Effective Firearm Training
Like so many things in life, training is an essential part of getting better with a firearm. Maybe you have aspirations of going competitive. Maybe you want to learn how to shoot while moving? Or maybe you just want to become more proficient with a new gun.
No matter where you fall on the shooter spectrum the training tips below can help you reach your goals.
Train With Someone at a Higher Skill Level
This piece of advice works for any skill. When you train with someone who’s better than you are it helps to elevate your own skill level. They serve as an example of how to use correct form, they have the fundamentals down and they can share what they’ve learned that helped them improve their skillset.
Establish a Training Schedule
Regularity is the key to effective training. It’s difficult to build your skillset with sporadic training sessions because you won’t develop muscle memory and it’s easy to forget what you learned if it’s been more than a few weeks.
Establishing a weekly training schedule can keep things consistent enough to see gains in a reasonable amount of time. Having a regular training time also makes it easier to fit it into your schedule since training is the same week after week.
Practice With Purpose
Many elite athletes want to maximize every minute of their training so they practice with purpose. What does that mean? It means that they set clear, measurable goals for their training sessions.
For firearms training, pick a skill that you want to work on, like loading and unloading, then focus only on that during the session. You can also practice with purpose by setting a quantifiable goal, such as hitting the bullseye 25 times.
When you approach training this way how much time is spent isn’t what’s important. It’s what you do in the time that you train.
Take It One Skill at a Time
It’s impossible to learn or refine everything at once. The more effective solution is to focus on one skill at a time. Think about your overall goal then work backward breaking it down into skill segments. Using this method you’ll identify the basic skills you have to learn first in order to reach a big goal.
Keep a Training Log
A training log helps you keep track of everything. You can use it to jot down your goals, plan out purposeful practice sessions, note what is done each training session and notate things you learn or discover along the way. Even if you have a great memory, chances are you’ll miss things along the way if they aren’t written down. Plus, writing down your goals increases your odds of reaching them.
Ready to take your shooting skills to the next level? The Gunslinger Academy focuses on progressive training to build both general firearm skills and those needed for competitive shooting. Work your way from Gunslinger to Gunslinger Pro to Gunslinger Master!
Join Grand Master USPCA shooter, Jason Brinkley in a training program that will increase your skill level, confidence, and love for shooting.
