Hand shaking

[cakeshooter]

I have been frustrated that I haven't had time to make it to the range in like a MONTH due to my schedule being so crazy. But FINALLY I made it out today (which is good because I have a lesson on Tuesday and I wanted to at least shoot some before that).

I was shooting my LC9 at 10 yards and I was so frustrated that after only like two or three magazines my hand was just shaking horribly. I guess that's just from being out of practice and some of the hand strength I had gained by regular practice was lost? It was so frustrating.

My groups were okay.....about two inches at 10 yards during my best shooting (at about my third magazine, after I had gotten warmed up, but not shaking TOO badly yet), and larger groups earlier and later on.... but its really difficult to hold steady after awhile! And then I left the LCP for last, and even with a laser I only hit the target (one inch group on the center) twice and the other three went kinda wild. GRRRR. haha. How embarrassing.

Is there something I can be doing to reduce that shaking, or is it just a matter of finding more time to go shooting? I was trying to put the gun down, take some deep breaths, shake out and relax my arms and everything to get rid of the shaking but man....

[Philbert]

The usual things come to mind: make sure you're well hydrated and not over-caffeineted. I've tried shooting with / without coffee and I find it makes a difference, though of course it might be placebo effect!

Another thing I used to do was excessive breath holding, which hastens muscle fatigue. Lifting weights and being conscious of breathing has helped.

[MT1]

It could be any number of causes... too much caffein, squeezing pistol too hard, stress/anxiety. Shooting more frequently may help but without actually watching you shoot I'd only be guessing.

[Franky4Fingers]

I thought this thread was going to be about shaking peoples hands.

[mpan72]

I thought this thread was going to be about shaking peoples hands.

So did I.

To op is your hand shaking because it hurts or is it just that you can't keep it still?

[imashooter2]

Exercise. Hold a can of soda / beer / vegetables at arms length in a shooting position until you have to lower it. Repeat. Get one of those spring type grip exercisers and use it when you are sitting around watching TV.

[cakeshooter]

LOL I didn't know how to title the thread without making it sound like actual "handshaking". Sorry!

My hand starts shaking after I've shot through a couple mags. I assumed it was muscle fatigue from the recoil of the first few mags...???? That and maybe a little adrenaline since I hadn't shot for awhile....

All I drank before going was a PureLeaf tea...maybe should have been more hydrated than that....

[Franky4Fingers]

LOL I didn't know how to title the thread without making it sound like actual "handshaking". Sorry!

Trouble holding steady aim, hands shaking while aiming, unsteady aim, etc

My hand starts shaking after I've shot through a couple mags. I assumed it was muscle fatigue from the recoil of the first few mags...???? That and maybe a little adrenaline since I hadn't shot for awhile....

All I drank before going was a PureLeaf tea...maybe should have been more hydrated than that....

Your problem is as common as the day is long. Shooting guns is not easy, shooting handguns is even harder, shooting small conceal carry handguns is hardest yet. Shooting is also a perishable skill for many reasons, one being your muscles get out of shape from the odd, unnatural way of holding a weapon. Also, unfortunately, women don't have anywhere near the upper body strength as men. So your at a disadvantage there as well.

You can't go to the range and throw down three mags after not shooting in forever and expect to do well. The first thing I would do is go get a proper .22lr target model pistol and try fundamentals on that. The guns are cheap and the ammo is even cheaper. Once you do that then you can move onto your conceal guns....but don't be expecting to hold groups like that. Especially with that LCP...I mean, are you kidding?

I got rid of semi auto pocket guns. Quality wise, they're fine. They are light, they are comfortable, and I'm sure you if you locked one down in a vice and fired it, they are accurate. But the way the human hand has to grip and fire the things makes them inaccurate. And most of them are so light and thin, they are painful to fire. I'm rockin snub nose revolvers now. Much more accurate. Much more manageable recoil.

good luck

[cakeshooter]

I meant to bring my SR22 but I got a new range bag, and I had to deliver a cake so I threw stuff into the range bag and got it into the vehicle so I would be on time for the cake delivery. So I was stuck with just my two self defense guns. I threw in the .22 ammo, but not the gun itself! Duh.

I did shoot through like 6-7 mags of the LC9 though, not just three. I'm just saying that the 2nd and 3rd mags were my most accurate, and after that my hands started shaking too much.

GREAT idea about holding cans out at arms length for exercise, didn't think of that. I do have a spring exerciser for my fingers....but I hadn't tried holding cans or something out at arms length like that.

Speaking of the SR22, though, I rot with that. I am MUCH more accurate with my LC9. For some reason, I can't get myself to do the sights correctly on the SR22 like I can with my sights on the LC9 (both factory). My husband can bullseye with the SR22 though. Whatever. :-) Maybe its because I've practiced more with the LC9...I have a laser trainer I use at home at times.

[Franky4Fingers]

Did you shoot your cake?



anyway


SR22...thats not a target model though. If your trying to target shoot and you want decent groups you have to get the proper tool for the job. Get something with a 6" bbl. Those Beretta Neos look nice. Never shot one though. Nice and cheap too.

You can't be expecting to shoot tight groups with these short barreled defense and field guns. You need a target model. Theres only so much you can do within a level of reason.

Also, about your waning aim after so many mags. How long do you expect yourself to shoot at 100% peek performance? When target shooting your putting a lot of energy in holding steady, breathing, trigger pull, etc. its exhausting. After...what did you say? 6 mags? You'll start to bleed off.

Accuracy is a relative term. Some people want them in a quarter, some just want to hit the target.