How to Practice ...

I have found that the key to competitive shooting is REPETITION !!! Being able to execute a motor skill without thinking about it, allows you to focus on other tasks. So dry fire practice, focused range time, and keeping a logbook is very important in your training program. Draws, reloads, transitions, and set ups can all be done without firing a round. So this give you time to work on trigger control, recoil management, target arrays, and target transitions at the range.

Dry Firing 

Please make sure that you have NO LIVE AMMO around during dry fire !!

In the beginning, I did not have a timer to set par times. So I used a website that gave me an object to aim at and a timer to use. That website was Predator Tactical. Every stage you shoot starts with a  beep. Using the timer in practice allows you to work on "jumping" off the timer. In the following videos, I use a timer to set a par time on my draw and reload. Find a spot on the wall and draw to that spot. By the time the second beep goes off you should have the gun on target, sight in focus, and the trigger prepped. If one of those three things does not happen in your prescribed time, then make the time longer. Once you can make all three (gun on target, sight in focus, and trigger prepped) happen, that's when you lower the time. Start high and work your way down. In order to make yourself run faster, set the timer down to .80 and try to beat the clock.

When working on reloads, start with a magazine in the gun and the gun pointed at a target. When the buzzer sounds, reload and bring the gun back up on target. Pay attention to make sure that once the new magazine is in the gun, you are prepping the trigger and finding the sight in focus as you extend to fire on the target. Here is speed reload with the par time of 1.20 seconds

Live Fire Practice

When at the range, make the most of your time. The most important thing I did at the range, was keep a log of everything I did. All the skill sets I work on and the time it takes me to execute a skill were all recorded. Knowing where you are now compared to where you were 6 months before will give you positive re enforcement that you are improving. If you find that you are not improving, then its time to make a change. 

Every time you get the chance to go to the range, have a plan of what you are going to do. This way your not wasting time wondering what you should work on. I break each skill set down to its simplest form. Take target transitions for example, I practice leaving a target and entering a target. I start with 1 round at a time and build to 2 rounds per target. I take it as far down as leaving the target as soon as I pull the trigger, associating the movement of the gun with the pull of the trigger. I try to find as many ways as I can to work on just that skill set. Building speed with accuracy on each run. 

Another thing I set up in practice is shooting target arrays. I set up no more than 3 targets and arrange them in different configurations. I find the fastest way to shoot the array and then I find the way I like to run it. So when faced in a match with an array, I have confidence in how I can best shoot it. If you break down any USPSA or IDPA stage, you are usually faced with 2 or 3 targets in an array before you have to move positions. So finding out how you like to shoot the targets, will start to play to your strength in a match. I'm always open to peoples suggestions on how to shoot an array, but I'm always going to fall back on what will maximize my performance. 

I will close with this.... Take a class from a professional shooter !!! I have been fortunate enough to train with some of the best in the business. You can always take away something to help improve your skills.