HOME SCHOOLED
HOME SCHOOLED
FINDING IT HARD TO KEEP UP YOUR TRAINING TEMPO IN LOCKDOWN? BILL BRINGS US HIS PERSONAL
APPROACH TO STAYING SWITCHED ON AND UP TO SPEED IN ISOLATION!
In the UK I’ve just entered Month 3 of lockdown, and
who would have thought that the way we live and the
freedoms we enjoy could become so curtailed so quickly?
Whilst we’ve yet to enter some form of “police state” it
certainly feels sometimes like “Big Brother is watching
us”, and the effect that self-imposed isolation has had
on all of us has been profound.
Whilst I am the very first to question the motivation
of the state in imposing curtailments on our individual
freedoms, simple common sense (oh, where did that
go?) dictates that we need to take certain actions when facing a
silent killer, if not for ourselves then for our loved ones and the
vulnerable in our societies. Although “situational awareness at all
times” should be a mantra amongst most of you reading this,
we’ve all become very aware of keeping distance from others, not
only by design, but also by necessity.
Of course what the lockdown has meant is that not only have
we needed to keep away from people, but also places, and this
has included most of the venues that we would commonly visit to
train. My local shooting club is having a continued hiatus, which
means that the ranges both indoor and outdoor have their doors
very securely and firmly shut, and although I’ve never personally
been much of a “weights bunny” gyms and clubs are also off limits.
So where does this leave us, and me, in relation to my regular
training regime? I work mostly from home anyway, so that hasn’t
changed much (read here “at all”), and as long as I hit my deadlines
then all is good. I’m lucky in this as usually I would train physically
for 30-45 minutes each morning using a great stretching workout
shown to me by occasional PMCI contributor Robbie, shoot indoor
on a Tuesday morning (.22LR, Static Targets, 25m), shoot indoor
on a Thursday morning (6mm, Reactive Targets, 5m) and shoot
outdoor at the weekend (mix of calibres and mixed distances
dependant on the training platform used).
In addition to this “routine” I also sea swim regularly in the
summer, and hike with a pack a couple of miles each day (with
my beloved hound by my side), extending this out at least once a
week to around 10 miles; even though I’m in my mid-fifties this
regular routine along with a good diet and not-so-much-boozeas-I-used-to-
imbibe keeps me on top of things, and keeps those
all-too-easy-to-accumulate pounds at bay!
Whilst lockdown has kept me closer to home in relation to
not travelling to shows and events, my daily physical routine has
stayed largely consistent, and unlike many I read about I’m feeling
as fine both physically and mentally as I usually do, and even at
the most stringent point of enforced isolation I was still able to
get out with the hound for my “one a day” and do my morning
stretches.
However, rangetime has proved a most definite problem! I’m
very aware that my “tactical toolbox” contains some perishable
skills, so even though I’ve not been able to head to the range, I’ve
brought it home to me!
HOME ON THE RANGE!
Now obviously I’m not able to shoot firearms at home, in fact I