Technique, tactics and psychology – what does preparation for a shooting competition look like?

Athletes competing in shooting competitions of any rank must properly train all physical, technical, and mental aspects. How do they do it?

Shooter’s equipment

Routine competitors taking part in shooting competitions emphasize that proper preparation should start with a simple checklist. It allows the shooter to check all the most necessary equipment, such as the carbine, shotgun, mat, glove, reloading shuttle, made notes on measuring the hit zones, wipes for cleaning optics, scope, tripod, target changing equipment, cylinder and a set of keys for the carbine. In addition to the presence of individual pieces of equipment, it is worth checking their efficiency to reduce the risk of problems directly during the competition.

What technical parameters should be practiced during shooting training?

Shooting is a sport that relies on a perfect combination of hand and eye dexterity. Therefore, during the trainings preparing for the shooting competitions it is necessary to work mainly on motor coordination skills, balance, muscle feeling and perception.

The intensity of the effort is low and mainly relies on respiratory efficiency and the ability to control breathing in key moments of the competition, so more attention should be paid to shooting technique, precision, perceptiveness, depth of vision, the ability to correctly assess the distance, speed and direction of each movement. All these elements specialists call kinetic, balance and tactile sensitivity.

Accurate shooting depends on the ability to maximally focus and stabilize the weapon in the hand, so the athlete should pay attention to the control of emotional arousal, which is the mental side of preparation.

Shooting and the psychological aspect

Experts emphasize that an important element of training in preparation for shooting competitions is the issue of proper mentality. Shooting is one of those sports that require the athlete to have maximum focus for a short period of time. It can be said that the shooter has to disconnect from the surrounding reality for a moment and concentrate only on the task at hand.

Such uncontrollable factors as arousal, accompanying emotions, pressure or general tension are preceded by years of practice and sometimes even the help of a specialist. Within the training itself, relaxation exercises, meditation sessions or yoga can be helpful. The athlete should work on the ability to maintain concentration, proper motivation and control of the nervous system.

Tactical preparation in shooting

An important aspect of the training to prepare for a shooting competition is to work on proper tactics. It includes solutions to help adhere to the rules and regulations of the competition, mastering the ability to adjust the weapon to the shooting stance and the use of auxiliary equipment, conducting the game in changing weather conditions, adapting to unexpected situations during the course of the competition, and maintaining focus on firing a shot at the right moment.

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