Watch out Lady GaGa, there are new “Little Monsters,” and they’re all mine!   Yes, I’ve turned my two daughters into little monsters… shooting monsters that is!  Shooting isn’t something that kids do in our neck of the woods. We live in a suburb of New York City, and firearms are, for the most part, a taboo subject.

When my husband and I applied for our pistol permits back in 2008, I think my girls may have been a little freaked out.  In our county, pretty much all you can apply for is a “Sportsman Residence” license which allows you to target shoot, hike and hunt.  CCW’s are rarely granted because the judges who issue them make you prove “need.”  Yes, it’s a violation of my 2nd Amendment Rights, and I am preparing to petition the Judge assigned to my license for conversion to a CCW, but I digress… that will be a whole other blog entry down the road.

Back to my girls! It all started a few years ago when we went with friends up to a cabin in Upstate New York for a day of shooting. My husband, who had shot competitively on the New York State Junior Rifle team when he was young, hadn’t shot in years after losing the end of his trigger finger in a lawn mower accident when he was 14. (Yeah, I know.) My friend’s dad, who owned the cabin, was a World War II hero, Army 82nd Airborne, retired from the Sheriff’s Department, worked for the FBI, Firearm Instructor… I could go on and on about “Pop” but first and foremost, he taught us about firearms and safety that day, and what a blast we all had.  My girls at the time were 10 and 12, and with his guidance, they shot several types and calibers of rifles and revolvers.  It was a great foundation for us all, and the beginning of what has become a passion of mine!

My 14½ year-old daughter had the opportunity to join me at the range when I earned my ProMarksman NRA rating.  School was still in session, but winding down, and she had an afternoon full of nothing at school, so I took her out early, deciding that not every lesson in life was learned in the classroom.

Me and my Browning.

We were joined at the range my buddy Bob, who usually emailed me before heading to the range because he knows I’m not yet comfortable being there by myself.  Bob has lots and lots of “toys” and usually brings quite a nice assortment of firearms for us to “play” with!  I brought along my Browning Buck Mark Camper .22 pistol, and my newly acquired Savage Mark II (NRA limited edition!) .22 rifle that I purchased from the widow of a club member who passed away last year.

This would be Beth’s second time to the range. She participated last Fall in our Club’s annual Turkey Shoot, where she was the hit of the group going from member to member trying out their .22 rifles – seems everybody wanted Beth to try their rifle.

Beth takes aim.

She had a blast, and it was her first time shooting since she was 10. Bob is an excellent instructor and he’s great with kids. He’ll likely head up our newly formed Jr. Club, since we now have “juniors” who are interested!  Beth shot everything from both of my firearms, to a .38 carbine rifle, to a .357 Magnum, (he loaded the first 2 chambers with .38s so she’d get a feel for it, then the rest with .357s, she did great and loved every second.) She spent the next few weeks of school pleading for me to take her out early, so we could go shooting! Yes… Monster #1 created.

Kristen, my 16-year-old, had all her hard classes in the afternoon, so there was no early dismissal for her. She had to wait until school was done and testing was over, but we found an opportunity last week when she had a day free of testing. We’ve tried to take her to the range before, but something always got in the way. When I got a call from another club member, Mike, letting me know he was going down to the range, we loaded the truck and headed out.

I started her on the .22 rifle since Mike was practicing for the upcoming Bulls-Eye shoot from 25 yards.  I figured rifle might be the better option and placed her targets at about 15 yards. She got used to the scope quickly, and had some nice groupings for her first day. (Obviously, she takes after me.) When Mike was done, we moved outside and she played with my Buck Mark a bit.

Kristen's turn.

She couldn’t decide whether she liked the pistol or the rifle better, so she shot both. I didn’t get a lot of practice in, because she was just having too darned much fun! After a while, Mike left and it was just her and me.  She was much more relaxed having just me watching her, and she really began to shine.  I took her in close to the target and showed her some basic tactical shooting… well, clearly this was her favorite, and she did well. Yes, Monster #2… created!

As of Thursday, the girls testing will be finished and another school year will be successfully in the books. This frees us up for a summer at the range, which we’re all looking forward to! Being self employed, I have the flexibility to work when convenient; if it’s a beautiful day, I can up and leave my home office and hit the range for a while. (I call it “group therapy.”) One of these times, we’ll even let my husband play… poor guy is stuck at work all day (hey, somebody has to pay for the new toys, right??!!).

On a serious note, I believe teaching my girls to shoot will be one of the most important things they learn. Besides actual shooting, this sport involves safety, patience, responsibility and self confidence. And lastly, as a mother of two beautiful daughters, I hope that the boys they eventually date have seen their Facebook profile pictures of them shooting big scoped rifles.

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Healthy Vision for a Lifetime of Shooting

For many new female shooters, shooting quickly becomes a favorite hobby, and oftentimes a lifelong sport. In order to be successful and tear up the target, however, shooters rely on crystal clear vision. Here are some things to look out for when it comes to your vision, and ways to ensure that you’ll be seeing clearly and shooting well whether you’re in your 20s, 40s, or beyond.

Healthy vision at any age:

The best way to maintain healthy vision at any age is to get a regular eye exam. Other ways to maintain healthy vision are to eat a balanced diet, refrain from smoking, get lots of exercise, and wear sunglasses.

Anti-Impact Glasses from Packing in Pink

Eye protection is absolutely essential when shooting. Every shooter has different vision needs, and there’s no shortage of choices  in lenses and styles on the market today. Shooting glasses, shooting goggles and safety glasses all have different looks and benefits. Each shooter’s selection depends on their vision needs, age, safety requirements, shooting environment and even the type of gun they’re using.

What to watch out for in your 20s and 30s:

Nearsightedness

The eye’s cornea directs light onto the lens, and the lens focuses the light onto the retina. In an eye with perfect distance vision, the relaxed lens will focus a distant object on the retina. In a nearsighted eye, however, the relaxed lens will focus distant objects somewhere short of the retina. A nearsighted person can usually focus on close objects, but distant objects are fuzzy. Eyeglasses and contact lenses are the most common solutions for nearsightedness.

Farsightedness

In a farsighted eye, the relaxed lens will focus distant objects somewhere beyond the back of the eye. Distant objects will appear fuzzy, and closer objects will be even fuzzier. Eyeglasses and contact lenses are the most common solutions for nearsightedness.

Astigmatism

Astigmatism results when the cornea is not perfectly spherical in shape. The result is a “lopsided,” somewhat cylindrical sphere that does not focus all of the light rays entering the eye onto a single point on the retina. This means that objects at all distances will appear somewhat blurred.  Astigmatism can often occur in conjunction with nearsightedness or farsightedness, but people with perfect distance vision can also have astigmatism. Eyeglasses and contact lenses can correct for astigmatism by focusing light rays on a single plane.

Computer vision syndrome (CVS)

Computer vision syndrome (CVS) may occur from using a computer for long periods of time. To minimize the effects of CVS, make sure the lighting in the room is adequate to avoid glare from the computer screen, and position the screen so that your head is in a comfortable position.

What to watch out for in your 40s and 50s:

As we age, our eyes progressively lose the ability to focus over the full range of vision from far to near. This happens to everyone, regardless of regular distance vision correction, and takes place gradually over time. The cause is presbyopia, a condition in which the eye’s crystalline lens becomes increasingly inflexible.

The eye’s cornea directs light onto the lens, and the lens focuses the light onto the retina. In an eye with perfect distance vision, the relaxed lens will focus a distant object on the retina. When we are young, the lens can change shape (increase curvature) to focus on objects at closer distances. The closer the object, the greater the curvature required. The ability to do this is known as “accommodation.” As we age and the eye’s lens becomes increasingly inflexible, its accommodation declines. Most people first notice a difficulty in adjusting between distances around the age of 45, and by the time they are 65, they will have lost virtually all of their accommodation.

Presbyopia

To overcome presbyopia, many shooters rely on multifocal lenses such as bifocals, trifocals or progressive lenses. Many other shooters switch between multiple pairs of glasses throughout the day. Fortunately in today’s age of modern medicine, there are various ways to overcome presbyopia, such as special adjustable glasses, night vision, scopes and other optical sighting devices.

Glaucoma

While there are several types of glaucoma, the disorder usually occurs from a buildup of internal eye pressure (intraocular pressure or IOP). This increased pressure damages the eye’s optic nerve, disrupting the transmission of visual information to the brain. This disrupt in transmission of visual information can cause a decreased ability to see at the edges of your vision (peripheral vision). Progressive glaucoma can eventually lead to blindness. Glaucoma surgery, lasers, medication and eye drops are the most common solutions for glaucoma, depending on the severity of the disorder.

Cataracts

The eye’s cornea directs light onto the lens, and the lens focuses the light onto the retina. The lens also adjusts the eye’s focus, letting us see things clearly both up close and far away. A cataract is a clouding of the eye’s lens. Cataracts occur when the protein in the eye’s lens clumps together to cloud a small area. Cataracts can grow larger over time and cloud more of the lens, making it harder to see. Cataract surgery, bifocals, magnification and other visual aids are the most common solutions for glaucoma, depending on their severity.

Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration, also known as AMD or ARMD, is the degeneration of the macula, which is the part of the retina responsible for the sharp, central vision needed to read or drive. Macular degeneration can be either dry (non-neovascular) or wet (neovascular). Neovascular macular degeneration refers to the growth of new blood vessels where they are not supposed to be. The dry form is more common than the wet form, and the wet form usually leads to more serious vision loss. While there is no cure for age-related macular degeneration, there are treatments to delay its progression. By looking out for these vision conditions and protecting your eyes, you’ll be seeing clearly and shooting well at any age.

About the Author

Caitlin is a shooter who works with Superfocus, the makers of an adjustable focus lens for presbyopia that is popular amongst shooters. She is also a member of Steve’s Angels, the moderators of the Superfocus Staying on Target community for shooters overcoming age related vision changes. The Staying on Target community and OnTarget blog provides information and commentary on shooting, aging and vision and is located online at https://shoot.superfocus.com/.

@SuperfocusShoot

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I have been taking a lot of instructor classes lately.  In fact it’s been over a year since I have taken any classes to work on my own shooting skills.   I used to go two or three times a month to the range to practice my shooting, but since I became a pistol instructor I have a new found interest in teaching people, especially women, to shoot.  So, although I have spent a lot of time at the range lately, I have probably fired less than 100 rounds in the last couple of months.  For this reason and so many other good ones, I was very excited about my upcoming Urban Pistol class.  I have wanted to take this class for more than a year but couldn’t find the time to drive to the outdoor range where it was given.  Recently, the Gun for Hire firearms school in NJ started offering this class close by and at an indoor police range, so I finally decided to sign up.

It was probably a good thing I waited, there was no way I was ready to take this class a year ago.  Urban Pistol is a class designed to introduce useful tactical shooting and reloading skills, and shooting on the move and at multiple targets.  To fully engage with your firearm is not the way people usually handle their guns when going target shooting.  Granted, I don’t think that I am ever going to need to reload one handed while lying on the ground behind a garbage can for cover, but hey, you never know.  Another plus to this class is that I get to actually use some of my gear that I bought just in case situations dictate my needing them.

For example, take my holster.  I do not live in a state that issues many CCW permits, so I don’t really need to spend too much time picking out a holster for everyday wear or concealment.  I did buy one though, a really nice leather Fist holster for my Glock and a Galco gun belt.  I have tried it out at the range a few times and I have drawn and re-holstered it in front of my mirror many times to break it in and get a feel for using it.  When I signed up for the class I ordered the required magazine holder and tried it on with my holster/gun and belt to see how it all would work out.  First off, I noticed that the gun belt is now way too big.

Maggie proudly dons her new leg holster for her class.

I bought it a year ago when I was, ehem, a bit heavier.  Not that I was ever very big but apparently all that exercising and eating right really paid off.  I needed to go down a few belt sizes.  So after a half hour playing with the gun and the magazines, I realized that my hips were totally killing me from all the holstering and re-holstering.  I figured I still had time to look into some other holster options.

A drop holster seemed to be the answer and after buying and nixing a few I decided to try a leg holster — police style.  Why I decided to do this, I don’t know, it just seemed like a good idea at the time.  The holster arrived on a Thursday afternoon before my Sunday class. I grabbed the instructions before running out the door to drive my carpool.  After scanning them in the carpool line I shoved them in my pocket before leaving the school parking lot.  When I got home much later that night after many errands, I decided to try the holster.

Hmm, I can’t find the instructions.  After some very brief searching I figure how hard can it be? and I strap it on.  It looks — well, weird.  But I holster the Glock and truth be told, it is kind of fun.  Then I realize that I am not really pushing the gun fully into the holster and when I do, well, it “locks” into place — and won’t come out.  Ok, don’t panic.  I pull and pull and, well, nothing.  So I take it off and text Jimmy, one of the firearms instructors.  He isn’t sure why it isn’t coming out of the holster because he has never used this model and he says don’t be afraid to pull hard.  So I do but still nothing.  My husband is out so I get my teenage boys to help me and while we pull in different directions the gun is still stuck.  Good retention I’m thinking.  But now I’m curious and decide to take the thing apart.  I find an allen wrench and a screw driver and take all the screws out and remove the straps, the back plate and Velcro strips.  Still, nothing doing.  Now my daughter comes in the room and says to my youngest son, “Hey what’s going on?” He is very busy watching TV but manages to tear his eyes away long enough to tell her, “Mommy got her gun stuck.”  So she says “Nice!” and hops up on the couch for a better view of the action.  Lots of support I’m getting here.

Well, I manage to get the gun out — pure luck I find out later.  And I contemplate putting it back in to the holster.  Throwing caution to the wind, I mean no one wants their gun stuck in a holster right?  I try again and you guessed it — stuck.  This time when I manage to free the gun I decide to put the holster back together and head down to the firearms school the next day for some help.  But I am still thinking, Where are those instructions? My husband thinks maybe I dropped them in the children’s department at Nordstrom earlier that evening.  So I call up and get Julie, a long time Children’s Wear employee who was actually helping me earlier.  She says she thinks she saw something like I was describing but she gave it to someone from receptacle removal or something like that (does that mean the garbage collector?) and she puts me on hold to chase him and his rolling cart down the aisle.  I just love the service at Nordstrom, you can’t beat it.  She comes back breathless and says, “I have it!  It reads, Uncle Mikes Law Enforcement Holster, does that sound like what you are looking for?” Um, yeah.  She asks my name and says she’ll hold it for me behind the counter.  After ten years of shopping there I have a feeling Julie will never look at me the same way again.

So the next day I go down to the school, with my son who is turning six that day, and I get some help from Rob fitting the holster. Since I am petite – OK short – I have so much excess strap material on the holster Rob helps me take off what isn’t necessary and remolds the straps to fit me better.  Later at home I secure everything with black electrical tape.  Then I learn how to remove the gun from the holster.

We're thinking Maggie and Sarah would probably be good friends. Minus that whole Skynet thing.

You just twist the butt of the gun towards your leg and bingo, it releases.  But after much practice I realize that doing that causes the grip on the Glock to rip up the skin on my hand.  No time to buy any kind of softer grip so I decide to go Michael Jackson style and wear my fingerless weight lifting glove on my right hand.  Yeah, it looks strange but I’m all about comfort, not style anyway.

The weekend goes well, until late Saturday.  I come down with some kind of miserable infection.  I manage to reach my doctor who prescribes me some antibiotics.  When I ask her if it will impair any of my faculties, she is lost.  So I say I’m taking an advanced shooting class tomorrow, will I be drowsy?  She says, “Can you repeat that?”  So I do.  Then, after a pause, she says I should be fine.  Now I’ll just check that doctor’s office off my list as another place that will never look at me the same way again.

Sunday morning I wake up early for one last dress rehearsal before I pack my range bags.  My youngest son is watching me from the bed, stopping me every now and again to remind me of how to twist the gun from the holster.  He is also very amused apparently by the “faces” I’m making when I draw the gun and aim.  He keeps saying, “Do it again mommy,” but I have no idea what he‘s talking about so he decides to jump down and join me — obviously using his “pretend” gun.  We stand in front of the mirror jumping around and drawing, aiming and re-holstering.  When I look at his face in the mirror I can’t help laughing.  If that’s what I look like, well, it is a good thing I found out about it now.  We play around a bit and then I ask him how he thinks I’m doing.  He says, “Very good, but with only one problem”.  What’s that, I ask.  “Well the straps on the leg holster make one half your butt look bigger than the other.”  Gee.  Thanks.  I’m so glad I asked.  And by the way, no more watching iCarly or Disney Channel for you.

On that note, I pack up my range bag and head out.  I get to the range early and as the students arrive I notice, not surprisingly, that I will be the only female in the class again today.  It doesn’t really factor in for me like it used to anymore.  I am here to have fun.  I can’t imagine many women take Urban Pistol anyway, but it does leave me wondering (although granted not too seriously) what that says about me.

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Click HERE to listen to Natalie’s Segment

Or listen to the full hour HERE at The REVOLUTION on Outdoor Trails Network with Jim and Trav. We heart them.

Links to Cut and Paste:

Natalie’s Segment:

https://www.st-tel.net/~jim/files/4-29-2011%20-%20NATALIE%20FOSTER,%20OUTDOORS%20WOMEN%20DEBATE.mp3

Full Show:

https://www.outdoortrailsnetwork.com/

Click HERE to listen to Natalie’s Segment

Or listen to the full hour HERE at The REVOLUTION on Outdoor Trails Network with Jim and Trav. We heart them.

Links to Cut and Paste:

Natalie’s Segment:

https://www.st-tel.net/~jim/files/4-29-2011%20-%20NATALIE%20FOSTER,%20OUTDOORS%20WOMEN%20DEBATE.mp3

Full Show:

https://www.outdoortrailsnetwork.com/

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Karen and Jessica of WTA with Natalie and Katie of GG2G

Natalie Foster: Karen, I’ve been looking pretty hard and I can’t seem to find a solid definition for “tactics”. How would you define it for someone who knows nothing about tactical training?

Karen Bartuch: Funny, I’ve recently looked it up because I say it so much that it somehow loses it’s meaning or I just take it for granted.  The source I found said “tactics” is defined as, “small scale actions serving a larger purpose”. So it’s smaller parts and smaller strategies that work on the big picture. You’re doing little team movements, room clearing and that kind of thing to see if there’s a hostage inside- it’s a hard word to describe. I see it like plays if you were on a football team or basketball team. It’s different plays that you practice as a team. You can call different plays; for instance, you have a hostage rescue play, you have a close quarters battle play, it’s just different plays that you practice as a team that you call out based on what the circumstances call for.  It’s not necessarily rehearsing, it’s more like you can read a situation and adapt properly. And you know your team well enough that you know what the one person’s gonna do and how you should react. You really need to trust your team members, too, because if you’re turning your back you need to know that your team member has your back in the opposite direction. It’s a hard word to define. It’s like “Leadership”. Everyone knows what it means but if you ask someone to define it, they’d probably have a difficult time with it.

NF: Talk a little bit about your personal history- your background.

KB: I went to Northwestern for my undergrad and out of college I had a couple of different sales jobs and I wasn’t too happy in Corporate America. My brother was a police officer and he loved going to work every day. He loved working out, he loved shooting and I thought, “That’s what I want.” I wanted to wake up and want to go to work every day. I was into fitness myself and I had gone shooting a couple of times and I thought the police would be a good thing for me. I wanted to do something where I actually felt like I was making a difference and selling pharmaceuticals or payroll and taxes really wasn’t making that difference for me. So I took the police test in 2001 and came on in 2002 and I’ve been there ever since.

NF: How many women are on the Chicago PD with you?

KB: There is about 3,200 of about 12,000. We’re almost one quarter female.

Karen (left) participating in handgun drills with WTA members.

NF: At some point in there you started the Women’s Tactical Association. How did that happen? Tell me about it’s birth.

KB: It was a culmination of a couple of different things. I had started to go to training on my own. I wanted to be a better shooter and I knew we were going to the Glock system and I wanted to transition from my current weapon, which at the time was a Sig, so I started going to classes. I’d look around the room and I would be the only female in the class or one of two girls along with 50 guys. That was one reason. I was also starting to put together training for our SWAT team while I was working for the Superintendent.  A lot of the training I was putting together really appealed to me. I thought, “I want to go repelling, I want to go shoot rifles.” I wanted to go do all the things I was sending them to do, so that was another reason. The final thing was that I was actually involved with a shooting on the job. The guy ran from the police and shot at two of our officers and he holed himself up in the basement of a large apartment building. He just had pockets full of ammo and he just kept reloading mags and he kept shooting at the police. I found myself in this situation and I really didn’t know the best way to handle it.  I think Chicago Police Officers are good in that we are aggressive and we want to go after the bad guy and run right up to him. But in that situation, that wasn’t necessarily the best course of action. Had it not been for the guys on SWAT who showed up I think a lot of us would have ended up getting hurt because we wanted to run straight to where the shots were being fired, which is good on one hand but in that situation it was just not the right thing to do. A Sergeant from the SWAT team showed up and he had former military experience and the way he took control of that scene and all 50+ officers that were there – I said to myself. “This is what I want to do. I want to be able to get on scene and know exactly what I should be doing and make sure that I’m safe and everyone around me is safe.” So after that I called a meeting. I gathered a group together and created this organization, The Women’s Tactical Association. My Sergeant said, “You’ll be lucky if you have five people that show up,” and we had 30 women show up at the first meeting.  Ever since then we knew we were on to something and we’ve had meetings and training since then.

NF: How long ago was that?

KB: That was June 25, 2009, the WTA Birthday.

NF: How many members do you have?

KB: Right now we have over 500.

NF: And who can join?

KB: Actually, this year we did do a civilian membership. Prior to that it was just law enforcement and military. But we do have a lot of civilians that want to train and they should be able to protect themselves as well, which is why we opened it up to them this year.

NF: Is it just for women or is it a male and female thing?

KB: Oh we’re definitely open to male members. We actually have quite a few. Probably because our training is the cheapest out there. A lot of it’s free and it’s really some of the best training that’s available. That was one of the things we wanted to do – keep the training affordable. I mean you could mortgage your house going to some of this training and the cost of ammo certainly doesn’t help, and you’re taking time off of work. We like to keep the prices down low. Of course, I’d rather be spending the weekend with my family, but for my job I know I have to keep up with what I’m doing. Shooting is a perishable skill. If you don’t do it every week or month or however often you need to do it, that skill is going to go away and when you need it, it’s not going to be there. We like to get your heart rate up, stress you out a little bit, maybe throw a flash-bang in so that you’ll be prepared for shooting under pressure.

NF: Tell me about the training. What kind of classes do you offer?

KB: We have four tenets that we adhere to. We focus on fitness, firearms, tactics and combat mindset. We have firearms training regularly. We have open range dates throughout the month where we do pistol or rifle. We also do various specialized classes – shooting is probably the main thing that we do.  I would say that tactics is the next biggest thing that we try to do a lot of – close quarters battle, hostage rescue, room entry, ballistics shield – we try to do one of those at least one to two times a month. We also have some classes that you may not find anywhere else.  For example,  in June we’re having a lock-picking class. We’re going to learn about pad locks, door locks, safes. It’s going to be a lot of fun.  With the fitness part, we have a lot of gals who teach martial arts or crossfit so we offer boot camp classes on Sundays at our Police Academy for anyone who wants to come and train. It’s a really good workout. It’s about an hour and a half long – it’s kind of a kick-your-butt cardio class with some good tactics in there, like hand-to-hand combat. I like to call it self-offense rather than self-defense because we’re not gonna wait for someone to come after us. We’re gonna be the ones that strike first. In some situations it’s ok to be the person to hit first. You can tell when someone’s going to attack you. We do a system that is a form of Wing Chun Kung Fu. We’ve adopted this system because it doesn’t really matter how big you are or how strong you are, this stuff just works. I’ve used it, we have other girls who have used it on the streets and it just works. You don’t have to be the biggest guy, you don’t have to have tons of muscle – it’s all skeletal, so if you can know how to do it properly, it just works.

WTA Hand to Hand Combat Course

NF: Where do you see the WTA going? Where is it headed?

KB: One of the goals for this year was to grow the membership. We had a great offer from 5.11 where you got the knife, a hat and a coupon. That drew a lot more members. Hopefully it’s also because we’ve gotten the word out. People now realize we’re not going anywhere. Another goal is to get many of our members trained up as instructors. Especially in firearms. We did an internal poll and what we found is that females want to be instructed by other females. Especially when it comes to firearms. When I was training we had some instructors that made firearms just an unpleasant thing. After we left the academy I was happy to never go back to the range again just because of the way the training was.  It’s a totally different mindset now. We love shooting. Another thing we’ve been getting into is product development – just kind of by accident. We had a product development meeting with 5.11 out at their headquarters in Modesto, CA, and talked with them about some improvements that could be made on their current products. They were great; they really listened. They put out a great spring catalog with a lot more women’s products. We’re actually in it, too. Their tactical pants are great. They used to be very high waisted, but they’re great now. We asked them to lower it because, of course, part of the reason is aesthetics, but if you’re wearing those all day it’s not comfortable. And if you have to unholster, you’re weapon’s not really in a good position because your arm has to be bent up high to get your weapon out of its holster. It really came down to function and they listen. They have a great Women’s Tac Lite pant that we love.  We have some other stuff on the horizon like a resources page and a recommended reading list and book discussion group. We’re following the Marine Corps model as far as that goes. We really want to change the mindset not just of females but of everyone. You don’t necessarily have to want to be on SWAT, but if you work in a city like Chicago, no matter where you go you’re gonna need some tactics whether you like it or not.

NF:You think it is important for even the casual shooter to get out there and do?

KB:Sure, why not? Anyone can come home to find that someone’s broken in to your home. If you want to learn how to protect yourself then I’d say that tactics is definitely something you’d want to entertain.

NF: You know, when I’ve done it I walk away thinking, “This is just so fun!” And it’s a great work out in itself. You feel so accomplished at the end of the day. You know you’ve gained so much knowledge and skill – but again, you do have to keep it up.

KB: Oh yeah, definitely. I’m reading Dave Grossman’s book on combat and that’s what he says. You’ve got to keep up the training because once your mid-brain takes over you forget pretty much everything you’ve learned. It’s gonna be pretty much all muscle memory. So if you haven’t gone there before physically, you’re not gonna be able to do it when it all hits the fan.

NF: How often do you use your tactical training?

KB: As a police officer, every single day. I’ve switched jobs from working in the Superintendent’s office to Intelligence, where I used it every day because we served a lot of search warrants, and now I’m back on patrol. I’m by myself in a car and every day I get calls – someone inside an abandoned building, burglaries – I use it all the time.

Room clearing.

NF: Wow, so you didn’t really have those tactical resources available to you, so you went out and sought it.

KB: Well, they would offer things sporadically every now and then at the department but nothing on a regular basis. And really, I had no idea that this whole tactical community existed. Once I broke into that and found other like-minded people it was just amazing.

NF: I know you are based in Chicago and that’s where you hold all your training, but do you plan on expanding your training to any other cities? Specifically, and selfishly, Los Angeles, of course?

KB: Just pick out a range and we’ll come out there. Yeah, we get a lot of requests especially from Seattle, Washington. We’ve been getting requests to come out there. There are some gals up there who actually want to start their own chapter. I think that’s something we definitely need to get together. One thing I’d like to do is put together a packet on how you can start a chapter or your own group within your own town. I would love to be everywhere all at once but this is a full time job on top of my other full time job. It doesn’t take much and if we could support them somehow from Chicago then we certainly would. I would love to travel all around the country and train people.  It’s a blast. It’s hard work, but it’s a blast and it’s so needed.

NF: This has been so interesting, Karen. Thank you so much for your time. Any final thoughts?

KB: I just think it’s important to be doing this and that we change minds, both in men and women. We love what you are doing, too. We’re making history here! And no matter who pulls the trigger, the effect is the same.

Here’s to our friend Karen! She’s the modern day Joan of Arc, without question. And a special high-five goes out to all of the wonderful and brave ladies over at WTA. We look forward to great things from you!  We’d especially like to thank our fantastic mutual friend and very favorite novelist, Brad Thor, for the introduction. You were completely right.  -nf

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Natalie Foster: Tell me a bit about the history of the company and your involvement in it.

Jessica Brooks: Barnes Bullets was founded back in 1932 by Fred Barnes. He supplied custom bullets that he actually made in his basement to hunters that wanted to buy a premium bullet. So Barnes is currently the oldest bullet manufacturer in the country. My parents, Randy and Coni Brooks bought the company back in 1974 and back then it was in Colorado. They moved it to Utah and we’ve got a workforce just full of family. My sister and I grew up in the business and did just about everything from production to office work to ballistics lab work. We just kind of went where we were needed from the time we were really young – 3 and 4 years old. I really come from the roots of the company. I’ve worked in just about every department there is and so now I’m doing product management and Marketing and Advertising.

NF: Very cool. Your position as a female in the firearms industry is pretty unique, isn’t it?

JB: Yeah, it is really unique. There aren’t a lot of women in the hunting and shooting industry. There are more now than there ever have been but back in the ‘70s when my parents purchased the company there weren’t many. If there were, they were usually assisting their husbands and did the office work. I think the unique thing about our business is that my dad is still the president of the company, and my mom is the sales manager. My dad put us in the spotlight a lot. When we were young we hunted big game at an early age. We were always in the field doing something and my mom traveled all over the world in those early days and she hunted, too. The women in our company have a lot of respect not only from our customers but others in the industry, as well, for the amount of hunting and shooting that we do.

Jessica Brooks (right) hunting at 8 years old.

NF: It seems like you guys are really leading the charge for women in the hunting and shooting industry, kind of by accident.

JB: I think my mom would be seen that way because she gained a really fantastic reputation early on as this little woman that shoots big guns and hunts dangerous animals. I was hunting brown bear by the age of 14. My dad and I went to Alaska and it was a backpack hunt, we had everything on our backs and we were out in the bush for two weeks. We ate freeze dried food and we liked it that way. I think people appreciate the fact that we’ve been there and done that and we can relate to our customers. We hunt deer in our backyard here in Utah and we hunt dangerous game in Africa and we kind of do and see it all. And we enjoy it. We’re not just involved in making the products, we’re involved in using the products. I’m a reloader and I have been from the time I was very young. We’re involved in every aspect of the business and I think people respect that about our family.

NF: What percentage of Barnes Bullets employees is female?

JB: I think about 15%-20% of our workforce are women and some of those ladies are hunters.

NF: Many of our readers are brand new shooters and they are just getting used to guns, so hunting is a whole different ball game. I haven’t hunted yet, either. It’s so foreign to me, other than watching my dad and brothers do it while I was growing up, as it is to many people I know.  Hunting is often vilified by media and pop culture, but I’m not sure that’s really fair. Can you translate to someone who has never done it what you enjoy about hunting – what it means to you?

JB: Well first of all I think it’s important to say that I realize that hunting isn’t for everyone. I would never want to push it on someone who wasn’t interested in it or the experience. And, you know, I don’t ever want to be disrespectful about the animals in the experience of hunting. I think that’s really important because being out in nature is a great feeling in and of itself. And whether you’re hunting or mountain biking or kayaking or whatever it is that you’re doing, I think it’s great that everyone just goes out and enjoys the outdoors. The hunting experience in itself is different for everyone. You have people that are strictly trophy hunters and then you have people that hunt for subsistence and I think I’m somewhere in the middle. I enjoy hunting trophy animals and at the same time I also eat the meat. We have a freezer full of deer and elk. I appreciate the sporting aspect of it and the challenge that a hunt is, and then also appreciate the sacrifice that the animal is making to provide subsistence and food for my family. I think probably there is another aspect of it because of the way I was raised and the business that I’m in – I enjoy the technical aspect of it. After an animal is taken, the first thing I do is walk up and I start doing the autopsy. I want to see how the bullet performed. I want to know that the product I used took the animal in a humane way. I mean, I don’t want to sound corny, but all of those things are very important to me. I think that’s why my family – my dad from the early years – has put tremendous resources and time and energy developing products that perform well because a quick, humane kill is important not only for the animal’s sake, but for the reputation of hunting as a whole.

NF: As I said, I’m not a hunter, but from some of the research I’ve done, I understand that this humane hunting you’re talking about is very important for the different species in ways people wouldn’t normally expect. For instance, keeping the herd down protects it from overpopulation that can lead to starvation or serious illness, which could wipe out entire herds, right?

Jessica with her Cape Buffalo in Mozambique in 2003.

JB: Absolutely. I think that’s really important – herd management. For example, there are people that believe it’s illegal to hunt elephants. It is illegal in some countries, particularly in northern Africa, but in the south as long as you have the proper permits in place you are allowed to do so. In fact, I submit that it’s crucial to control the elephant herds because while they’re a very majestic and beautiful animal, they are also very destructive. The natives graineries are raided by elephants and natives are not allowed to shoot the elephants so they can’t protect their food stores. So African countries benefit greatly from elephant management. Hunters want to pay to go and hunt those animals and it’s very expensive. They can put that money into the economy and into the villages and the food stores and help them manage their livelihood. When an elephant goes in and destroys a village’s grainery, that’s a matter of life and death for that village. So hunting is a great source of income not only for us domestically but internationally and those funds can be put toward conservation. In fact, the bulk of the conservation that happens in the United States is not based on monies from organizations like Greenpeace and The Humane Society. The bulk of the conservation efforts are funded by hunters. We [hunters] fund species that are not huntable. There’s a turtle here in the state of Utah – all of the money for the management of this turtle, this non-huntable species, comes from hunters spending money on licenses at the Division of Wildlife Resources. Hunters are not just hunters. We’re conservationists as well.

NF: I noticed in your promotional video, and as you mentioned before, that your company manufactures bullets to make the kill as quick and painless as possible for the animal.

JB: Yes, exactly. That’s why I say that my dad has worked tirelessly – long and hard hours to develop products that accomplish just that. We do it out of respect for the animal and to the respect of our sport as well. We’re all about ethics and that’s why we build products that are performance based – because we are an ethical company.

NF: I’m just learning about bullets and the intricacies of manufacturing them. It seems like there is so much to know – tons of information out there, which I never would have expected. I just thought ammunition consisted of a metal projectile with some gunpowder behind it. I had no idea how much work goes in to making a bullet. So what types of bullets does Barnes manufacture? Just rifle/hunting ammo, or is there more to it?

Jessica with a "whitetail I shot with my favorite .30-06 last fall."

JB: We do handgun bullets and ammunition in addition to the hunting bullets. For many years Barnes Bullets only made premium hunting bullets. That was all that we produced. However, this year we’ve introduced match bullets for people to shoot at the range in competition and in practice. We also have some personal defense bullets as well. They perform in different ways, some of them hold their weight and hold together, others are frangible for use inside a home.

NF: Explain a frangible bullet.

JB: Frangible is just that – it breaks apart. So for example, if someone breaks in to your home and you don’t want to be worried about a bullet penetrating through a wall into the next bedroom, then you would use a frangible product that would break up before it penetrated through the wall.

NF: This world really is vast, isn’t it?

Barnes TSX Jessica recovered from her whitetail deer.

JB: So true. You know, the more you learn, you realize the less you know. Myself included.  Ballistics is a fascinating field.

NF: So what is the most important thing for a new shooter to know about bullets?

JB: I think the most important thing the new shooter can do is familiarize themselves with the firearm they’re using in terms of safety and function and how that firearm performs. If you decide on a particular application that you want to seek – that you want to be involved in first – then obviously it’s important to do research to find out the firearm and ammunition that is best suited for your application, whether that’s hunting or target shooting or whatever.  If you decide to start shooting a handgun and you want to go to the range, find out the firearms that are available for a woman because we are built differently than men. For example, like me, there are some models of handguns that just don’t feel comfortable to me and I don’t care to shoot because of my smaller hands. So do your research, ask question at the store you visit whether that’s a Cabela’s or your local gun store. Handle the firearms and see what feels comfortable. It’s important to shoot a firearm that’s comfortable to you and that fits.  There are boyfriends that want to get their girlfriends into shooting so they hand them their big full size Remington 700 and this girl is 5’0” and 105 lbs and she can’t handle the firearm – it’s not gonna be a pleasant experience for her. It’s important for the firearm to fit the shooter. And then understand and research the ammunition you’re shooting. If you’re just shooting targets, there are certain types of ammunition that are more expensive than others and it might not be necessary. Another example is if you’re hunting big game and you purchase the cheapest ammunition you can find – full metal jacket ammunition – that’s not doing good research and you’re doing a disservice more to the animal than yourself. For hunting it’s important to match the performance of the ammunition to the game that you’re seeking. You wouldn’t use a frangible bullet if you were hunting dangerous game. So I think the most important things for a new shooter are finding firearms that fit you and matching up the ammunition to the application. I think those are really important things to consider for new shooters.

NF: Are there any resources for matching that ammunition to the application?

JB: Everybody’s got an opinion, so I think gathering the most information you possibly can is best. For example, if you like to hunt with the automatic rifles, the ARs, there’s a forum called www.AR15.com. Those people that get on that forum eat, sleep, drink, live, breathe ARs. Go on the forums and listen to what they have to say. Some of what they say might fit you. And, of course, go visit the local sporting goods stores so you can handle the firearm and get the guy behind the counter’s opinion. The more information you can seek out, the more beneficial it is to you and your experience.

NF: What advice do you have for women who are interested in the shooting sports but haven’t ever picked up a gun before?

JB: First of all I would say that firearms are something that they don’t need to be afraid of. The great thing about women is that when we get into the shooting sports it’s different from a man because a man has preconceived notions. They think they’re supposed to know how to do this and they’re supposed to be the best where a woman doesn’t. In fact, you’ll hear my dad say often that the best shooters he’s ever been around are women because women are comfortable and there’s no pressure. They

Jessica preps for a course at Gunsight in Arizona.

don’t feel the pressure that men do. In my opinion, women already have a leg up on the guys in that regard. What the guys have up on the women, I think, is confidence. If a woman goes into this not afraid to ask questions and realizing that they’re not expected to know everything and just to feel comfortable and relaxed, I think they’re going to have a really great experience. The other thing is, when a woman is looking to get into shooting and they are around other women shooters, they are much more comfortable.  Sometimes men tend to be overbearing and put pressure on them that makes them shy away from it, but there are great women’s programs out there like Women in the Outdoors, for instance. Women can go to these week-long seminars and get experience fly fishing and cooking and shooting and they are around other women and there is a camaraderie there and they feel a lot more comfortable.  My mom and I went down to a shooting school in Arizona called Gun Sight and I took a long range shooting course because I think there are always things we can learn from other people. I also took a personal defense course. They have courses designed, and we’re seeing this more and more, just for women. Women shooters are the fastest growing demographic in our industry, so more and more shooting schools are tailoring classes toward women. I would highly recommend these courses. I mean, a two-day personal defense course would make you very familiar with your firearm and tactics. And I’ll tell ya, the confidence you gain from just a shooting course is unbelievable. I would encourage women to look for those kinds of opportunities.

Thanks, Jessica, for all of the helpful and enlightening information about ammunition and hunting. And thanks to your family for pioneering the path for women in the firearms industry!

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• Joan of Arc – for pioneering the idea that ladies could be leaders long before it was ever a cultural consideration. Just imagine what she could have done with a gun!

• Dale Evans- classic and classy, Dale was the cowgirl our moms wanted to be when they were little girls. She symbolized a strong, yet soft and feminine chick who knew how to handle a six shooter. Plus she married Roy Rogers and that’s just awesome.

• Angelina Jolie- Simply said, she makes chicks shooting guns look fabulous. The roles she chooses are often smart, gun-toting women and that message in pop culture is fabulous for those of us who love it as much as she does.

• Brad Thor -Here’s to a guy who knows how to write strong, classy, gun slinging women! And this is your cue, if you haven’t already, to go pick up your copy of his latest novel The Athena Project!

• Kim Rhode – This 4-time Olympian and 6-time National Champion skeet and trap shooter is nothing less than inspiring. We’re rooting for her as she blasts through her next Olympic qualification on her way to the 2012 games.

• Julie Goloski-Golob – This chick has a laundry list of amazing contributions she’s made to women in the shooting sports. Her resume boasts her role as Smith&Wesson’s team captain, World and National Champion Shooter, Army Female Athlete of the Year, and much more.  We here at Girl’s Guide are proud to call her a friend.

• Karl Lagerfeld for making these:

• And finally, the woman who started it all, the lovely Annie Oakley – for obvious reasons.

We’d also like to mention our friends Vicki Kawelmacher of Women’s Shooting Academy, Karen Bartuch of Women’s Tactical Association, Jessica Brooks of Barnes Bullets, Barb Baird of Women’s Outdoor Media Asssociation,  Aysha Webb at American Defense Enterprises, Niki Jones who founded Sure Shots, Karen Ziegler co-owner of Red’s Shooting Range, Juliana Crowder of www.theglockgirl.com, Tracey Splechter of the Outdoor Connection, Regis Giles of GirlsJustWannaHaveGuns.com, our guest bloggers (you know who you are), and so many others who are leading the charge for women firearms owners everywhere.

From Girl’s Guide to you- Happy International Women’s Day!

Love, Natalie and Katie

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I wasn’t sure what to expect when I headed to the Austin Rifle Club for the Texas Tactical IDPA match.  I knew I was going to be there with other women of similar shooting ability and that we’d be way outnumbered by the guys.  What I didn’t expect was an incredibly fun way to start a weekend!  Now, you’ve read about how GG2G feels about time at the range before, but this was different.  No longer would I be hitting static targets several yards away.  This time I would have to think of my feet – including “running” while shooting, ducking behind cover, and shooting from kneeling and lying down positions.

Using Cover While I Take Out the Target!

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking: ”Are you sure you would label that as ‘fun’, Katie?”  Heck yes!  What made it so was that we had 4 women shooting and a couple who were there as our cheerleaders.  That’s something the men at the competition most definitely did not have!  And I gotta admit it – I think we even intimidated some of the guys there, more because they were worried about hurt egos than anything else (what guy wants to be beat by a girl at a shooting competition?!).

I asked one of my fellow competitors, Karen, what she thought of the experience.  Here’s what she had to say:

Other shooters (male & female) are very helpful. They’ll loan you magazines when yours fails to eject, explain the course of fire more than once if needed, critique your shooting in a way that makes you want to come back and continue to put that information to use, and everyone has a smile for you!

OK, I admit that I added that emphasis at the end, but everything she said is absolutely true.  How could you not have a great, girly time while being surrounded by folks who encourage you and are helpful beyond expectations?!

So, if you have a free weekend and you’re looking for something fun to do with the gals, I’d say find a local match, call all your gun-totin’ girlfriends, and try it out.  Maybe have everyone throw on a pink or purple shirt to show your girly camaraderie.  Then go show off your shooting skills for a couple hours!

There was definitely no competition with these girls!

Oh, and if you’re looking to continue the fun, since loading mags are notorious for tearing up your manicure, head to the spa for mani/pedis after.  Or if you had the convenience of a speed-loader, like me, you can always grab some margaritas at your favorite Mexican place!

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Julie Golob at Steel Challenge

As we dig a little deeper in to the world of firearms, we’ve discovered that there are some pretty interesting circles out there. One of the more fascinating aspects of the gun community is competitive shooting. This goes far beyond the world of skeet and trap or even what you see on Top Shot. Below you’ll find a short list of the more popular shooting competitions in the United States. Because there are so many cool competitions in the US, we’ll tell you about the handgun side of things this time around. Check back soon for more information on shotgun, rifle and mixed firearm competitions.

Last August I hopped in the car for a little road trip to the 2010 Steel Challenge in Piru, CA. I went up there to support  and see my friend and GG’s resident expert, Julie Goloski-Golob, in action. This smoldering day out on the range was my introduction to competitive pistol shooting.

Steel Challenge

Natalie and Julie Golob

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I drove on to the range, but since the Steel Challenge is considered “the ultimate display of speed and accuracy”, I knew I was about to experience an impressive event. When I arrived, it was clear that this was a serious firearms contest. The sponsorship signs were ubiquitous – Smith & Wesson, Sig Sauer, Glock, Safariland and many more made their presence known. Each company sponsored one or more of the competitors and it was clear that they are proud of their investments. I asked around for the location of the women’s teams and within a few minutes of hunting found some of the top shooters in the world doing exactly what they were born to do.  Everywhere I looked was an Olympic athlete or world champion shooter and they made hitting those targets in record time look like they could do it in their sleep. I had done enough research at that point to be pretty overwhelmed by the general awesomeness of the accomplished ladies around me; just to be invited as a competitor to this event is a huge deal. According to their website, “The Steel Challenge World Speed Shooting Championships are one of the crown jewels of the shooting circuit and the premier professional pistol competition in America. With more than 220 of the world’s fastest shooters competing for over $390,000 in cash and prizes in 2007, it has found a permanent place on the shooting schedules of every major competitive shooter.” Wow. I’m officially impressed.

My favorite thing about these shooters, besides their undeniable talent, is that they are all incredibly affable and welcoming. Besides our friend Julie, I got the chance to chat with several legendary shooters including Jessie Abbate, Maggie Reese (of Top Shot season 2), and Randi Rogers among many others.

Natalie and the Women's Super Squad at Steel Challenge

Essentially, these ladies are in a race to shoot metal targets at varying distances as accurately and quickly as possible. There are, of course, many factors that make this task quite a bit more challenging, including movement and all sorts of regulations. The creators kept this game pretty simple on purpose, however.  According to Mike Fichman, one of the founders, “We wanted a match that was challenging and fun but would also be easily understood by non-shooters who would see the competition and find within themselves a greater desire to join the shooting sports.” Mission accomplished, Mike. This game is perfect for beginners like me! Look for a video about my time at the Steel Challenge to be posted very soon.

Until then you can find more information, including rules and history of the Steel Challenge, by clicking this link: https://steelchallenge.com/

Photography by Jack Nischik

IDPA

The International Defensive Pistol Association, or IDPA, is a shooting sport that simulates self-defense scenarios and real life encounters.  Basically they put you in scenarios that you might encounter in real life and test your ability to handle stressful situations while using your firearm.  There are 5 divisions based on type of firearm:

1. Custom Defensive Pistol (.45ACP semi-automatics only);
2. Enhanced Service Pistol (9mm (9×19) or larger caliber semi-automatics);
3. Stock Service Pistol (9mm (9×19) or larger caliber double action, double action only, or safe action semi-automatics);
4. Enhanced Service Revolver (.38 caliber or larger double action revolvers); and
5. Stock Service Revolver (.38 caliber or larger double action revolvers).

Shooters are also broken into skill levels including Novice, Marksman, Sharpshooter, Expert, and Master.  And this is one of the things GG2G loves about IDPA – you don’t have to be an expert marksman to get involved.  There’s an assumption that you know how to shoot, but you won’t be competing against someone who has no problem shooting the bullseye out of a target!  You also have to demonstrate skills like shooting with one hand and shooting with your non-dominant hand depending on the course.  Katie competed in her first match this past weekend and will post an article about it soon, but if you want to get involved, head on over to the IDPA Club Listing to see if you can find one near you.

IPSC

IPSC (often pronounced “ip-sik”) is the International Practical Shooting Confederation, and might be more along the lines of what you think of when you think “Shooting Competition”.  Whether you’re into handguns, rifles, shotguns, or airguns, IPSC has something for you.  Just like IDPA, there are different rankings depending on your skill-level, and the courses are set up to challenge you.    Check out the description from the IPSC website:

IPSC shooting is dynamic, challenging, and one of the fastest growing shooting sports in the world today. Courses of fire utilize many aspects not found in the more traditional shooting disciplines such as movement by the shooter, moving targets, multiple targets, and the freedom for the shooter to solve the shooting challenges presented in the courses of fire.

In general, the scoring is based on accuracy, power and speed.  I remember talking to one shooter who said the hardest thing for her starting out, after having been a bulls-eye competitor, was running through the courses!

One well-known IPSC competitor you might’ve heard about before is Athena Lee of this season’s Top Shot, who was the 1999 and 2008 IPSC World Shoot Open Women’s Champion.  Check out this video of her showing off her skills.

Click here to view the embedded video.

There are plenty of other exciting shooting games out there. If your favorite one isn’t listed here, let us know in the comments section below. We’ll showcase several more in the near future and we’ll make sure your request is one of them.

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We’ve written before about how mentally empowering shooting can be, but we haven’t yet touched on the physicality of it.  When going to the shooting range, doing warm-up exercises are probably not on your prep list, but maybe they should be.  We all know that ache the day after shooting.  It comes from your core, shoulders, back and chest.  And then there are the pains in muscles we didn’t even know we had!

There are a few things you can do to prepare yourself for the physical demands of shooting, whether you’ll be shooting handguns, rifles, or shotguns.  There are also more regular programs you can do to keep your core in shape, which is very important for shooting and your overall health in general. If you just want to focus on exercises for shooting, we recommend doing some arm strengthening, stretching and even endurance training. All of these factors will make you a more accurate, all-around better shooter.

First, there is overall fitness. During the winter months it’s not uncommon to feel like the rusted version of the tin man. Oil those joints and muscles back up to speed so that come warm weather or some range time, you’re not lamenting all that time you spent on the couch! Dr. Edward R. Laskowski of the Mayo Clinic suggests a little cardio every day to keep that body humming properly:

“As a general goal, include at least 30 minutes of physical activity in your daily routine. If you want to lose weight or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to increase your activity even more. If you can’t set aside time for a longer workout, try 10-minute chunks of activity throughout the day. Remember, the more active you are, the greater the benefits.”

If 30 minutes seems daunting to you, start small.  Take a walk around the block, use the stairs to get to your office, or head to the coffee shop or lunch place that’s 5 blocks away instead of 1.  Every little bit helps.

Then there’s conditioning.  To keep those muscles in tip top shape and even strengthen them a bit, you’ll need to do some targeted exercises.  Our faves include yoga, Pilates, ballet, cardio barre, and our newest obsession thanks to the lovely Shemane Nugent: Zumba.  These techniques that focus on your core are a great way to prep for any type of shooting.  Plus they give you those long, lean, strong muscles so you look good doing pretty much anything!

If you’re already in great shape, like our friend Aysha Webb, you might want to check out Cross Fit - it’s the principal strength and conditioning program for many police academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide.

Stretching is also important when you hit the range. Be sure to focus on your back, neck and shoulder area. New shooters have a habit of tensing their shoulders when they are concentrating on the target.  Even experienced shooters can fall in to this trap, too.  Stretching before you fire will help loosen up those muscles and make you more aware of keeping them relaxed when you take aim.

The secondary benefits to working out are widely known: warding of illness, better sleep, more energy, glowing skin, clearer thinking, elevated mood and much more. You can officially tack on “better aim” to that list, as well. Pros like our friend Julie Goloski say working out is a vital part of their competition schedule. You’ve gotta stay fit to effectively hit those targets. Now we can’t promise you’ll look like Milla Jovovich, but maybe you can improve your form.  Try these exercises out for a few weeks and let us know about the improvement you see in your shooting!

Note: this article was written at the request of one of our readers. If you have anything specific you’d want us to write about, hit us up in the comments below or on our Contact Us page.

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