How to train ones self to hold steady

[dirtrider73068]

I have been trying to train myself to hold my rifle steady, but need to brace on something, I have a shooting stick but still with it tend to say wobble a little, its worse when standing I can't keep still. I have tried moving my feet to make sure I am in a solid stance but still wobble, its more of a side to side motion. If I have to grab my rifle run out to pop something I know I am going to miss due to this unsteady stance.

Is there anything I can do to train my muscle to relax and hold still or get some kind of guess muscle memory to hold steady? I know my nerves are always on edge think due to part I have depression and from it I suffer from anxiety and get jittery so trying to hold anything still is a battle even so much as a pen or screwdriver drives me nuts. I see videos of others holding guns and they are very still even videos looking down a scope and wonder how the heck to they hold it that still.

 

[Ignored Member]

Controlling your breathing has a lot to do with it.
Take a deep breath in and slowly exhale while you focus on the target. Once you get that perfect sight, press the trigger.

 

[ignerntbend]

Do you shoot with a sling? That'll go a long way toward steadying your dominant arm. Remember that kneeling, sitting, and lying prone, are all steadier positions than standing. I'm sure you know about this basic stuff already, but somebody'll be a long to give you better advice. Everybody wobbles a little, you just have to pull the trigger at the right point in the wobble.
Are you handling your medical issues with medicine? You might consider a visit to the doctor.

 

[Gunbuffer]

No one ever really steady offhand, they just look that way. They just control it and wait for the slower pauses in their breath cycle

 

[Aries]

I guess it depends on how much wobble... if you're so jittery it's hard to hold a pen or screwdriver still, maybe see a neurologist?

It's pretty much impossible to hold a rifle perfectly steady without a rest. Without seeing the videos you're talking about, I would assume they are in a mount of some kind. Off-hand, I usually try to apply slightly more pressure to the trigger each time it passes over the target, hopefully it finally releases WHILE it is on the target (I can describe this much better than I can do it). But I can't hold it exactly on target for any significant length of time, even long enough to pull the trigger.

Stance, grip, and how you support the gun (especially if a rifle) are important, but hard to describe in writing.

And.... practice, practice, practice.

 

[druryj]

I guess it depends on how much wobble... if you're so jittery it's hard to hold a pen or screwdriver still, maybe see a neurologist?

It's pretty much impossible to hold a rifle perfectly steady without a rest. Without seeing the videos you're talking about, I would assume they are in a mount of some kind. Off-hand, I usually try to apply slightly more pressure to the trigger each time it passes over the target, hopefully it finally releases WHILE it is on the target (I can describe this much better than I can do it). But I can't hold it exactly on target for any significant length of time, even long enough to pull the trigger.

Stance, grip, and how you support the gun (especially if a rifle) are important, but hard to describe in writing.

And.... practice, practice, practice.

Practice is of course important; as long as you're practicing correctly. Way back in Boot Camp, I remember being taught to control that wobble, through breathing and working at getting it into an ever-tighter figure-8 even, and by focusing on the front sight. I think a lot of folks lose their focus on the front sight; they're worried about the wobble at the muzzle end. Get a good sight picture, breathe, relax, aim, take up the slack and focus on the front sight as you press the trigger.

Oh, I agree on the sling. A good sling and proper positioning can help a lot too.

 

[Aries]

Totally agree with this... ^^^

 

[foghorn918]

A Project Appleseed event teaches good rifle fundamentals for using slings, shooting positions, and breathing. Plus they are a lot of fun too. You might want to check one out

 

[rc508pir]

I have been trying to train myself to hold my rifle steady, but need to brace on something, I have a shooting stick but still with it tend to say wobble a little, its worse when standing I can't keep still. I have tried moving my feet to make sure I am in a solid stance but still wobble, its more of a side to side motion. If I have to grab my rifle run out to pop something I know I am going to miss due to this unsteady stance.

Is there anything I can do to train my muscle to relax and hold still or get some kind of guess muscle memory to hold steady? I know my nerves are always on edge think due to part I have depression and from it I suffer from anxiety and get jittery so trying to hold anything still is a battle even so much as a pen or screwdriver drives me nuts. I see videos of others holding guns and they are very still even videos looking down a scope and wonder how the heck to they hold it that still.

Talk to your Dr. You might need a different dosage to take care of the jitteriness.

Other than that, strengthening your arms, shoulders and back muscles may help

Using proper offhand shooting positions may also help

At the end of the day though, your condition may prevent you from ever shooting straight at any distance. At least from a "Grab your rifle and pop off a shot" perspective. Plenty of soldiers (Marines too) will tell you, they have returned fire and not hit a damn thing. Of all the servicemen that ever pulled the trigger in WW2, its estimated that only 1 in 10 ever hit or killed anyone(IIRC). So it may be that its just what life dealt ya. Hope you can get it sorted out.

 

[Okie4570]

-If you're not shooting with both eyes open, learn to
-Don't just aim at the target, find the smallest part of target you can see. There's real truth to the "aim small, miss small" theory..
-If you have a trigger pull greater than 4lbs, do whatever you can do to make it less.
-In the comfort of your living room, while sitting, place your elbow on the arm of the chair and dry fire several dozen times on the lowest scope power at a target across the room such as the corner of a picture frame or corner of a door frame etc. I know you're resting on the arm rest, but think baby steps. Dry firing like this helps you get into a routine of knowing your trigger pull and being on the verge of completely pulling as soon as the cross hairs cross your target. As this becomes second nature, do the same scenario while sitting but not using the arm rest. Then eventually standing. That's where the sling tricks, proper stance come into play. The sling tricks make me feel tense and in a bind, and prefer not to use one for steadiness. Being confident about pulling the right time and the more you practice the better you'll get. When at the range, start off at 10 or 20y until you feel confident and then move further away as you feel comfortable. I can almost be certain that the majority of folks here couldn't walk outside right now and stand there off hand and put 5 rounds on a pie plate at 100y. my self included, I never practice off hand shots with a rifle even though I should. The way I hunt deer and coyotes doesn't require me to. Rabbits, squirrels, armadillos at 25y-50y no problems though with the .22 or .17wsm.