Can SHOT IQ Fix Your Handgun Shooting?
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What Is SHOT IQ?
There's a training system out there called SHOT IQ that you might have heard of, which is supposed to help people get their handgun shooting - or indeed any shooting - shored up in pretty quick order. It's also offered for archery, and the rumor mill says a number of police departments are incorporating it or offering it to their officers.
Just what the heck is it? Is it a worthwhile program for ? Can it really make me a better shooter?
SHOT IQ Hacks The Subconscious For Better Shooting
What SHOT IQ is all about is the mental aspects of shooting instead of the physical, though the physical aspects are certainly there. You do have to have solid fundamentals, though you probably know what the fundamentals already are.
In fact, that's part of the problem.
What the fundamental concept of SHOT IQ is that your body actually knows what to do. What gets in the way of shooting well is usually the mind. Consciously, you're focusing on using the correct grip, the correct sight picture, the correct trigger press. By doing so, you might be getting in your own way.
The process that SHOT IQ harnesses is something called "proprioception." Some people might have heard of this, especially if you're familiar with Travis Haley.
Proprioception, also called kinesthesia, is a complicated biomechanical process that to succinctly but comprehensively define would require use of a bevy of medical jargon. The Proprioception For Dummies version is the body's awareness of what it's doing.
Here's a quick example: imagine yourself in an empty room. You can walk across it without issue. Now imagine the lights go out. Can you still walk? Of course you can; your body knows how to maintain motion and balance without needing visual input. If you tilt your body in any direction, your head will tilt automatically to keep the eyes level with the horizon.
That's proprioception. Your body is aware of itself, and can do certain things based on that subconscious awareness.
Great, but how the heck does this relate to shooting?
SHOT IQ Teaches You To Rely On The Subconscious
The start of a SHOT IQ class is pointing a laser pointer at a target, trying to hit the bullseye. The light moves as its being held, because of muscle tremors and so on, but what you'll notice is that the laser innately keeps returning to the target.
Why is that?
Your mind knows that the goal is to hit the target. When you consciously focus on it, that's when your hold on the laser starts to drift, just as when you are consciously focused on getting a correct sight picture and the correct trigger squeeze is when you'll pull the shot off-target.
So the first goal of SHOT IQ is stop your mind from getting in the way, letting the subconscious take over and place the shot without thinking about it. Trusting your body, because it knows what to do, and letting it do what needs to be done, whether it's just general target shooting or putting a shot on target coming out of your .
The second goal is for you to place the shot because you decide to.
Another portion of SHOT IQ is hacking your mind to become decisive. When you decide to place the shot, you're going to place the shot no matter what. Once you decide to take the action of placing the shot on target, nothing's going to distract you or stop you.
In essence, using science to find a cure for panicking once the target in the sights (target panic) and recoil anticipation.
SHOT IQ Makes Shooting Efficient
The underlying idea behind SHOT IQ is not to hone the grip, the trigger squeeze or the draw, or how to use the sights to place a shot better. It's about optimizing the subconscious processes of HOW you put a shot on target.
This aspect of shooting and running a gun barely gets talked about, let alone taught in most training courses. Almost all of them are devoted to the sheer physical skills of shooting, not the mental aspects.
Think of it as a form of bioautomation. By automating as much of the physical process as possible, and focusing instead on making your actions deliberate, the shooter is able to focus on deciding to take a shot at the target and deliberately setting those events in motion. The shot breaks almost by itself.
The idea, in the end, is about making the process as efficient as possible, and ultimately, making the shooter better able to place a shot on a target at will.