Home/Practical Shooting/Position Exit

Position Exit

MovementLevel 2 — Intermediate

Unlocks

Reload on the MoveShort Moves

What It Is

Accelerating out of a shooting position toward the next position or target array. The goal is to begin movement as early as possible -- ideally while still shooting the last target -- to eliminate dead time between the last shot and the start of movement. Position exit quality is determined primarily by how you set up in the current position: if your stance is correct (feet spread, knees bent, ready to move), the exit happens naturally without extra steps.

Correct Execution

  • Weight shifts toward the next position during the last shots -- this counts as moving
  • Shoulders begin rotating toward the direction of travel before the feet step
  • Last shot breaks while the body is already leaning/shifting toward the exit
  • Push off explosively from the shooting stance -- no hesitation after the last shot
  • Center of gravity leads the movement; the body falls into the direction of travel
  • Gun stays up during exit unless a reload is happening or distance warrants dismounting
  • No "finish shooting, pause, then move" sequence
  • No false steps, coiling, or drop steps -- if the stance is correct, you just go
  • Full power, full speed movement out of the position -- 80% max effort for the sprint portion
  • Always finish the position in athletic stance so the exit is already set up

Progression Levels

Diagnostic Tree

Coaching Cues

  • "Good movement doesn't come down to foot speed, it comes down to efficiency" -- Eliminating dead time matters more than sprint speed. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Start movement while still shooting last target" -- The exit begins during shooting, not after. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Shift weight toward next position while firing -- that counts as moving" -- A weight shift is the first phase of movement. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "If I set up good, the exit is going to be good" -- Athletic stance eliminates false steps. (Stoeger, "Movement Basics," 2023)
  • "If you feel fast, you're probably doing something wrong" -- False steps feel explosive but waste time. Efficient exits feel almost lazy. (Stoeger, "Movement Basics," 2023)
  • "Getting your center of gravity going certainly helps save time" -- Let gravity help. Lean into the exit. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)
  • "Shoulders lead in direction of travel" -- The shoulders rotating toward the exit is the first visible sign of a good position exit. (Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded)

Common Errors

  1. Post-shot freeze: Holding position after the last shot to confirm the hit. -> Confirmation addiction. -> Trust the shot call and go. You know if it was good without staring at the target.
  2. Gun drop during exit: Lowering the gun to waist level during the exit. -> Saving energy or force of habit. -> Gun stays up unless reloading or dismounting for a long run. Dropping and re-raising the gun wastes more time than holding it up.
  3. Flat-footed exit: Standing straight up with weight evenly distributed, then taking the first step. -> Not pre-loading the exit. -> Lean into the exit during the last shot. Athletic stance.
  4. Turning before moving: Rotating to face the direction of travel before taking the first step. -> Unnecessary. -> Shoulders lead, feet follow. Don't wait for full alignment.
  5. Coiling up: Dropping hips and kicking foot back to generate push-off. -> Feels explosive but wastes time. -> If stance is correct, just go. No coil needed.

Related Skills

  • position-entry: Complementary skill -- exit quality feeds directly into entry quality at the next position
  • short-moves: Very short exits blend directly into the next position
  • stage-planning: Exit direction and foot orientation must be planned during walkthrough
  • mounted-dismounted: Determines whether gun stays mounted or breaks down during the exit

Edges

💎 Elite-Only Behavior

Start Moving While Still Shooting

movementposition-exit →

Elite shooters do not have a boundary between "shooting" and "moving." The weight shift toward the next position begins during the last shots -- "that counts as moving." The last shot breaks while the body is already leaning toward the exit. This overlap eliminates 0.3-0.5s of dead time per position. The qualitative difference: novices think in sequential blocks (shoot, then move), while experts think in one continuous flow where shooting and movement are simultaneous activities.

What most people do
Finish all shots. Pause. Confirm the last hit. Then begin moving. Clear sequential behavior: shoot-stop-move. 0.5-1.0s of pure dead time between the last shot and first step.
What the best do
Shoulders rotate toward the exit during the final shots. Weight shifts during recoil. Feet begin moving within 0.1s of the last shot. The exit is seamless because the stance was set up correctly (athletic stance, feet spread, knees bent) -- no false steps, no coiling, no drop step needed.
Why it's an edge: 0.3-0.5s saved per position across 6-8 positions = 2-4 seconds per match. But the deeper edge is the false step trap: coiling, drop-stepping, and false-stepping FEEL fast (they involve effort and explosive motion) but are actually slower than "just look and go" from a correct athletic stance. Feeling fast while being slow is the most dangerous plateau.
How to exploit: Film your position exits. Look for any movement that is not directly toward the next position. False steps, coils, and drop steps are all wasted motion that feels productive. If your stance at the end of shooting does not allow immediate movement in any direction, fix the stance setup.
Cross-domain parallel
In basketball, elite players begin their cut or drive during the shot fake -- the defender's reaction time is consumed before the ball handler has "finished" the previous action. The overlap of sequential actions (fake -> drive becomes one fluid motion) is the same principle. Sequential thinking creates exploitable gaps; fluid thinking eliminates them.
Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded, 2018; "Movement Basics," 2023; "Ben Stoeger on movement basics," 2024

Sources

  • Ben Stoeger, Skills and Drills Reloaded (2018) -- Efficiency over foot speed principle, weight shift during shooting, center of gravity technique, shoulder orientation cue, overlapping shooting and movement
  • Ben Stoeger, "Movement Basics" (2023) -- Athletic stance, false step elimination, "if I set up good the exit is good," full power movement, feeling fast = doing it wrong
  • Ben Stoeger, "Ben Stoeger on movement basics" (2024) -- Athletic stance reinforcement, continual shooting mentality, blend everything together, no sequential shoot-stop-move