Above: A short clip of Forrest Jillson from last season. By Adam Scott, MS, CSCS Most research examining the physiological demands of downhill skiing is well over 20 years old (1). In that time the sport, its equipment, and our research tools have changed drastically…it is time to start updating our information. We started […]
Research
Dry Fire Mini-Study Results: Either Dry Fire Hurts Marksmanship … or… We’ve Got Work To Do
By Rob Shaul This “Mini Study” was to assess the effects dry fire practice has on actual marksmanship. The results were not what we’d hoped for. Why a Dry Fire Study? The results from our Trigger Pull Study were statistically inconclusive because some of the individual Fresno part-time SWAT team members we used […]
2016: A New Year and A New Approach to Research
Adam Scott, MS, CSCS With roughly 15 studies in less than 7 months it is no secret that we have made a big push towards research. In those 7 months we have studied everything from energy drinks to rucking to trigger pull. Now, as we look back at 2015 and ahead to 2016, one thing stands-out: […]
Study Summary: Lighter Trigger Resistance May Offer Cost-Effective Means of Improving Marksmanship Over 15 Yards
Adam Scott and Rob Shaul SUMMARY PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of trigger pull resistance on non-stressed and stressed tactical marksmanship at three distances: 15 yards, 50 yards, and 100 yards. SUBJECTS: Ten experienced, part-time members of a medium-sized city (Fresno, CA) SWAT team (ages 32-45) participated in […]
15 Things we Learned at MTI in 2015
Adam Scott, MS, CSCS Earlier this year we started our pivot towards MTI and mission-direct research. Although we had already been doing it, this pivot formalized our dedication to Building Better Performance through thought-leading research. Here is a look back at a few of the projects we have undertaken, and the lessons we have learned over […]
Trigger Pull Study, Initial Results
By Rob Shaul and Adam Scott In 2015, we spent two days in Fresno working with 10 members of the City of Fresno SWAT team. The Fresno SWAT team volunteered to be our “lab rats” for a study designed to test the mission-direct effects of a lighter trigger pull. Most stock and issued carbines […]
The Best Way to Improve Push-Ups: Pilot Testing
By Adam Scott, MS, CSCS We kicked off the pilot-phase of our study investigating the best way to improve push-ups. The study is very similar to what we did with Pull-Ups during Sping/Summer 2016 – except, obviously, with push-ups. Basically, we designed four push-up training programs and randomly split our lab rats into four […]
Grip strength. Does it matter? How to Test it. How to Train it.
By Adam Scott, MS, CSCS Grip strength testing has become increasingly popular for tactical professionals. Whether it is directly assessed using a dynamometer or indirectly measured during weighted pull-ups, dummy drags, ammo can carries, farmer’s carriers, or the likes – grip strength has become a major part of the tactical athlete’s testing battery. […]
The MTI 15/15 Shuttle Beep Test for Measuring VO2 Max
By Adam Scott, MS, CSCS Background: VO2max or maximal oxygen consumption is a measure of an individual’s ability to utilize oxygen during increased exercise demand. It is measured in absolute terms (liters of oxygen used per min – L/min) and relative terms (milliliters of oxygen used per kilogram per min – ml/kg/min). VO2max is typically […]
Ruck Deep Dive – Study #2: Best Ways to Improve Rucking
By Adam Scott, MS, CSCS Summary In September 2015 Mountain Tactical Institute began the second official study in our Ruck Deep Dive research series. This study was designed to assess the effects of a 6-week training plan on rucking ability. Having already identified physical attributes which related to initial rucking performance (Ruck Study #1), […]