Arresting sight (dot) movement at the end of the draw stroke.

[Gandalf]

Lots of good information in this thread. Much of which I haven't considered before. I've been here ten minutes and have already picked up some very useful information. Thanks for the add.
Gandalf

[SC_Dave]

Inhale on the backswing, exhale as the club goes forward. We call this a forced respiratory pause. Or if anyone prefers the "cool guy" term you can use "combat breath."

Many people gulp air or hold their breath when drawing fast or trying to speed up their draw. This inflates the lungs and creates a lot of tension in the upper chest area and increases overall body tension especially in the arms and shoulders. Also increases heartbeat.

Instead, inhale a quick breath as the draw starts and exhale during extension. This alleviates body tension and creates a calmer presentation as the pistol decelerates and comes to a stop. Just like a precision rifle shot, On a pistol draw I oxygenate then calm the body before firing.

If you are already doing it great, but for the air gulpers and breath-holders, they may see a lot of tremors if they draw quickly and remain at full extension. Forcing out the air can dramatically increase first shot hit percentages in a high stress moment almost automatically once they ingrain it. btw, don't forget to continue breathing.

I would have never thought of this and I can assure you I am a breath-holder.

[Surf]

I would have never thought of this and I can assure you I am a breath-holder.

Give it a try and exhale as you present.

Start out with a very deliberate draw, and then as you speed up it becomes more like a "pant", as in like a dog panting quickly, but just one quick breath out. It is a technique that we use with precision rifles when our heart rate and breath cycle is highly elevated. Biathaletes also use a similar or same technique. We translated that into handguns quite a long time ago and force a respiratory pause on the draw.

[runcible]

I use something very similar to what Surf advocates above: inhale shallowly on the vertical portion of the draw until the hands collect on the gun, exhale more thoroughly on the press outwards and upwards to the eyeline, then fire that first round with empty lungs and an arrested breathing cycle, then breathe in as the trigger is reset in the manner of one's preference, and breathe out as the following sight-picture is built.

The tool that I have for my folks working on having a controlled end to the press-out that finishes their drawstroke, is some light work with 5lb weightplates. The 5lbs of plate provides more usable feedback to the pulling, pushing, and transitional movements.

Starting position: the student casually indexes the plate over their carry position and approximate carry height, in a fascimile of a firing grip with the hand of choice; with the non-carrying hand hanging loosely at their side. Most thread the social and ring fingers through the hole in the plate, have the index finger in high register up near to the plate's rim, and the pinky flares out flat against the side of the plate itself. (Optional focal element: student visually indexes onto something at the far end of the room and will remain so focused until dictated later.)

...they then INHALE and ROW the plate up to full-compression or an appropriate tactile reference point, whichever arrives first given their physical capabilities; with AIWB users rowing up until the length of their flagged thumb, base of their thumb and the edge of their wrist indexing below the pectoral muscle and HIWB users rowing up until the flagged thumb indexes against the edge of their pectoral muscle. (The non-carrying hand moves to press flat against high\center-of-chest, as this happens).

...they then lock their wrist at its present angle, and fold the carrying-side elbow down to touch their floating-ribs\flanks while keeping the plate oriented directly forwards.

...(if working a two-handed press-out, the non-carrying hand collects onto the weight-plate at this time) they then EXHALE and PRESS the plate outwards and upwards, until the plate rises into and intrudes upon their visual plane. (Optional focal element: student shifts focus from the distant point to the top edge of the plate, building a pseudo sight-picture. Students pressing out a plate with the hand opposite of their dominant eye will turn their chin as they begin the exhale, sufficient-to and in-order-to position their dominant eye behind the plate without deviating their shoulders or unevenly bending their elbows.) ((If working one-hand only press-outs, then the non-carrying hand remains slack and the carrying-side shoulder drives more aggressively behind the plate during the press-out itself.))

...they should arrive at an end-state of having empty lungs, full extension, and optionally a pseudo sight-picture with appropriate turning of the head.

Inhale and retract back, wing up or outwards the elbow, and exhale while pressing the plate downwards back to the starting position.

Violent or uncontrolled movements will have a greater degree of movement at the end of this, and those working on speed after satisfying the control requirement can get a stronger repetition of aggressively PRESSING at the beginning only to throttle it back prior to finishing the movement. Can be practiced in isolation from the range, or if packing a 5lb'er can be performed on the side at the range in remediation between sequences of fire. This also helps improve students whom are prematurely ending the rising portion of their drawstroke, and transitioning early to the horizontal portion; it more strongly encourages having superior leverage and control over the complex movement.

Titling and variations:
Plate Row+Press, 2-handed
Plate Row+Press, 2-handed (cross dominant)
Plate Row+Press, 1-handed
Plate Row+Press, 1-handed (cross dominant)

Caveat: I don't use this specific hand placement to help with applying a contra-rotational grip, as it can get funky with how hands position on the plate. Those'd be Plate Wring+Presses, and both hands are flat against opposite sides of the plate. Both of these are teaching tools and micro-conditioners, as opposed to wholesale representations of gunwork done with a weight plate.

A 5lb plate easily fits in at the bottom of my range teaching bag, next to the extra chalk.