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Good exercises to build a stable "on the move" shooting platfo


kcobean

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As I progress in this sport, I've realized that the method of "run, stop, shoot, run, stop, shoot" is not going to get me to the level I want to be. I've watched lots of videos of the top competitors and one common theme seems to be that in *most* field course, there is very little static shooting.

So, I was wondering what exercises people are doing to both physically and mentally increase the ability to see (and all that goes with it) and take shots while moving.

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Personally I use the run, stop, run, stop technique. I know it is flawed but I primarily shoot production. What I have seen with this is that the time in between the stop and shoot is too slow. Practice getting that sight picture as you get into a shooting position should shave some time off.

Or you can just grab your empty gun, focus on that front sight and take a few steps. Watch that sight and try to get that thing to not bounce. Small steps help as well as rolling your steps.

Hope it helps.

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  • 5 weeks later...

I just read this in one of the books, (Matt Burkett's?) he suggested gripping a half full bottle of water like you do your pistol, then practice moving with it, nd see how still you can keep the surface of the water.

Add some red food coloring to the water to make it more visible.

Pat

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  • 3 weeks later...

If you have access to a tread mill use it either with the water (if a public place) or if you have private use dry fire or airsoft from it. The airsoft is particularly useful as you get instant feedback as to how stable you are holding the gun on target.

Here is another post with some video of me using a tread mill. The good thing about it is you can get a huge amount of reps in a short period of time.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=157154&hl=

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I do a lot of leg work, in my workouts . . . barbell squats, calf extensions, glute kick backs. I like to think stronger legs give me a more stable platform. I believe it helps more in the running game though . . . more speed, starting and stopping quickly.

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I do a lot of leg work, in my workouts . . . barbell squats, calf extensions, glute kick backs. I like to think stronger legs give me a more stable platform. I believe it helps more in the running game though . . . more speed, starting and stopping quickly.

Wouldn't doing more core workouts offer a better platform since having a strong base is fine and all but if your center is not right then it all falls apart?

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I'm old-fashioned I guess. I've gotten a lot better at shooting while moving by dry-firing while moving, and then mixing it live-fire while moving. If you can walk you can walk while shooting.

Most dry-fire sessions I do at least a little bit of forward, backward or sideways movement while holding the sights on target and pulling the trigger. It's pretty easy to figure out what walking style works.

I still suck at shooting on the move, but I've improved enough that now I look for opportunities where I can shoot coming into a position or moving out of a position, or if it's a long movement, find something to shoot on the way while still having time to reload.

Edited by motosapiens
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  • 2 weeks later...

+1 on the squats, calf work, etc. Builds burst and stop speed, stability and endurance for a long day at the range. Along with barbell training of upper body, I add forearm strength training with simulated draw using weight plates to build strength. During a 3 gun stage where pistol follows shotgun you'll see how light the pistol feel, same idea.

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I am a product of the boxes, ports, and doors era of IPSC and am not a good on-the-move shooter, but have been working on it this past year and have gotten somewhat better. What helped me a lot was watching the GMs on youtube and the local GMs, and realizing that nearly all are getting their CG down a little by bending/crouching their legs which helps to keep a quiet upper body as they maneuver around the COF. The parallel to this in my mind was snow skiing (I didn't always live in Florida!) where you want to keep facing down the fall line while keeping a quiet upper body with your legs doing all of the work. In USPSA I equate the "fall line" as rotating to address each target as I move through the COF. Chris Tilley is a great example of this and this vid is a good comparison.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE2go2TjHK8

As for exercises, maybe look at what mogul skiers are doing with leg and core strength/endurance workouts and tailor them to fit your needs. The water bottle exercise seems like a good one for learning to keep a quiet upper body as you move around.

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The problem with run stop shoot is that every time I stop I need to set my feet to shoot which takes some time. I try to continuously move as I shoot which means I suffer a little in accuracy but the time I make up helps me more. When I was in the military in training and advanced training I was assigned the task of teaching the basket cases how to run to pass the fitness test. Most were plenty strong enough to do it but wasted too much energy bouncing up and down. Keeping your hips level and using energy to move forward is paramount in distance running and when I got to the run and gun courses I found that shooting on the move was easy because we were not bouncing but "skittering". Moving directly at and away from targets as much as possible makes hitting easier too. I still run and do sprints (with the hips level, heel toe), work with an AB wheel, pushups and weights. Live fire is very important to build confidence that you can actually hit the target too. Learning to breath and control your breathing is important too. On a long course some guys tend to hold their breath and get dizzy and pant afterwards.

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Not sure I buy your premise that you need to learn to shoot on the move to get better ... While there are certainly times when shooting on the move is better it's not as often as you think. Here's a simple litmus test to determine what skills you should be working on to see improvement ....

Look at the goal times in Ben Stoeger's latest book for his core skills drills. If you are unable to get close to theses times then movement ain't your problem .... You need to learn better fundamental USPSA marksmanship skills ... Which is the ability to shoot accuractly at speed. All these drills are stand and shoot drills so if you can't shoot them accuractly enough at speed, what makes you think you 'll become a better shooter when you add in the movement element?

Most folks ego can't handle this harsh reality and they just go back to working on movement stuff believing that this is the path to M/GM .... Well it ain't.

Ben put me on the right path back in Oct. I checked my ego at the door, dumped my entire training program that I had been following for the last year and basically started over with his marksmenship drills and core skill drills ... And that's when the amazing changes started to happen ....

Oh, and one more thing, Moto is right .... You can, and MUST work on all this stuff in dry fire, that's how you will see the big gains take shape ... 5 dry fire trigger pulls for every 1 live fire trigger pull if you want to see big improvements ...

Didn't mean to lecture anyone but I read this kind of stuff all the time and when I ask folks about their stand and shoot skills I usually hear they are maybe in the 60s on classifiers and that's it.

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+1

I too have learned that sometimes when it's so tempting to shoot stuff on the move, it can actually be faster and/or increase the likely hood of better hits to come to a stop and shoot. I went through a phase which probably lasted the 1st couple of years in USPSA when I thought everything had to be shot on the move. It took a while for it to sink in and it was a gradual learning curve to balance risk versus reward when considering shooting something on the move. The reward also includes the time taken to insure good hits. The notion that it can actually take longer to shoot targets on the move was the hardest thing to understand and accept. Of course, this all depends on the distance of the targets, the angle of the targets in relation to your path, and your shooting level.

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  • 4 weeks later...

To answer you question, which I saw alluded to in one of the answers. Core is key to everything. If you can do it, P90X, P90X2 and the like are great for getting into outstanding core shape. It is not only core, but plyometric training that help with balance and understanding your body in motion. I would recommend that if you are not ready to jump into them 100%, just do 1 rotation, and follow the modified exercises. It will take a little time to get there, but if you keep pushing it will come together.

I do also like the Matt Burkett exercise of moving with the water bottle, if you can keep it flat while moving, you have it. Heel, toe going forward, toe, heel going backwards. Try not to cross your legs, don't want to trip with a gun in your hands.

Good luck!

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  • 4 weeks later...

Core and balance oriented exercises. Also you can never go wrong with practice. Building a good foundation strength wise is important but for shooting on the move, nothing will beat going to the range and doing just that.

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  • 1 year later...
  • 5 months later...

work on glutes, functional movement, stability and balance if you improve these areas you will improve in your shooting seek a good trainer that can evaluate you current level and build a program to get you in the right direction and reevaluate every 6 weeks or so.

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  • 2 years later...
On 3/31/2014 at 9:56 PM, kylehb said:

Core and balance oriented exercises. Also you can never go wrong with practice. Building a good foundation strength wise is important but for shooting on the move, nothing will beat going to the range and doing just that.

Definitely, core strength and practice!

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