We had another small bore silhouette meet today - it is a meet when to few folks show up to pay to shoot so we shoot for fun. I pretty much always shoot for fun and just try to compete with myself. Anyway I am still improving but my back gets tired real fast and I start shooting worse half way through the match. Does anyone know of an exercise that will increase my strength or stamina while shooting?

I should probably tell you that I shot a 22/40 the first round and a 19/40 the second round. Halfway through the first round I was 18/20 targets and the next ten I only hit four.

So If I can find some way to increase core strength and stamina then I will improve faster. My best score to date is the 22/40 so I can see the improvement I just need to get my back to behave.

dont laugh...get hold of a pilates DVD and a poofter pad(closed cell foam mat) and ease yourself into it. it will build up your core/back strength. be aware dont push yourself too hard to begin with or you will end up really stiff n sore.....been there done that
you will feel like a bit of a dork to start with swimming without water and al l. but it works.

Elvis, I was going to recommend Pilates too. Or see a physical therapist for some suggestions.

The PT's that I have seen limited me to 5 - 10 pounds lifting with no bending, squatting, or twisting. That is how my back got to the weakened state it is in.
Pilates, ok, I will check it out.
Thanks guys, you're better than any PT I have been to.

How about swimming Paul? are you allowed?
Swimming strengthen back muscle a lot I reckon.

Take care of the back, PaulS. We will all a .22 to qualify as recoil therapy for now.

I was offered and tried "water therapy" and found that after being in the water for about 5 minutes my back would spasm. We finally figured it was the temperature of the heated pool being cold enough to cause problems. So, a hot tub would be fine but they are hard to swim in very far.

I have contacted the local YMCA because they are supposed to have a therapy pool for folks like me but They won't return my inquiries. I may be forced to visit them in person to see if i can use the darn thing to find out if it helps. I don't know what it will cost yet.

In the mean time I will continue doing what I have been doing and start with the Pilate routine when I get what I need for it.

go at this slow like a turtle. You only want to do this "race" once. Best Wishes, PaulS. Keep us posted

Id suggest rowing but if your back is dodgy Id keep right away from it. We have a "fun" competition at work on nightshift which is 7 floors of our Police station in full kit, about 15kg of gear and armor. My rowing fitness keeps me well up in the competition against kids who are the same age as my own. I can do the climb in 44 seconds. The best time in our unit is 39 seconds by a guy who is huge and immensely strong. Go see a sports therapist and get some good easy core strengthening exercises. Start walking for basic cardio endurance 20 - 30 min a day makes a huge gain in a relatively short time.

I do walk, not like I used to but I can do about three miles in an hour - I used to be able to do 14 miles in under three hours - mixed cross country and street.

There is something in holding a rifle and the stress of trying to stay on target that makes my back spasm on the right side just below the shoulder blade.

Tuesday night we had another meet and it started hurting after the first half of the first round. I decided it was time to "cowboy up" and shoot through the pain for the second round. (I will not do that again) I can take quite a bit but that just kicked my tail for that night and today. I took my meds last night after the shoot but I was passed the point where the meds I use do any good. Most of today I have been real sore but I haven't taken any meds - I am hoping that the discomfort will tell my body it needs to heal.

In addition to hunting down a cd or dvd on Pilates for the back and core I am going to do some short practice with my 30-06 - unloaded in the house just to get used to more weight out there.
I continue to do my stretches and walking too so I am confident that I will get back to "me" once again.

Thanks all!

Another suggestion is get someone to look over your stance, maybe you've changed your shooting position and that can throw things out of kilter. Could be something as simple as that!

I started doing the "beginner" Pilates today. That is going to take some time - I am either in worse shape than I thought or "beginner" means something else in "Pilates". O the bright side I decided that to build up the exact muscles needed I need so weight training. Well I pulled my 10 lb 30-06 out of the case and put it up to my shoulder and aimed with it about three seconds before my back started to spasm. I set it down and walked away. About an hour later I went back and did the same thing twice putting it down between the two. and walked away - the back didn't spasm as bad as the first time. about an hour later I went back and aimed again for about three seconds and put it back down. I think that is my limit for today but I may do it once more before I hit the sack.

There is a world of difference between that 10 lb rifle and my 22 rifle.

it will take you about a week to even begin to get into the exercises...they are very very deceptive as to how much muscle it gets to.