So Raleigh... How do you shoot when your heart rate is so high?

Shooting without physical load 5 shots in prone shooting 

Shooting at a heart rate of 190 beats per minute, 10 shots prone position 

As a biathlete I field this question a lot. The short answer is: Practice, shooting under a heavy physical load is like anything else, the more you practice the better you get. Through controlled breathing, stable shooting positions, specially adapted rifles, and other means top biathletes consistently post 90% shooting scores, taking as little as 25 seconds per shooting bout. Just like training to ski fast, training to shoot well is a process.   

The general yearly progression for rifle training is:

Early Spring: Rifle adaptation, shooting position, precision shooting. 

Summer: Precision shooting, range procedure drills, low intensity combination (shooting under physical stress) training, and some high intensity combination work

Fall: High intensity combination training, easy combination training.

Winter: Competition, maintenance high intensity combination training, and easy combination training for recovery.     

Right now I am focusing my rifle training on precision shooting, and range procedure. I have just begun to throw in some combination training, and I am enjoying the benefits of my precision work this spring.  

The road to world class biathlon shooting is long and frustrating, however consistent shooting is absolutely critical to success on today's ultra competitive international level. My next few posts will focus on different tests and drills I use to prepare my shooting for competition.