WaJim Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 Anybody have any good training Ideas? I've been having / enduring a slump lately. Probably a month or so. My Classifiers have slipped and steel has become frustrating. I'm going to take the weekend off and see if I can get some steel practice but the mental game has slipped as well. I need confidence back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanks Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 Is it accuracy related or speed related? I had a few matches in a row where I did not perform well, friends even commented on it. It took one live fire session of just going for As and focusing to straighten it out. Next match did much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WaJim Posted June 28, 2018 Author Share Posted June 28, 2018 4 minutes ago, tanks said: Is it accuracy related or speed related? I had a few matches in a row where I did not perform well, friends even commented on it. It took one live fire session of just going for As and focusing to straighten it out. Next match did much better. Accuracy...but may be related to speed. I'm not forgetting targets so I figured my speed is ok. The killer like last weekend at Oregon State was the steel at distance greater than 15-20 yds. I seem to forget that two shots should do it...and if it doesn't fall move on. A mike is better than spending ten seconds on a popper. I get caught up...but also have that need in the back of my mind for every stage point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanks Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 Then, it is a relatively easy fix. Go back to fundamentals of seeing what you need to see and focus. A mike roughly is 2-3 seconds depending on the hit factor (-15 points off of your score), so if you have issues at long distance steel then I'd take the extra tenth of a second or so and go for a hit the first time. Also, tells you what you need to practice in dry and live fire for a while . Even if you don't have access to steel you can go for headshots at that distance to practice, also it will tell you if your issue is with lining the sights up or with trigger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WaJim Posted June 28, 2018 Author Share Posted June 28, 2018 5 hours ago, tanks said: Then, it is a relatively easy fix. Go back to fundamentals of seeing what you need to see and focus. A mike roughly is 2-3 seconds depending on the hit factor (-15 points off of your score), so if you have issues at long distance steel then I'd take the extra tenth of a second or so and go for a hit the first time. Also, tells you what you need to practice in dry and live fire for a while . Even if you don't have access to steel you can go for headshots at that distance to practice, also it will tell you if your issue is with lining the sights up or with trigger. Thank you for the advice...I'm taking a break this weekend and will do just that...head shots at 15/20 yds and more. Do you think shooting steel draws your sight picture to the steel...unlike a Paper target (even momentarily) youre looking to see if it falls? I can usually call my shots (within reason) on paper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanks Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 I am a newly minted "B" so not sure. I usually have good success with steel but that is because I focus more on it to make sure I see white everywhere around my sights. On paper the front sight can be high, low, left, right of the rear notch and still get As or close Cs (if far). I have to be more precise with steel especially if it is far away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stick Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 I just went through a similar issue. I'm a "M" in steel challenge I asked a GM for advice. He recommended pyramid training. If you don't know what's holding you back, you can't move forward. For example, Here's what I worked on tonight. I can quickly identify where my opportunities are within a stage. · Outer Limits · .80 par time from low ready to plate #1 · .35 transition from plate #1 to plate #3 1.15 par time (T1) · 2.05 transition from plate #2 to plate #4 3.20 par time (T2) move from box 1 to box 2 · .35 transition from plate #4 to plate #5 3.55 par time (T3) · .45 transition from plate #5 to stop plate 4.0 par time (T4) I know it's different for USPSA, but it could give you a starting point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nalle2491 Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 taking some time off and really thinking about what you need to improve on is probably a good bet. All of us go through slumps. they suck but push through it and keep shooting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter91 Posted August 9, 2018 Share Posted August 9, 2018 Good stuff here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbRex Posted August 28, 2018 Share Posted August 28, 2018 I agree with @tanks, something has become relaxed and its time to get back to the fundamentals. I've been through it before and the best way to fix things is get back to the basics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rougeqc21 Posted August 28, 2018 Share Posted August 28, 2018 I have gone through spells where I am hyper-target focused on steel, and having not practiced shooting that way at distance, I start dropping shots. So, it has been an exercise in making sure that while my eyes drive my transition to a target, I am staying front to mid focused to see an acceptable level of wobble on target before sending a round down range. When I am able to see that wobble, the shot becomes much more instinctive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schaet Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 I'm a lowly 'B' however I have been a coach (and participant) for a myriad assortment of athletics from all the 'Ball' sports to power lifting. (yes power lifting is a sport ) the one common thing among them all is the mental game; the shooting sports are no different. Every athlete gets to a point where they get either get too comfortable (complacent) or way too tense and in both cases fundamentals break down and everything goes awry. Half the time you defeated yourself before you even start. There's nothing worse going into a match/game and having in the back of your mind; "what am I going to screw up this time" or "I hope this isn't another bad stage" and so on .. you get the idea .. How do you combat it? The first step is to figure out what it is that is causing it; are you too comfy or are you getting too tense? and a third option: are you trying to shoot beyond your capabilities? (This ties into getting too comfortable.) As all above mentioned, go back to the fundamentals. Too tense? Start building your confidence back up. Work on one thing and only one thing at a time. Go into a level 1 match with the idea of just having fun, working things out and not trying to win it all. Slow the pace down and make your hits. If you normally hit 37/40 alphas and are now hitting 30/40, well that's the goal, more alphas without worrying about time. Once you start seeing the hits being made your confidence level with start to build back up and you will be 'calling' your shots and not even thinking twice about accuracy. Next step after you're back on the accuracy track is to get that time faster. Work on your draw stroke; is it comfortable? controlled? although this is small you can gain a half to a full second here, over 6-7 stages it adds up. From the draw go to target acquisition .. splits ... transition .. and so on. Again,: isolate each aspect and work on them individually. Too comfortable? Knock it off, you're not that good. if you were you would be getting paid for it and even then you're not number 1 so you still need to improve! (no insult intended; this is more or less me talking to myself when I get cocky, but it is to make a point). Being complacent it just as bad as being tense. To excel is to always improve no matter the level. Your focus and intensity should be always be the same no matter what. Yes I know I just contradicted my previous statement above, but not really. When I say relax and have fun, I mean focus on that one aspect you're working on and enjoy the ride; bottom line is always stay focused, but enjoy it as well. You have the skill set, it may or may not need a bit of refinement (although I think that everyone can always use refinement no matter their level), but the mental game, in my experience, is where athletes suffer the most. I always said that I am my own worst enemy. I defeated myself before I started. I always try to have someone film me. Yeah, they make it up on social media, but the main purpose is so I can analyse myself and watch every aspect of a stage and break down, well the break down of a stage that falls apart. On the flip side, I get to see what I am doing right and that my work is paying off. Go for the 'low hanging fruit' first, then work your way up from there. I've seen less talented players perform better than talented ones all because their metal game was stronger. Sorry if I rambled, but the mental game in competitive sports is particular subject that interests me. Keep at it, you will get through it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greerstyl Posted September 20, 2018 Share Posted September 20, 2018 change your goals for the next few matches, like "no misses no matter how slow" or hit the first shot no matter what, something to change the brain up a little helps get it back straight, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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