I do a press check when I first put my gun on because (1) better safe; and (2) why not.
Here's how I do a press check without looking:
- Follow rule THREE and keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard.
- With the weak hand, grasps the slide with the thumb and middle finger on the REAR serrations and the index finger resting on the barrel hood.
- Pull the slide back slightly. Something between a quarter and a half and inch should do it.
- Allow the index finger to drop down into the space between the end of the barrel hood and the breech face. If there was a round in the chamber, you will feel it.
Most of my training has been to shoot as long as you need to, until slide lock if necessary, and then do a speed reload. Louis Awerbuck specifically teaches that. A tactical or administrative reload is a luxury reserved for when things have quieted down.