TRAIN LIKE AN ATHLETE

Applying Sports Psychology and Biomechanics to Firearms Training

- Matthew Little

From the time I was a young soldier, I was determined to master my craft — especially shooting. I spent countless hours of my own time shooting, dry-firing, and researching in my quest to get better. And I did get better. I became a good enough shooter to more than hold my own among my peers. But it wasn’t until many years later, when I started competing in shooting sports, that I started to understand what good actually was, and found my skill level increasing exponentially. The reason for my “leveling up” after so many years was that I was now training my shooting less like a soldier and more like an athlete.

I wasn’t satisfied though. So, I started researching again. I trained with as many top competitors as I could, read up on athletic performance and sports psychology, on current research into learning and mastery, and over time pieced together a system of training that gave me steady improvements in shooting skill. There’s only so much improvement an intermediate to advanced shooter can make in a weekend class. But if that same student learns how to structure their own training more effectively, they can continue to improve long after the class is done.

One Thing at a Time