100 rounds, 5 drills: a range session with a plan

Most people who carry don't get to the range every week, and ammo isn't cheap. So the question isn't how much you shoot, it's what each round is for. A box or two fired with no plan mostly teaches you to feel good about holes in paper. A hundred rounds with a plan teaches far more.

The idea comes from a short USCCA video, 100 Rounds to Make Your Range Time Count, which shows five drills for focused practice. The plan below is our own take, not a copy of the drills in the video.

Before you start

• Range rules come first. Distances, rate of fire and drawing from the holster are up to the range officer. Many ranges in Israel only allow holster draws in certain bays, so every drill here starts from low ready (two hands, muzzle down toward the target).
• Target: paper with small circles (about 5 cm) and a chest-size zone (about 20 cm). A paper plate works fine.
• Magazines: load them in advance. Bring 2–3 magazines and a few snap caps for drill 2.
• Write it down: what happened in each drill, not just how much you shot. That's what shows progress from one session to the next.

Drill 1: precision warm-up (20 rounds, 5 m)

Four strings of five at a small circle, slowly. Every shot is a full grip, aligned sights and a smooth press until the shot "surprises" you. After each shot, keep the sights on target for a moment (follow-through).

What to look at: group size. A group that drifts to one side (low-left for most right-handers) almost always means jerking the trigger or anticipating recoil, not a sight problem.

Drill 2: flinch check (20 rounds, 5 m)

A partner loads a magazine with snap caps mixed in among live rounds, without telling you where. Shoot the circle as normal. When the gun doesn't fire, you'll see right away whether the muzzle dipped: that's flinching, and it's the most common cause of wide groups.

After each click, tap-rack (slap the magazine, rack the slide) and keep going. Fire 20 live rounds this way. No partner? Mix the magazines yourself and swap them without looking.

Drill 3: controlled pairs (20 rounds, 7 m)

Ten reps: from low ready, bring the gun up and fire two shots to the chest zone. The second shot should break only once the sights are back on target, not by feel.

What to look at: the distance between the two holes in each pair. Second shot high? Your grip isn't controlling recoil: squeeze harder with the support hand. Far apart? You're going too fast: slow down.

Drill 4: shoot, reload, shoot (20 rounds, 7 m)

Load several magazines with a single round each. Fire one round to the chest, the slide locks back, reload quickly and safely, fire one more. Ten reps.

Reloading is a skill almost nobody practices, and for real it will happen under stress. Eyes stay on target, the gun stays close to your body, and the fresh magazine always comes from the same place.

Drill 5: accuracy at distance (20 rounds, 10–15 m)

Step back and every small flaw gets bigger. Four strings of five to the chest zone, slow and controlled. Then the last round of the session goes alone: your single best shot. End on a win.

The 100 rounds at a glance

Drill	Distance	Rounds	What it tests
Precision warm-up	5 m	20	Trigger press, follow-through
Flinch check	5 m	20	Muzzle dip
Controlled pairs	7 m	20	Grip and recoil control
Shoot-reload-shoot	7 m	20	Reloads under pressure
Accuracy at distance	10–15 m	20	Everything together

You don't have to fix everything in one session. Pick the drill that went worst and start the next session with it.

Log it and see the progress

In Kadurim you log each session: how many rounds, which firearm and which ammo, with a photo of the target if you like. The firearm's round count and your ammo stock update automatically, and target photos over time show whether your groups are really shrinking. On the ranges map, each range's page shows whether holster draws are allowed.

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General information only, not a substitute for a certified instructor or the range officer's rules. The linked video belongs to USCCA.