While how you shoot may be dictated by your physical surroundings, there are a few key points you should try to address when it comes to your shooting stance. To optimally control and quickly shoot a handgun, here’s an overview on how you should position each part of your body:
• Arm position—If possible, you should extend your arms fully, but do not lock your elbows. You should relax your shoulders and refrain from keeping them up around your ears.
• Leg and feet position—Maintain a hip-width distance between your feet for maximum stability and comfort. You can either bend or lock your knees, so experiment to find what’s most comfortable for you.
• Grip—When you hold your gun, grip it tightly. If you’re a new shooter, keep in mind that you should grip your gun even tighter than you might think necessary.
• Balance—To counteract the gun’s kick, you need to shift your weight forward slightly. If the gun ever pushes you back so much that you lose your balance, you need to move both your body position and balance forward.
• Body position—Position your body so that you lean forward slightly at the waist. Avoid bending backward in your shoulders, hip, or waist areas.
• Align the sights—To get the perfect picture of where to shoot, grip the gun tightly and hold it at arm’s length away from you. Make sure the front and rear sights are on the same level and that the light gap between the sides of the inside vertical edge of the rear notch and front sight are equal.
• Adjust the sights—Today, the sights on most guns are designed to have the bullet hit at the top of the front sight. However, many pistols come with adjustable sights you can change to alter the point of impact.
