How Much Do You Train?
How much do you train? Seriously. Think about your last trip to the range. Did you stand on the line and punch a few holes in a paper target, then call it good? You were shooting, not training. And unless you were really focused on things like grip, sight alignment, and trigger control—you were really just plinking.
Real training has to have a defined outcome. It is also an investment in money and time. Real training involves an instructor who creates a lesson plan or training sequence, watches your performance, and suggests corrective action. The instructor should challenge you to improve and provide instructional guidance when you fail to follow the plan.
Now how much would you say you train?
I’m going to suggest you get out and find a firearms training school and plunk down the money to attend. Usually it is about $400. I bet you thought buying the gun was going to be the most expensive part of self-defense. Not true. If you want to do self-defense right, training and ammo will be your biggest costs. Deal with it.
These training schools will give you solid basics and expose you to a tremendous amount of “atmosphere” about the psychology of self-defense. That atmosphere is best used to broaden your perspective. I don’t expect you to believe and implement everything you see and hear. But everything you see and hear will add to your knowledge base.
I am not here to tell you how much you must train. But I would like it if you trained more! Your skills are perishable. And, make no mistake, you need skills.
I got into a little mini-debate with a lawmaker recently. She was a firm supporter of Constitutional Carry. I had stated that I hate the fact my state allows a person to get a CCW permit with only a Hunter’s Education card. While I love gun rights and the idea of personal responsibility, my point about training is this: If you ever use your gun to defend yourself, you can bet the government will drop you under a microscope in an effort to learn everything about you, your life, and your training.
So, let’s say the government allows you to get a CCW permit with only four hours of training. You can bet that same government (albeit a different branch) will provide you with more than four hours of intense scrutiny to see if you followed all of their rules for the use of that gun. In the case of Constitutional Carry, the government is putting you on the street with a gun and demanding that you follow all of their rules about using that gun, but they are not making sure you know those rules before you take to the streets.
Again, I support the right to keep and bear arms. I support Constitutional Carry, but I’m telling you that with every right comes a responsibility. You have the right to bear arms, but when you do, you also have the responsibility to do so correctly and legally. So, even if the government doesn’t require you to get training, I think you should take it upon yourself to do so.
So, I ask again. How much do you train?
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