Introducing Stress into your Training

[.38 Special]

Some of you folks are intolerable.

This subforum is pretty low road, in my experience. For some reason it seems to bring out the worst in people.

 

[Hangingrock]

The vast majority of individuals that obtain a concealed carry weapons permit outside of initial requirements are not into training or competition with firearms. They have their CWP and do not go beyond that point. In PA and NC there is no requalification requirement unless you let your CWP lapse then you go thru the required process for reinstatement of the CWP. Thus inducing stress in to training is a mute point for the mass majority of individuals.

 

[shafter]

What happens when you are fleeing from a situation in which deadly force was not initially justified? You may have been run/sprinting for some distance only to find out that the perp has caught up to you or pushed you towards a second perp. Suddenly the situation requires deadly force but you've been running. Are you still effective?

The same situation might apply if you were involved in a physical altercation in which you've been grappling with someone for several minutes and suddenly the perp pulls a weapon.

The variables are endless.

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

If anyone wants to add stress to their training, I have an ex-wife I'll introduce to you.

 

[GEM]

Interesting topic. Here's my two cents. First, I have competed for years in IDPA,.Steel and now USPSA. They are not training but various skills practice. I find good and bad points in each as regarded for EDC. That's a long discussion for many over the years and rant fest for truth believers.

Jeff mentioned the NTI. Did it three times and had very high quality FOF and simujlated well scripted incidents. It is orders of magnitude different from a match. Fast draw shooting skills are a small part of it. All the participants had those. You can get hurt and look like a fool. Folks there stressed out and flash backed - had to be talked down, told to breathe after a run. Police, military, professional instructors, high level zealots (moi). For example, a Marine colonel in charge of their marksmanship training, IIRC. Serious folks. The solutions weren't always the guns, might be avoidance, talk, etc. Dealing with the law after the 'shooting'. The whole package - not what you find in a match.

Be in a terrorist attack, without a gun, disarm an opponent, shoot said opponent, be standing with the gun when the law floods in.

Did a fair amount of other FOF at a high level. It is good for stress inoculation - you don't freeze up, you do things. Did see folks freeze.

As far as doing push ups and running, that is all well and good. However, now at my age - it is not happening. Serious training gives you a mindset and paradigm for an incident. It has served me well.

If you are serious, a good FOF experience is an eye opener. For someone who wasn't in the military, it was worth my time.

 

[waterhouse]

This is one of the big reasons I discourage the idea that shooting in matches is training for a deadly force encounter. Unless you carry your race gun in your high speed holster and belt on the street you’re going to be building muscle memory and reaching the level of unconscious competence with equipment that will likely be at home in the safe when you have an encounter on the street.

This is why I compete with my duty holster and an AR with the same optic as I use at work. They are slower and not designed for the game, but its good practice and the timer and competition add some stress. Agree that something as simple as sprints or pushups to get the heart rate up does help. My watch history tells me that my pulse goes from about 67 to 95 when I arrive at a gun related call, and that's before anything has really happened, so I had better be ready to shoot accurately above a resting heart rate.

 

[GEM]

I compete with carry gear and guns I carry or might. My goal is proficiency in self-defense and the competition increases my gun handling skills. Steel is different as I shoot 22 LR usually for fun but it does give practice on basics.

The great debate of whether competition will hurt you on the street will never end and it is religious war between true believers. Jeff's point is one I agree with.

Also, as I said, range or competition skills leave out the situtational skills of a total encounter.

Sadly, I am aging out of the more physical training. Don't want to take the risks of being hurt as I did in the past. Also, I have to take care of someone, I can't be self-indulgent and lay myself up because I break or tear this or that.