TargetTalk

Barth and Dreilich have an excellent description of the two breath system in their Training Shooting Sports Rifle-Pistol book. Watching world cup on the ISSF Youtube channel, it looks like about 2/3 of the shooters use two breath or at last clearly use it. I just tried it and my score (groupings) have improved. Looking forward to tomorrow to try a 40 shot series. Thoughts and experiences anyone.

I don't think it's a magic formula but most shooters I know now use the double breath (pistol). I personally find it gives a better rhythm and helps the fine control.

Rob.

RobStubbs wrote:I don't think it's a magic formula but most shooters I know now use the double breath (pistol). I personally find it gives a better rhythm and helps the fine control.

Rob.

More O2 it seems leading to aiming and trigger release. I'll practice with it for a while and see what happens.

What is the "double breath system", and if two is better than one, why not three?

I am also interested in knowing more about this

The following is taken from Nygord's Notes:

"The first step in breathing for shot delivery is to purge the lungs of CO2. Most of us only use about ½ the lung's capacity while breathing “at rest.” CO2 is heavier than air and sinks to the bottom of the lungs. To purge it, we need to make a deep exhale and push all of the CO2 out. The second step is to take a deep inhale — fill the lungs all the way up. As we do this, we lift the gun — letting the expanded chest help. The third step is to make a “normal exhale”. This will take the pressure off the heart and as we do so, we lower the gun into the aiming area. Then, I like to “top off the tank” by taking a normal inhale. Now we are “full” of fresh oxygenated air, empty of CO2 (which promptly starts building up again) and in the aiming area ready to deliver the shot. Here we can fine tune by making a controlled small exhale to let the gun settle into the exact area we have chosen as our aiming area. The chest actually is helping support the gun. You must experiment to find the point that is just right for you. Now we become still, “holding” our breathe while the shot is delivered. Finally, we make a normal exhale and lower the gun to the bench and begin “normal” at-rest breathing while we relax our eyes, body, and mind during the “rest” phase of the shot cycle.

Once more:

1. Deep exhale.

2. Deep inhale, lift gun as we do so.

3. Normal exhale to relieve pressure on heart.

4. Normal inhale to “top off” (maybe even a bit MORE than “normal”).

5. Tiny, controlled exhale to fine tune “support” position for the gun in aiming area.

6. Still (hold breath) while shot is delivered (and until after bullet hits target — “follow through”).

7. Exhale normally while lowering gun to bench.

8. Normal respiration while resting between shots.

Who would have thought “breathing” requires all those steps? This routine now must be folded into your technique by slow, careful, exact repetition until it too becomes “natural”. As with everything else, consistency is your goal."

Not no detract from the practical value of Don Nygord's advice, but any science student should recognize that the statement

"CO2 is heavier than air and sinks to the bottom of the lungs"

is baloney. Molecules of oxygen, nytrogen and carbon dioxide are in a state of constant thermal motion and the effect of the gravitational force ("sinking") on them is rather irrelevant over the height of the human lungs (it takes hundreds and even thousands of feet for a concentration to change noticeably).

The actual goal of a deep exhale is to simply purge as much CO2-rich air from the lungs as possible and not to "reach" some deep storage of CO2 to where it ostensibly sinks by virtue of being heavy.

I earn a living holding someone's breathing. I also teaches others how to do that. So I find this topic very interesting.

The URGE to breath is controlled by CO2 level. CO2 level is adjusted by hyperventilation or by hypoventilation. Get it down, you will not breath. Get it up, you will have a very strong urge to breath.

The urge to breath is not controlled by oxygen level. You are breathing room air, so whether you breath once, twice, or three big breaths, your oxygen level is the same. You are just breathing normal atmosphere oxygen.

If you take one breath, you might be able to hold your breath for about 30 seconds. If you take two breaths, you might be able to increase your hold by additional 5 to 10 seconds. Not a lot of time increase, but significant for shooting.

Once you reach your CO2 breathing threshold, your adrenaline will surge. Your heart rate will shoot up, your hand will start trembling. Not a lot initially, but very noticeably as time goes on.

So why not hyperventilate, take ten big breaths. Well, you might faint if you do that. When you hyperventilate, you drop your CO2 level, you take away your urge to breath, you might be able to hold your breath twice as long. But drop in CO2 also vasoconstrict your brain blood vessels, with constriction less blood is going to your brain, you will feel light headed and might even faint.

So when it comes down to slow shooting, two big belly breaths is better than one belly breath. It will buy you additional good 5-10 seconds. But if you are a fast shooter, you just come down, look sharp, and get it done with, one single big belly breath is plenty of time.

But for a indecisive shooter like me, I am trying to sneak in that third or even fourth breath. Hope I get more guts to convince myself I can get it done with much less.

argus wrote:
1. Deep exhale.

2. Deep inhale, lift gun as we do so.

3. Normal exhale to relieve pressure on heart.

4. Normal inhale to “top off” (maybe even a bit MORE than “normal”).

5. Tiny, controlled exhale to fine tune “support” position for the gun in aiming area.

6. Still (hold breath) while shot is delivered (and until after bullet hits target — “follow through”).

7. Exhale normally while lowering gun to bench.

8. Normal respiration while resting between shots.

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This is the breathing for slow fire single shot.
A interesting discussion for new shooters is the breathing control for rapidfire stage (duelling) and for standard pistol.
Sport/Centrefire do you inhale on lift or exhale (pant) on lift ?
Standard pistol the 10 sec can be done on single shooting breath, but how to breathe for 20 sec (too long for holding a single breath) ?

In standard pistol's sustained fire strings I raise the pistol just before one minute "load" preptime is over so that I align the sights in my aiming area before targets turn away. I then keep my eyes forward and lower the gun to the ready position. I take one deep breath in and out and then one more in. When the targets turn my lungs are full and I begin exhaling simultaneously with starting the upswing of my shooting arm. I do about a half-way exhale stopping it at the same time I stop my arm.

20 seconds is not too long a time to hold your breath. I shoot on the indoor ranges in a respirator and despite this double obstacle to proper oxygenation do not feel the need to inhale. Some people do the short inhale after the 3rd shot of a 20-second series, but in my view it is not necessary and only distracts from keeping your concentration where it should be.

Definitely double breath!
Inhale while lifting the gun. Stop at the top and exhale while lowering it. When reach the white part of the target above the black circle stop again and make final adjustment in gripping, sight picture and trigger finger position. Inhale again but only to 2/3 or even less of the lung capacity, depending how much it raises your arm. Now you have up to 7 seconds in which your body will not need at all to breathe. Release the shot before that moment arise again.

At my advanced age, the elevation I am shooting at has a lot to do with how well I shoot. I live at 6200 feet, and tend to feel good and shoot well when I go to matches which are much lower than my home. When I climb to shoot in the Mountains (8000 feet Gunnison Colorado) my shooting degrades.

I spend part of the year in Japan at sea level, and boy do I feel old when I come home and gain a mile and a quarter in altitude.


My belief, The better shape you are in, the more efficiently you will use oxygen, the slower your heart rate will be, and the better you will shoot. So, cardio, cardio, cardio, And also, get the caffeine, the sugar and most of the bread and potatoes out of your diet. :-).

After that you can start worrying about how many breaths to take before you hold, and shoot.

]My belief, The better shape you are in, the more efficiently you will use oxygen, the slower your heart rate will be, and the better you will shoot. So, cardio, cardio, cardio, And also, get the caffeine, the sugar and most of the bread and potatoes out of your diet. :-).

After that you can start worrying about how many breaths to take before you hold, and shoot.

This is worthy advice.