Proper Body Position

Your body should form a stable platform for the rifle with minimal muscular tension:

• •
  Align your body behind the rifle with your spine in line with the recoil path
• •
  Keep your shoulders relaxed, not hunched or tense
• •
  Position your support hand under the rifle's forend or on the bipod
• •
  Place your firing hand on the grip with a light, consistent grip pressure

Breathing Control

Proper breathing technique is crucial for consistent accuracy:

• •
  Take several deep breaths to oxygenate your blood before beginning your shot process
• •
  For precision shots, exhale partially and hold at your natural respiratory pause
• •
  Maintain this breathing pause for no more than 8-10 seconds
• •
  If you can't take the shot within this window, reset and start again

Trigger Control

Proper trigger manipulation prevents disrupting sight alignment during the critical moment:

• •
  Place the pad of your finger (not the joint or fingertip) on the trigger
• •
  Take up the slack/first stage pressure
• •
  Apply steady, increasing pressure straight to the rear
• •
  The shot should "surprise" you - don't anticipate or jerk the trigger

Follow-Through

Maintaining your position after the shot ensures consistency:

• •
  Continue looking through the scope after the shot breaks
• •
  Maintain trigger pressure momentarily
• •
  Call your shot - note where your reticle was at the moment of firing
• •
  Observe impact (or where you believe impact occurred)

Basic Dry Fire Routine

1. Set up in your practice area with an appropriate target
2. Establish a stable position (prone, seated, etc.)
3. Acquire your sight picture
4. Work through your breathing cycle
5. Execute a perfect trigger press
6. Follow through and call your shot
7. Reset and repeat

Advanced Dry Fire Exercises

• •
  Wobble Area Reduction - Focus on minimizing the movement of your reticle on target
• •
  Position Transitions - Practice moving between different shooting positions
• •
  Rapid Target Acquisition - Practice quickly finding and engaging targets
• •
  Timed Drills - Set a par time for acquiring your sight picture and breaking a shot
• •
  Balancing Drills - Place a coin on your barrel and try to press the trigger without it falling

Accuracy Development

• •
  Group Shooting - Focus on shooting tight groups from a stable position
• •
  Dot Drills - Print targets with small dots and try to hit each one precisely
• •
  Tracking Drills - Verify your scope tracks properly with box drills or tall target tests

Cardiovascular Fitness

Improved cardio helps control breathing and heart rate during shooting:

• •
  Regular cardio exercise (running, cycling, swimming)
• •
  Practice shooting after physical exertion to simulate match stress

Strength Training

Focus on these areas for shooting-specific strength:

• •
  Core strength for stable positions
• •
  Shoulder and back strength for rifle support
• •
  Grip strength for consistent rifle handling

Flexibility

Improved flexibility helps with assuming various shooting positions:

• •
  Hip mobility for stable prone and seated positions
• •
  Shoulder flexibility for awkward shooting positions
• •
  Regular stretching routine focused on shooting-relevant muscle groups

Visualization

Mental rehearsal can be nearly as effective as physical practice:

• •
  Visualize your entire shot process in detail
• •
  Mentally practice stage plans and position transitions
• •
  Imagine successfully overcoming challenging shooting scenarios

Focus Training

Develop your ability to concentrate intensely for short periods:

• •
  Practice mindfulness meditation to improve present-moment awareness
• •
  Use a shot timer to practice getting into your mental zone quickly
• •
  Train with distractions present to build resilience

Stress Inoculation

Gradually expose yourself to match-like pressure:

• •
  Practice with a timer to simulate time pressure
• •
  Have training partners observe and evaluate your performance
• •
  Create friendly competitions with consequences for missed shots

Performance Metrics

• •
  Group Size - Measure and record group sizes at various distances
• •
  Hit Percentage - Track your first-round hit rate on various target sizes
• •
  Position Times - Record how quickly you can establish stable positions
• •
  Stage Times - Track your time to complete standard courses of fire

Technology Aids

Consider using these tools to enhance your training:

• •
  Shot timer apps
• •
  Ballistic calculator apps
• •
  Video recording for form analysis
• •
  Electronic target systems that record shot placement