Pulse, Blood Pressure.

Got myself a nice finger pulse oximeter and it is small and highly accurate. Took it to the range yesterday and checked myself with it at various intervals.
My pulse went as high as 100+ and as low as 50 at various times. Shooting while at 50 bpm yielded good hold and good results. Shooting at 100 bmp the wobble zone was all over the place and the results were quite poor.

I'm thinking to also take a small blood pressure meter next time.

Are you checking yourself and if so how do you get your pulse rate down quickly and effectively? The Biathletes do a great job of it but their conditioning is off the charts.

Thanks.

If you don't smoke, lay off the adult beverages and caffeine, you'll find yourself steadier than if you partake. Bill Blankenship advised that he did this and years ago, when I was serious about advancing, I tried it.

I have found that a walk in the morning helps with BE shooting in the evening.  It helps deplete some of the excess nervous energy without making me feel tired or overexerting the arms.  It helps with the wobble for sure.

One of the best things for me is to show up early.  I can stay calm and relaxed while setting up.  If I am almost bored during setup, I will probably have a decent first round of SF.

willnewton wrote:One of the best things for me is to show up early.  I can stay calm and relaxed while setting up.  If I am almost bored during setup, I will probably have a decent first round of SF.

Looking back this is the one thing that has produced consistently good results for me. Sitting back with arms hanging by my sides and diaphragm  breathing , no talk at all.

willnewton wrote:I have found that a walk in the morning helps with BE shooting in the evening.  It helps deplete some of the excess nervous energy without making me feel tired or overexerting the arms.  It helps with the wobble for sure.

One of the best things for me is to show up early.  I can stay calm and relaxed while setting up.  If I am almost bored during setup, I will probably have a decent first round of SF.

I try to take a walk at lunch when I can. I agree that it helps with shooting. Then again, it also helps to just get out and not be sitting all day staring at a screen.

I suppose the point I was trying to make was that I might consider the blood pressure deal after I had done everything else to improve my hold and endurance. The better the cardio vascular system, the slower the heart beats. The better toned the muscles are, the steadier the hold. Taking Bill Blankenship's lead in "The Pistol Shooter's Treasury" I found that giving up caffeine, alcohol and tobacco, after a period of time, steadied my hold noticeably, just like BB said, it would. Having a written shot plan and referring to it during matches, along with shooting a lot of matches, can also take the monkey off one's back!

Amati wrote:Scientific studies show that after drinking a couple of glasses of red wine blood vessels become more “relaxed” or dilated, which reduces the amount of work the heart has to do and results in lower bmp. 


But that's an all other story. The question is if you test yourself at the line and do you employ specific body controls -back to the biathletes- to lower your bmp.

back in the day "shooters lube" was used by quite a few folks. (rifle and pistol)

So,  is anybody here is checking their pulse before, during and after the event and if so have you found the same inverse relationship between bmp and scores that I am experiencing?

I just had a operation yesterday and the anesthesiologist had a very serious talk with me about high blood pressure after the operation. I was told by other doctors that I had a problem, I wouldn't believe it, thought I could cut the salt and be okay. I was wrong. The anesthesiologist said I was in danger during the operation, I'll listen now.
  I couldn't figure why my eyesight was blurring for a long time, I was tired, and why I would shake for basically no reason sometimes. I always blamed it on blood sugar management as I'm diabetic also. What a deadly combination to have. I'm thinking if I get this BP managed well my lifestyle and shooting will improve. 
 Stan

Wishing you a good recovery and all the best going forward Stan.
A very thin demarcation line that we all have to walk on.