TargetTalk

Hello all,

I have been having a lot of trouble lately with keeping my temper when I shoot. I seem to always get frustrated at my shots even when my scores aren't that bad. For a visual aid, I am sort of like Sonja Pfielschifter (for those of you watching the international matches) when she shoots a "bad" shot, but maybe not that bad at times. My coach has given me a lot of really good advice, but i was wondering if some of you guys had some tips and tricks to help stay calm.
Also, after a practice drill today I noticed that I am having a really hard time starting. I can usually start my matches off with a couple 96's, and then towards the middle i seem to "warm up" and shoot 98's-99's, and the last target is usually a 96 or a 95 in some bad cases. what can i do to start and finish my matches better? I am only a freshman in college so I have a lot of time to work on it, but I would like to get it fixed as soon as possible :).

Thanks!
Ryan

It is up to you to decide to keep calm.

Consider why you lose your temper, and the result. On a physical basis every time you go to an emotional extreme (get a kiss, lose your temper) your brain gets a little shot of endorphin. That rewards the action, and leads to more of the same.

Stop rewarding your brain for a temper tantrum. Instead make a conscious decision to reward yourself when you fire a good shot (how often do you just ignore your tens now, instead of looking at them and telling yourself "Allright, I like it"? That self talk also releases just a little endorphin, and will lead to more of what you desire.

What you permit, you promote. What you reward, you encourage.

I dont know about the losing your temper part of your post, but a few weeks ago I asked how other people managed to stay calm during competition shooting.

viewtopic.php?t=36925

I found all the replies that I received very helpfull and I have already got the book recomended by tsokasn, and I am also trying to follow the advice given by gstarik.
Hope this helps you

On a lighter side I did try the drinking beer technique, my shooting ended up really bad but I didn't give a s**t.