I came up with this "drill" after yet another demonstration of how perception of time is misleading.
Time Warp exercise
Goals
- demonstrate that perception of time while shooting is misleading
- identify mental cues that make you see faster and/or shoot faster
Procedure (shot timer required, partner helpful)
- Set up a drill of your choice. (E.g. Accelerator, Blake, Distance Changeup https://www.benstoeger.com/livefire-drills)
- Find your baseline. Warm up. When you're ready, shoot at least 3 runs in your "comfort zone". Shoot ~80% A's. (In a 12 shot drill you shouldn't drop more than 2-3 C's, and you shouldn't be going so slow that you're shooting all As.) Record your average time, and commit it to memory.
- Focus on shooting faster, while maintaining 80% A's. Do NOT look at the timer, but try to guess your time. Check your points. Disregard any runs where you have too many points down. Record your time estimate, the actual time, and your observations (how you felt, what you were focusing on, etc.)
- Focus on shooting more relaxed, while maintaining 80% A's. Do NOT look at the timer, but try to guess your time. Check your points. Disregard any runs where you have too many points down. Record your time estimate, the actual time, and your observations (how you felt, what you were focusing on, etc.)
- Focus on vision while maintaining 80% A's. See as much detail as you can on the targets, and how your sights move. Do NOT look at the timer, but try to guess your time. Check your points. Disregard any runs where you have too many points down. Record your time estimate, the actual time, and your observations (how you felt, what you were focusing on, etc.)
- (optional) Focus on mental cue of your choice while maintaining 80% A's. As above.
I'm looking forward to your observations. Let's discuss!