my pulse will drop 10-20 bpm and my oxygen level will increase 1-3 percent for 15 seconds or so, which is sufficient to break a slow fire shot or complete a timed fire string. On slow fire, I raise and try to settle the gun when I am taking the three breaths, and then build up steadily increasing pressure on the trigger once I breathe in and hold. When I am trying to break the shot, most of my concious effort is going toward holding still and just moving my trigger finger, and remembering to put the gun down if the movement increases or my vision blurs.
Rebel_Rider1969
Well Known Nuisance
Also the changeable back straps everyone makes fun of come in handy for naturally pointing the firearm. Ymmv
A man in excellent physical condition and with mental training can get the heart beat down to 50 per minute. Might make it easier to shoot between the beats. Laying prone in a relaxed position is not quite the same as standing.
there are many relaxed positions the long distanced shooters of old used. I think in such positions one could be aware of body functions and take that into account when shooting.
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