Pistol Stamina

My practice sessions lately involve shooting about 100 plus rounds of .45 ACP.  It's becoming obvious to me that my performance is much better in the beginning compared to the last rounds fired.  I'm having to force myself to cut practices short because of a concern for diminishing returns.  What do you guys do to increase your stamina if afflicted with the same problem?

Dry fire more
I don't like to end a live fire session on a low note, since I never throw one out of the ten ring in dry fire practice I do that longer.
I also have an air pistol set up with a trigger that approximates my .45 which reaffirms that most of the problems occur between the ears.

Sounds like the best time to really focus on the trigger and sights or target (if using a dot).  You'll be very tired at the end of a day long 2700.  Focusing on fundamentals while in that state during practice should help you when you compete.

STEVE SAMELAK wrote:Dry fire more
I don't like to end a live fire session on a low note, since I never throw one out of the ten ring in dry fire practice I do that longer.
I also have an air pistol set up with a trigger that approximates my .45 which reaffirms that most of the problems occur between the ears.

Outstanding ideas Steve, especially the air pistol!  I have a ton of space on our 10 acre property, even a 2000 plus sq. ft. barn/workshop that I could practice with the air pistol at home.  Is the air pistol that helpful with the 1911 or bullseye in general?  What pistol do you use and what do you recommend?

I'm using a Baikal but I think there are several that are shaped more like a 1911
Using the airgun has forced me to have good follow thru.  Small mistakes are emphasized but pellets are relatively cheap.
All you need is 10 meters & you could probably find an air pistol league.
10 pellets will tell me if my dry firing has been effective.

STEVE SAMELAK wrote:I'm using a Baikal but I think there are several that are shaped more like a 1911
Using the airgun has forced me to have good follow thru.  Small mistakes are emphasized but pellets are relatively cheap.
All you need is 10 meters & you could probably find an air pistol league.
10 pellets will tell me if my dry firing has been effective.

Baikal as in IZH-46M?  I just looked at a video on it.  Very impressive!

RELATIVELY cheap &  does hold the ten ring of a 10 meter target.
If you want to talk stamina...figure about 90 minutes for 60 shots for a registered match

beeser wrote:My practice sessions lately involve shooting about 100 plus rounds of .45 ACP.  It's becoming obvious to me that my performance is much better in the beginning compared to the last rounds fired.  I'm having to force myself to cut practices short because of a concern for diminishing returns.  What do you guys do to increase your stamina if afflicted with the same problem?

Hi Beeser, do you do dry fire and holding training? If not, why not? I'm in the Keith Sanderson

camp about dry fire and holding drills.  I actually exceed his suggested dry fire to live fire ratio.

If you don't know what or whom I'm referring to; Google Keith Sanderson. Best of luck;

Tony

Beeser,

PM me an I will send you my exercise routine, specifically designed by a fitness expert for bullseye.  Fair warning: This is a vigorous 45 minute routine done every other day.  You will still need to do lots of dry fire and practice shooting.

paw080 - I dry fire quite a bit as a separate exercise but also before and in between shots.  I'll Google Keith Sanderson though for more info.  Thanks! 

In the initial post I mentioned that my shot accuracy suffered toward the end.  I suppose it's because of fatigue, which is the reason for the title.  I usually warm up with some shots at 10 yards for a confidence builder and lately I've been able to get 4 out of 5 Xs.  One always seems to get away from me.  I know that's not impressive for most of you but compared to a few months ago that's a vast improvement.  Anyway, I also try to end my practice with more 10 yard shots but accuracy by then obviously goes south.  As mentioned in the beginning I was wondering if anybody else experiences the same effects from fatigue.

beeser wrote:As mentioned in the beginning I was wondering if anybody else experiences the same effects from fatigue.

Yup - pretty much everyone. Especially when we start. You are using muscles (especially in your upper back) that not only don't get used much they get abused by sitting with poor posture. It takes time to work up from that. Yoga will help with posture, balance and concentration. Remember to balance your exercises between opposing muscle pairs. If you have access to a decent swimming pool (at least 25m) then that's an excellent bullseye cardio exercise.

One thing to be aware of (this is anecdotal but it's happened to me and I've heard other shooters mention it) is that if you shoot tired, especially 45, then it increases the chances of tendinitis in the elbow. I suspect because the muscles are no longer absorbing the shock as well and so the tendons are getting overworked.

Bullseye is not a race - it's a marathon.

I'd be curious to know the workout routine as well! I have progressed to the point I think it couldn't do anything but help!
Thanks!

I'll hold an impact wrench up from time to time...mostly dry firing, but it's something I'll mix in every now and then.

Hi

Might I suggest a simple routine to help with fitness as it pertains to our sport and life in general.  It's nothing too strenous nor does it require a big cash outlay (since we want to spend our $$$ on good ammo and equipment right?)

You can do this in your work at break time.  This is something simple you can perform 2-3 times per week(workout both arms by the way!):

• hiptwists with or without a stick-1 set, 25 to 50 reps
  
• ab crunches in a chair rocking back and forth- 1 set, 25 to 50 reps
  
• lateral raise with dumbell(or resistance band) holding at top of rep for 20 seconds(like timed fire) 2-3 sets, 8-15 reps using 1-5 pound dumbell
  
• arm curl with dumbell(or resistance band) 2-3 sets, 8-15 reps using 5-10 pound dumbell
  
• overhead press with dumbell(or resistance bands) 2-3 sets, 8-15 reps using 5-10 pound dumbell
  
• squeezee ball for grip-2-3 sets, 8-15 reps with each hand
  

On off days, walk for 20-30 minutes.  Also go on utube and look up "CHAIR YOGA" for flexibility training.

Good exercise does not have to be overly taxing!  Good luck!

beeser wrote:paw080 - I dry fire quite a bit as a separate exercise but also before and in between shots.  I'll Google Keith Sanderson though for more info.  Thanks! 

In the initial post I mentioned that my shot accuracy suffered toward the end.  I suppose it's because of fatigue, which is the reason for the title.  I usually warm up with some shots at 10 yards for a confidence builder and lately I've been able to get 4 out of 5 Xs.  One always seems to get away from me.  I know that's not impressive for most of you but compared to a few months ago that's a vast improvement.  Anyway, I also try to end my practice with more 10 yard shots but accuracy by then obviously goes south.  As mentioned in the beginning I was wondering if anybody else experiences the same effects from fatigue.

Hi Beeser, By now you know that everyone has experienced fatigue nearing the end

of 60 shots.  The more you dryfire and do hold training, the more stamina will develop

 for you. The second time I returned to 10M AP60 competition, trained with a Diana 6M,

with muzzle weight. That darned pistol weighed within several ounces of the allowable

 maximum!  It didn't take very long until I developed enough strength and stamina

lifting, holding and cocking that recoiless Springer.  It was truly a mini elephant of a pistol.

 Keith Sanderson has done several videos on hold and dry fire drills.

 Here's a good start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=620LlSK3Oyo

Enjoy;

Tony

100:1 Dry fire to actual fire ratio - Absolutely astounding!  I would've never put that much importance on dry fire without seeing the Keith Sanderson video.  Thanks for pointing me in this direction and maybe unintentionally to the other training videos by him.

If you hold train, do not get the idea in your head that it is ok not to pull the trigger.  Separate the act in your head from the shot process.

beeser wrote:100:1 Dry fire to actual fire ratio - Absolutely astounding!  I would've never put that much importance on dry fire without seeing the Keith Sanderson video.  Thanks for pointing me in this direction and maybe unintentionally to the other training videos by him.

Beeser; It was intentional....Tony