With more people looking for activities for their days off, a variety of hobbies are coming to light, spanning categories like sports, lifestyles, and even more intense activities such as shooting.
For shooting hobbyists or beginners, progress for improvement has nowhere to go but up. If you’re looking for tips on how to improve your speed and accuracy in shooting, this article is for you.
Mind your stance and grip.
Starting from the bottom up, make sure both feet are firm on the ground and shoulder-width apart. Then, up to your hands, hold the firearm tightly. Having a good stance and grip allows you to control your reaction to the recoil that will ensue after pulling the trigger.
Try breathing exercises.
Funny how the slightest inhale or exhale of breath can move your gun off-target. Controlling your breathing increases your chance of shooting accurately. Incorporating breathing into your shooting practice is pretty challenging, but it’s not impossible with practice. To get you started, here are some breathing techniques recommended by The Silencer Central Team:
- Shoot when you naturally pause – which is the time you take between after exhaling and before inhaling the next breath.
- Shoot while holding a breath. To do this, inhale first, then just exhale halfway, and then hold it. Take your shot, and then continue exhaling and breathe normally.
- Breathe with your stomach. They say to move your diaphragm toward your stomach to redirect your breathing motion away from your chest and shoulders, minimizing movement on your arms and hands.
Eyes on the prize.
Once you’ve got your feet and hands in a good position, it’s time to lock your eyes on the target. First, figure out if you’re more comfortable with looking with one eye or both eyes open. Then, focus on the front sight and line up the target. Finally, whenever you’re ready, press the trigger slowly
Practice by “dry-fire”.
If you didn’t know, dry firing means firing a gun without ammo in the chamber. When you pull the trigger, you’ll only hear a clicking sound – no shots fired. Many folks say it’s a way of learning how to control your hand and arm muscles while staying locked on the target. Two things to remember about dry-fire is that not all guns are designed for dry-firing and that excessive dry firing could cause damage to any gun over time.
Make use of accessories.
Last but not least, consider using helpful accessories. Once you’ve mastered the first four tips, using tools that enhance focus can make a big difference. One accessory we highly recommend is the 22LR Speed Tubes—efficient speed loaders designed specifically for tube-fed rifles.
This reloading device helps reload your rifle 7x faster than manual reloading. This is perfect for folks who want to work on their speed and accuracy while practicing in the range. Learn more about the speed tubes here! There are many other accessories you can use other than this including optics, grips, sling mounts, and more.
Final Thoughts
Practicing your shooting skills is not only exhilarating but also helps sharpen your mind, train your attention to detail, and connect you with new people. While firing can be an exciting and rewarding hobby, let's always remember that it requires responsibility and care. Enjoy it, but always stay safe!
