Your loadout in the winter is very important because it can affect your performance, depending on the mission. The environment has its own set of challenges that can hurt your ability to maneuver and stay out for long term durations. In this article, we will weight the issues of the environment and the specifics of the mission in order to explore what loadout fits for that combination.
In the movie ‘Jarhead’ the characters are seen going on a jog in full MOPP gear. Gas masks and full MOPP gear are notorious for holding in heat and hurting performance. Some would consider training or exercising in a gas mask to be the ultimate punishment or torture. It is said that you lose visibility and the ability to breathe with a gas mask on. This could be why gas mask training can be seen as a sanction or punishment. I prefer to see a gas mask as a training tool.
In combat, it is important that we practice control of both our actions and our emotions. This can be hard to do when we are confronted with real threats to our safety. Discipline is the practice of incredible self-control and being able to keep going even when you don’t want to or you feel like you can’t. Combat demands sound judgement and rational responses along with determination. You have to maintain a sound mind and control yourself in a few ways if you intend to stay in the fight and ultimately keep your chances of survival high.
This article is going to be based on my understanding of the original Spartan warriors and what a modern equivalent would look like. Many people compare themselves to the Spartan warrior and even do workouts that claim to build them the way a Spartan would look. This is a laughable statement once you learn how the Spartan warriors really lived. The modern equivalent of a warrior of Sparta would probably make our most elite troops worldwide look unskilled and undisciplined. Remember through this article that I am only taking history and trying to draw a reasonable parallel that exists in fantasy. However, I hope it proves entertaining and even inspiring. Just brainstorming this article has proved quite inspirational for my workouts and training routines.
Today, people are worried and seem to be gearing up to defend themselves in a SHTF scenario. The worst thing I see is people developing shooting skills with no gear on, but having their SHTF combat loadout all assembled ‘Just in case’ and not practicing with it. Trust me when I say that whatever skill you think you have will be useless when the time comes if you don’t practice with/in your combat loadout. Everything changes when you start stacking on the gear, from using your firearm(s) to mobility. Besides, practicing your skills in your combat loadout is a great way to stay in shape, so why not?
In my experience of learning and developing skills, I have noticed that there seem to be three phases. The three phases I have observed are pretty universal, but there may be added phases depending on the skill you are trying to develop. For example, if you are trying to get better at delivering follow up shots and multiple target engagement, you may find it handy to have a physical training phase that is specifically catered towards building muscles needed to help maintain weapon stability for a longer period. With that said, I am basing these writings off my own limited experience and knowledge of how people develop skills and most of this is based on theory that has had some success with individuals that have had the drive to further their development. This is my effort to shed light on what it takes, in layman’s terms, to develop a new skill.
I would classify myself as a shooter that takes pride in being well rounded due to my understanding of the method of marksmanship, allowing me to move from one platform to another without much of any need for an adjustment period. This is a result of me being able to read things like relative distance, size of target, time given, and develop a method of marksmanship with components that will help me achieve my objective. Therefore, we have methods of marksmanship. What about the fundamentals? There is no such thing in shooting. Let me explain…
One of the more forgotten elements of fitness in my mind is agility in full fighting order (FFO) which includes body armor, ammunition, water, rations, medical gear, navigation equipment, and operational gear. This load can be easier to maneuver with if you have a setup that lowers the center of gravity. I like the British belt kit concept for this reason. It allows me to carry a generous amount of gear for 24 to 48 hours and allows me to minimize the load on my trunk and torso. This in turn helps me minimize the risk of developing irreversible injuries to my spinal column whilst fighting. But with that said, whatever layout you choose, it should allow functional and effortless access to your combat loadout without hindering manipulations. Now let’s move on to discussing agility with your fighting load.
Aiming a pistol Is nothing fancy, but it can always use visual assistance. We are basically using the sights as a reference to verify that our bullets will hit the target roughly where we need it to. Too often we are hearing that we need to STARE/FOCUS on the front sight. This is merely a method of trying to get people to lessen the likelihood of movement of the sights. I feel that this is stupid since we don’t need THAT level of visual focus to see if the sights are staying aligned. Simply watch the threat/target and lift your gun until your sights sit between. They will be a bit hazy but it will be unmistakable whether they are aligned and moving. Plus, having a hard focus on a close object and leaving further objects hazy is going to adversely affect accuracy. The eye is going to not be able to help but see the sights accurately and you will be able to see them with precision due to the close range. Try using your thumb to aim at little letters in this article. Watch the word with a hard focus and bring your thumb up like a pistol sight. The edges will be hazy but sharp Also, look at the current RMR fetish where this is the exact visual method used. If this is used for electronic sights, what is the excuse for all other sights? This is a simple explanation and example proving my point. I have been doing this since I started shooting in Marine Boot Camp. Not being able to see the target at 500m made it necessary. Go figure, though I was supposed to focus on the sight, I hit perfectly using the method of focusing on the target. Since then it made no sense the stare at the sight when the sight is not the threat that I should be monitoring during the engagement anyways. How are you going to monitor your shots on target if you stare at the sights? Perform constant shifts in focus? Ridiculous. How do you think machine gunners track their tracers? Stare at their barrel or sights to ensure no movement? PFFF!!
The relationship our brain has with our bodies is truly remarkable if you delve into all the little things that we know. The part I am particularly interested in is how well our brains adapt to certain things such as shooting. If we look at the precise actions involved in shooting, they are largely absent in our daily life. In many cases, we are doing things in isolation and combination that we will probably never perform elsewhere. This is why I think it is important that we not take a nonchalant approach to training new shooters. Stacking a ton of absolutely new concepts on someone and demanding precision is not impossible. The problem lies with being able to truly learn and create patterns that our brains will be able to not only remember, but build on. In this article I want to look at the task of shooting and controlling the recoil of a pistol with a proper grip technique, which is something people spend years trying to get right. Perhaps a look at everything from a neurological standpoint may help a little.
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Do It RiteAlaska-Based Youtube Vlogger, Retired Marine, Firearm and Gear Tester. Archives
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