TargetTalk

SlartyBartFast wrote:

Jorge has a big problem, he should seek help immediately...







...he is shooting a Matchguns. :-D

He is also planning on shooting L to R

deadeyedick wrote:He is also planning on shooting L to R

I believe (but could be wrong) that's just his set-up routine. It means that he's at his most relaxed on the last shot on the LH target.
I've seen several top level shooters do it over the years. Some start the set-up on the LH target, some on the centre one.

This is pure physiology. The arm is simply stretched. No special lock of the elbow needed

I know this is an old thread. I've been going through my basic technique and noticed that while my arm was straight, it wasn't stretched out fully or rotated, so that the inner elbow faced the ceiling, and my shoulder rolled down. Raising my pistol has been a challenge but I think I could get used to it, will take a few weeks probably.

I'm assuming this is a better position as it limits movement at the shoulder and elbow. As it is a new position my arc of movement has increased but when I get used to it I'm hoping it will prove more stable and repeatable position.

Any thoughts welcome.

Bret

Everyone's anatomy is different. You have to experiment to find what works best for you. If it's uncomfortable, I wouldn't try to force it for too long. You can damage stuff that way, and it can take a long time to get back to shooting if you do.

It doesn't take a lot to lock up the bone structure. I haven't come up with an equivalent for the elbow or shoulder, but when I explain locking your wrist to students I have them hold their forearm horizontal with their palm down. I have them completely relax their wrist so that their hand is dangling down. I then tell them to pivot their wrist so their hand is horizontal. That's all the tension you need for air pistol & .22.

Your inner elbow does not have to face the ceiling. This differs from shooter to shooter. Mine is to the side.

Go as far as you can stretch your arm. Some shooters cannot extend it fully and just accept their morphology. They stretch it to what their body allows. I have a picture of this in my @olympicpistol social media but cannot find it right now (from years ago probably in a competition in Suhl, a member of the Swedish team).

What matters is getting a repeatable position so that you always do the same.

[ People do different stuff.
Here’s Moritz Minder many years ago. He set a world record. Lotsa guys tried this, and realized it’s what worked for him.

It’s more important to understand that a visual image does not necessarily indicate tension and stress at play.
While it is mostly used by classical musicians, dancers, and stage actors, I would recommend looking into “Alexander Technique”.
I want to keep shooting for many years, and without injury from poor technique.
Try it!!

i have been struggling with this issue recently : more with the shoulder position, but also elbow - if you keep the shoulder up, like in the video in the original post (ukranian style, where your jawbone touches the shoulder), it's very easy to have the elbow extended in that fashion

i saw this video https://youtu.be/LrnZsOOp3P0?list=LL&t=609 where the coach is advising to keep the shoulder up. also there is another part where he advises to rotate the elbow. i find those positions to be impossible (for me at least): i can keep the shoulder up when shooting, but i cannot lower the arm to 45 degrees with the shoulder up. also, that elbow towards the floor feels painful

also, coach Dina (@aspan76) recently made a post about shoulder position: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php? ... 7464687386

i tried recently to keep the shoulder up and the elbow extended at maximum. it feels very stable - but the tension in the neck (upper trapezoid muscle) is intense and i had an injury as a result.

Before everybody dashes out a wrecks their neck with the raised shoulder position, take a look at this video of the three Olympic medal winners from Paris:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_GI383-XUE

NONE of them are contorting their bodies in that way. Their shoulders are basically level and relaxed, at least as far as you can tell visually. A quick scan of the MEC book on Olympic pistol shooting found NONE of the shooters using the raised shoulder stance.

I suspect this stance is something the Soviet system came up with, where winning medals was more important than athlete comfort & long term health. Even then, Yur Yev's book only shows a few shooters using this stance.

Do yourself a favor, and shoot in a relaxed, natural position, without straining ANYTHING. Your odds of being able to enjoy the sport for a very long time will be much improved. It is clearly NOT necessary to contort yourself to shoot at the highest possible levels.

Thank you everyone for your comments on this.
Alot to review and also not to be too paranoid about particular technical view points. Just keep arm straight and comfortable.

6string wrote: ↑Mon Apr 07, 2025 1:14 am [IMG_0431.jpeg

People do different stuff.
Here’s Moritz Minder many years ago. He set a world record. Lotsa guys tried this, and realized it’s what worked for him.

It’s more important to understand that a visual image does not necessarily indicate tension and stress at play.
While it is mostly used by classical musicians, dancers, and stage actors, I would recommend looking into “Alexander Technique”.
I want to keep shooting for many years, and without injury from poor technique.
Try it!!

Hi there,

I've looked into the Alexander Technique, and very interesting. I'm 6'6" so back problems are never too far away.

Getting to stand in a relaxed and natural way is helping to set up my stance and also reduces swaying alot as well. Good grouping today for sure. Thank you for the tip.

Regards

Bret