Im starting to work on 1 hand shooting, strong hand and weak hand. Its more difficult to allign on target, and when I squeeze a shot off, the recoil takes me way off target (well duh). Its eveb way more prnounced on weak hand.
I realize that shooting more always helps, but ammo aint cheap. Are there any exercises out there that will strengthen my lil girly man arms so these shots arent so difficult??

These work well for me. I believe it's run by one of our forum members here. (can't think of his name right now).

http://www.lifepartnersfitness.com/CCWExercises.html

dude, money

Get snap caps and dry fire, preferably every day. Work up to a a minimum of 10-15 minutes each hand. This is very good practice for developing trigger control and building hand strength.

This should also help smooth and break in your trigger, btw.

What gun/caliber are you using? One of my criteria for a self-defense handgun is that I have to be able to use it effectively one-handed at, at least, close self-defense distances.

Snap Caps, are those the red dummy rounds??
Im always looking for better trigger pull. But my main concern is just holding the gun steady since my supporting hand is gone, and comming back on target is a big problem. When i shoot one handed, left handed (im a righty); the gun goes up and to the side, making follow up shots very slow and difficult.
Ive got a number of guns im training to carry with. I got a sig 232 in .380, a sig 239 in .40, and i got a 220 carry in .45.
Ive noticed each gun has its own type of recoil--not really by power, but how it recoils. The 380 has the most snap, the .40 kicks up, and the .45 goes clean back.
Those are good qualities to look for in a handgun. I think with some stength excersizes and practice, i can carry full power 45 loads no probelm.

quote:

Snap Caps, are those the red dummy rounds??

Yes. Probably not absolutely necessary for SIGs but cheap insurance to make sure you don't break a firing pin or otherwise injure your pistols especially dry firing a lot.

quote:

Im always looking for better trigger pull. But my main concern is just holding the gun steady since my supporting hand is gone, and comming back on target is a big problem. When i shoot one handed, left handed (im a righty); the gun goes up and to the side, making follow up shots very slow and difficult.

Dry firing should help. Also technique. You have to assume for self defense shooting that if you're going one handed the range of encounter is very close.

So, you don't want to be extending your arms all the way (if you have the time and space to do that you'd be better off taking two handed grip).

Plus, if your adversary is in close, sticking your arm straight out is an invitation to being disarmed, blocked, etc.

Investigate the so-called "half-hip" and "close or full hip" firing positions. These both utilize a bent elbow so you don't have the task of holding the pistol at arms length.

Also, to a certain extent you can brace your arm against your body to help hold the weapon steady and control recoil.

Remember, these are close-in fighting techniques so you're really not going to be worrying about aiming but more indexing the weapon with your body.

Hope this helps.

Nasty

Indeed. Ive seen those shots at close range on TV. The guy strikes with his left, draws with his right, keeping it at the hip (while pulling his left back), indexes his body and fires. a goo drill. But i dont think they will let us practice that at my indoor range
also the lil table-counter thingy at the indoor range is right at hip level......i jus gotta figure out how to explain any holes that might get there.....

Somewhere there are a series of exercises - -. Basically, load your heaviest gun(P220) with a full mag of dummy rounds. Hold extended for 10 seconds,STEADY. Relax for 10 sec.,repeat 10 times. Relax for five minutes. Repeat for five exercises. After three consecutive days, repeat at 20 sec., etc. When you can hold STEADY for 30sec. - start working on sight alignment,repeat same exercises. Finally, work on trigger control. After about 18-20 consecutive days of practice, you should be doing a lot better. You could substitute 4-5lb. weights, instead.

Several years ago I injured my hands 3 times within 1 year, dislocating finger joints while working. It took 3-6 months to fully recover each time. After the third time I ordered the Captains of Crush hand grippers http://www.ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/ironmind/Main/captainsofcrush.html and, once the injury was almost healed, began to use them. Not only have I not injured my hands since then, but it has also improved my shooting.
I prefer a DAO trigger system and shoot a S&W airweight J frame, a P239 DAK and Kahrs for a (fairly) consistient manual of arms. After using the grippers for a while I found my trigger finger wasn't nearly as fatigued during a long range session as in the past and my accuracy improved as well. That's just what worked for me, YMMV.

Regards,
GeorgeWA

This message has been edited. Last edited by: GeorgeWA,

a gallon jug of water, carry it around.
start with it a quarter full carry it every where.
exercise with it .
then fill it half full, and so on

Battery Powered Drill. Press trigger until the chuck turns. Repeat. Drill and battery weighs more than most pistols. Gets curious looks from neighbors "shooting on the move" in the backyard.

3# Sledge. Hold inverted. Works grip. Gets curious looks from wife....

As a former hobby competitive shooter I can if you want one part of your body to be still you have to train your whole body. Obviously you want a strong back, shoulders, and arms, but the core and legs hold everything else.

quote:

Originally posted by drkhrt532:
Im starting to work on 1 hand shooting, strong hand and weak hand. Its more difficult to allign on target, and when I squeeze a shot off, the recoil takes me way off target (well duh). Its eveb way more prnounced on weak hand.
I realize that shooting more always helps, but ammo aint cheap. Are there any exercises out there that will strengthen my lil girly man arms so these shots arent so difficult??

Are we sure this is a discussion about firearms? Sounds like something much different... Ha.

quote:

Originally posted by Flyinfast:
As a former hobby competitive shooter I can if you want one part of your body to be still you have to train your whole body. Obviously you want a strong back, shoulders, and arms, but the core and legs hold everything else.

There you go! It's really not about strengtehning this or that specialized set of muscles... because that's nort really going to work for you anyhow. Sine the entire "system" is connected the point of failure has a tendency to migrate from one location to another.

If you focus entirely on conditioning yor arms, the shoulders & upper back will now be taking the extra stress. If you develop the entire upper girdle, your mid & lower back will absorb the excess.

I'd advise setting up a basic course of calethstenics... somethings that will hit you in a full-body fashion & put some lean mass on throughout. No need to go overboard. Something to work the full body like Hindu squats & Hindu pushups or some standing overhead presses. This kind of stuff has helped me immensely. You're only as strong as your core. Your entire core has to deal with recoil & returning to point-of-aim after a shot.

Part of our BPT (Basic Prisoner Transport) qualification includes one hand (strong and off hand) firing.

I know I will take a million tons of heat for suggesting this, but our lead firearms instructor advises it if someone is having trouble with the off hand shots.

Shoot "gangster style" with the weapon canted. It uses a different set of muscles and does help some people fire more accurately. It's plenty accurate for close, defensive ranges, and it helps some people.

Try it out and see what you think.

I am a martial arts instructor and I have found that tonfa(side handle baton) training really helped my shooting because you have to control the spins and thrust with your tonfa by using the same angles and small/large muscle movements you use to control your firearm when shooting.

I use one of these while driving. Really passes the time at red lights and traffic jams.

quote:

Originally posted by SilverWolf:
Somewhere there are a series of exercises - -. Basically, load your heaviest gun(P220) with a full mag of dummy rounds. Hold extended for 10 seconds,STEADY. Relax for 10 sec.,repeat 10 times. Relax for five minutes. Repeat for five exercises. After three consecutive days, repeat at 20 sec., etc. When you can hold STEADY for 30sec. - start working on sight alignment,repeat same exercises. Finally, work on trigger control. After about 18-20 consecutive days of practice, you should be doing a lot better. You could substitute 4-5lb. weights, instead.

Sounds like Isotonic exercises, great idea to build up to heavy weights.