How I train

[FF/EMT]

I train in a few different ways. But there are 3 points I want to make.

1. Firstly, I play airsoft. Now I've caught alot of flak about this. People think it's childish, or something. But the truth is, more ex military, law enforcement and adults play airsoft than children. It gained most of it's popularity through military, government, and law enforcement training. The guns operate exactly like the real weapons. The way you reload, sight picture, your posture, all these things come into account with a good airsoft gun. For instance, my Sig Sauer P226 breaksdown, fires, reloads, 100% like the real weapon. It even has a dedicated hammer drop. The S&W walmart pieces of junk are not what I'm talking about.

Playing airsoft does 2 things for me. It helps me size up where I'm at, and in a sense, stay aware of what's around me. It helps me think of "cover". The whole idea of keeping your mass behind something bullet proof. When you first start playing airsoft, you really just run out and realize you just got shot over 400 times. This helps you think of keeping your body hidden. And I think it's undeniable how valuable that is to real life.

And it also help my form. It reminds how accuracy is diminished when you point the gun with one hand and run like rambo. But when you square yourself away, the rounds just "somehow" seem to find their target.

2. The other way I train is actually handling my weapons. Form is one thing, being familiar with the particular weapon you carry is paramount. Whether it be dry firing, or getting some rounds downrange, I make it a point to get very comfortable with the gun I conceal carry. ( And I think dry firing is a good technique to see your own mistakes when actuating a trigger and anticipating a recoil )

3. The third point is repetition. Now I know alot of people on here are sore about martial arts for some reason. I don't do any form of martial arts. I know some that the government teaches field agents. Like from the movie taken.

Monks, Samurai, Ninjas, even warriors from Hawaii through history have taken hours at a time every day perfect their form in what combat they are in. The reason is in a moment of adrenaline your body reverts to something familiar. You hear the saying " I just fell back on my training ". This statement holds alot of water. I know personally there have been times in the Fire service that I have been panicked and just somehow reacted in the way I was trained. It's doing it over and over, and when you're body panics, it reverts to that oh so familiar form, stance, grip, or in this case maybe a sight picture? Practicing blurring the rear sights and the target and keeping that front sight crystal may be the difference from some crack head high on PCP holding a knife to your wife's neck succeeding in lobbing her head halfway off, or him losing his medulla on the sidewalk and you seeing your wife the next day. Get my drift?

That was my soap box. If you got this far...wow. Thank you! haha.

[Kyo]

I think anything with hand eye coordination help. Even video games. The military uses it, why shouldn't we?
The other 2 points I agree with. I handle my weapon every day.

[FF/EMT]

Yeah, the military employs alot of different tactics for training. As you said, games. They use simulations ( games ) for things like Javalin systems, .50 cal Brownings, even sniper scenarios. And they also have you do things over, and over. Maybe that's why we have the mightiest military that this planet's ever seen. :-D

[Lee Lapin]

You can dismiss this as mere semantics if you wish, but I see individual effort with firearms as practice, not training. I understand training to involve an instructor, mentor or preceptor. One trains in order to learn what to practice and how best to practice, then practices to make those skills learned in training instinctive and reflexive.

"Practice doesn't make perfect- only perfect practice makes perfect..."

fwiw,

lpl

[FF/EMT]

I do think this may be putting the issue under the microscope a bit. This isn't meant to be hostile but it's true, you don't get "practiced" to do something, you get trained. But you also don't "practice" your mind to do something, you train it, even though it's practice. Some things just roll off the tongue better, ya know?

So again, I do not get offended by anything on a computer screen unless my account is telling me it's been emptied, or satan jumps out and pulls my trachea out of my neck.

And practice doesn't make perfect, practice makes permanent. You can't do it perfectly, but you can do it right.