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SHOOTING DIARY
If you have listened to any coach - the first thing they will say is ..... "keep a diary" But the big question is - what information is best to keep? The opinions of course will change in direct proportion to the number of coaches you ask. The sample that is available below is one idea - it may give you enough information - or it may give you ideas to create your own. If you wish to use this version, roll the mouse over the Diary and click to open the PDF file. With a bit of thought and extra printing or photocopying, a handy A5 diary can be created.

EXPLANATIONS:
EVENT - This could be a particular match or training
DATE - Obvious!
TIME - When you look back it is good to see when you shoot your best. Noting that most matches are held in daylight hours, it is unproductive to only train at night.
LOCATION - What range. Does that range have any little particular tricks to it that you need to remember.
WEATHER - Hot, Mild, Cold, Windy, Humid etc
TEMP - If you are too hot or too cold, this will affect the shoot or training and when you look back over the session it may give you an insight as to the groups.
GOALS - Why are you here today? What do you intend to achieve .... gives you a question for the end of the session - were the goals achieved?
ABOUT MYSELF - How you feel... on a score of 1 being low to 10 being high
GROUPS - Plot the shots, or ask someone else to do this for you.
SCORES - If you must... keep the match scores only.
THINGS I DID WELL - Emphasize the good. Even from the greatest perceived disaster, there is good.
FUTURE RECOMMENDATIONS - What would you have done differently if you had the session or match over again.
FUTURE GOALS - Where are you heading from here - what to work on next time.

You will notice that I do not include a technical aspect. In my opinion, there should be a different section of your diary that deals with the technical. Amongst other things, you should list the following sorts of items, and it is there that you should note any changes tried and tested - with results. Draw simple diagrams to remind yourself.
Butt length	Foresight size for each position	Handstop placement	Sling length	Ammunition testing Groups obtained etc
Butt height	Changes for Kneeling	Changes for Standing	Any rifle maintenance - eg when the firing pin spring was last replaced

The following blank is again a sample available for your use. The completed example shown here is for a mythical shooter who was working towards the Oceanias. It's a yearly overview and gives you a chance to "see the big picture" Again, if you wish to use this version, roll the mouse over the Plan below and click to open the training plan blank PDF file. As Kim explains in her article on the subject (Developing a Training Plan), after the yearly overview, comes the finer breakdown - what you would actually work on week-by-week.

In this example, the following codes have been used: AC - Australia Cup, NAT - Nationals, WC - World Cup GL - Graeme Lawler, WIN - Winchester notes the times/events where you wish to be at your peak The grey areas are invigorating breaks - take them!	Balance of Training Time - gives an idea of the amount of work in each area in any given period. H - High ... means that greatest attention is given to this area M - Medium ... perhaps more of a maintenance L - Low .. definitely lower level of work.

After the tools comes the hard work - have fun and email me if you would like further advice on the creation of your next training plan.