Hey guys,

I was hoping someone may be able to point me in the right direction on muscles and workouts that can target the necessary parts of the body for better marksmanship when freestyle. Off a bench I am a great shot but when standing my lower back and arms do not last very long. Particularly my lower back. I notice after a couple hours of running and gunning or even practicing around the house my lower back gets really sore. I have heard mention of how important core strength is to marksmanship with a rifle I have just never been super into working out. I'm a little heavier but not super overweight, my main issue is that I have just never done a whole lot to develop my muscles. Now that shooting has become a big part of my life I'd like to finally tackle this obstacle and was thinking maybe some of you could point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance!

Google marsoc short card.  It's a pdf.  It's the warm up to assessment and selection.

I would knock out some back extensions if your lower back is getting sore and work on some up drills for AR.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/general/2021-Body-Transformation-Thread/113-2408483/

I've started using the roller wheel for floor extensions again.  Definitely works your core and arms.

Training forum?

This is good.

Not sure what’s up with your lower back pain, but I can say that years ago when I was taking a Pilates class semi-regularly, it definitely helped my standing scores.

Hold the rifle up and look down the sights for something like 3 minutes, right and left-handed.  

Your lower back should not be hurting at all.  Try to stand up with better posture.  You may need to see a chiropractor/physical therapist for that issue.

Yep.

20 slow fire shots, dry or live, with a tighter than typical shot placement acceptance is a good test of endurance. If you don't need a fast followup, blade, tuck in, and pull into the shoulder and back against the mag well:
https://youtu.be/S4nJyLN1wnI?t=90
https://youtu.be/eow5TXMIikA?t=62
https://youtu.be/eCPvjIemCgg?t=120

Hey guys,

Thanks for the responses, been a busy few days so wasn't able to check this right away.

I'm not sure what's up with the lower back pain but it only happens when shooting my rifle standing or kneeling for extended periods. Maybe 100+ rounds. I shoot uspsa with handgun and don't have any back pain. I see an occupational therapist about wrist pain from my job so I'll talk to her about she has helped immensely with my wrists so she might be able to help too.

How about my arms, I am a total newb when it comes to like lifting. What muscles in arm, chest, upper back are most relevant to holding up the rifle and holding it steady?

There aren't as many gun shows as there used to be, especially these days, but I used to arrive early, carry my rifle in my two hands all day walking around the gun show until near closing time, or for as much time as I could spend there considering driving time and such.

Any length of time is better than none though, even a half day would be good.

PT so good .

Just spend time with your rifle. If Lucas can do it then so can you.

Just for life in general, increase overall fitness/wellness. 20+ minutes a day of cardio (whatever you can do and prefer: walking, riding a bike, getting it on with your wife...), strength training (whatever you can do and prefer: calisthenics, weights, functional trainer, machines...), maintain a healthy bodyweight (whatever you can do: doesn't have to be shredded but try to get to a normal weight), eat healthy (whatever you can happily do: doesn't have to be food you hate all day), decrease stress (do what needs to be done but still take time to relax, don't worry about things you can't change), get enough sleep (just because you can function on 5 hours doesn't mean it's best for your body)...

I'm way off track now it seems but my point is that if you get your ducks in a row, you'll feel like a new man and everything will be easier. Slowly improve what you are doing and before you know it, difficult tasks and things that made you sore before will be like nothing.

Op,

I think a lot of good and useful suggestions have been given. Some of the best core workouts have been to do push-ups and sit ups. When I was in high school my wrestling coach had us do push-ups and sit-ups during commercials when we watch TV, alternating between the two (i.e. first commercial break push-ups, next one sit-ups). During a hour long TV show you could get a couple hundred of each done. I would also add doing some dips.

I do like using my ab wheel, it’s not where I would start with until you know what is causing your lower back pain as it can put a lot of strain on your lower back.

Also, work on your stance. Make sure that you have a solid shooting stance that is using your major muscle groups and skeletal structure to support your rifle.

I like Tactical Barbell by K. Black. Books are on Amazon. You don't have to be .mil or LE, but his work is kinda based around that.

https://www.tacticalbarbell.com/

One handed dumbbells of whatever weight you can manage.

Do a hammer curl.

From there, push straight out like you’re doing a standing bench press with free weights/driving a pistol.

Shooting fatigue is a real thing and if you time yourself at the start and end of a range trip it’s eye opening. You can bench all day but you’re only getting one axis of gravity. Everyone has heard the term “old man strength”. What that really is, is range of motion strength. That’s what you need, in combination with a light rifle to increase speed and reduce fatigue.

Weight training with compound movements. IE a lift that requires more than one body part to facilitate. Like deadlift, squats, bench press, bent over rows, good mornings, farmer's carries.

Along with steady cardio. By steady I mean, one long distance slow, one HIIT, and one all out as fast as you can set for distance.

That should get you a 6 day workout. With one day of rest.

If your lower back is sore its not that you dont have enough muscle strength
Its improper/bad stance

If you are leaning foward with shoulders over in front your hips that's the issue (Yes I know the Army loves this stance but its wrong)
This is cause of lower back pain, all the strain is there.
And Feet shoulder apart and even is wrong ,it creates the need to bend forward to feel like you are behind the gun to fight recoil.

Instead...
Back straight, shoulder square put non-firing leg way out in front like you would in a fist fight, (no one stands feet even shoulder width apart in a fight)
its easy to get pushed over backwards, so ...
Think Isosceles pistol stance but with rifle.
See this goes way back to 20212
Full article here SWAT Magazine

While working on your stance, you have figured out the key to everything: your core.  But your arms need work too.  Shoulders, biceps/triceps, grip, all are part of the mechanics you need to work on.  Here's some advice from a rehab therapist (that's me).

There are a couple of things you can do to strengthen both core and arms: push ups and planks.  Crunches aren't a bad idea too.

Then work on your shoulders and arms with hand weights.  Not machines, not at first.  If you haven't been using hand weights lately, don't start higher than 5 pounds.  Really.  When you can, work up higher than that, but that 5 pound weight will do a lot for you.

Here are some good instructions for arm and chest exercises.  You can add the reverse of the bench chest fly to work your rear shoulder muscles too.

And finally, here are some ideas about strengthening your grip.  I don't like the spring squeezer gadget they use, though.  Go for one of the gadgets for individual fingers like this one.

A strong body will help you get into and maintain your stance properly.  You'll be able to manage recoil better, come back on target faster, and stay "fresh" to concentrate on safety and the basics.