Well, I think a lot of the details depends on how you prefer to hold a gun and how the gun fits you.  But that said, the best thing I ever did for my scores was to read a book.  Did more for me than even nightly airrifle practice.  I'm sure there are others out there, but I recommend 
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Garbe recently published an article on books of the same nature also.

Brent

First, do all the above while your eyes are closed, assuming as comfortable & muscularly-relaxed a position as possible. Now open your eyes and, without changing the way you're holding the rifle, adjust your feet position so that the sights are aligned with the target as well as possible horizontally. Adjust the vertical alignment by changing the length of the palm rest staff or changing the thickness of the vee support if it's something besides your fingers.

Do not swing your body or the rifle to align the sights, do this alignment only with your feet position, making very minor corrections until the sights align properly when you first open your eyes. Any correction applied with your muscles or with tension against them will result in a relatively uncontrolled muscular response when the trigger breaks, and thus a more-or-less inaccurate shot. Same with the palm rest and the vertical alignment, adjust the vertical by varying the length of the palm rest staff so that the sights are aligned when you open your eyes.

Do not close your off eye, the muscles will alter the vision in your shooting eye and tire it faster. Use a blinder attached to your shooting glasses over the off eye. You do wear shooting glasses I hope?

Do not eat anything for at least an hour before you shoot, your blood will be occupied with your digestion and it won't be available for your eyes and other muscles. 2 hours is better.

Do not attempt to make each shot perfect. Rather, IMO you should attempt to make each shot go solidly in the black, with no bad shots. This is old old strategy and is basic to consistent shooting. If you concentrate on making no bad shots, then eventually and gradually your groups will tighten and your scores will improve. Vary the size of your bulleye (or the range) so that you can keep almost all your shots in the black and, as your accuracy improves and your offhand groups shrink, you can decrease the size of the black to match.

A common problem is making the rear or front aperture too small, resulting in eyestrain. I choose apertures slightly more open than the minimum that's required for 'best & sharpest' sight picture, always. The eye will involuntarily change its muscle tension to sharpen its visual acuity according to the available light, and this tension will fade in and out as the body tires during an extended firing stroke of more than 2-3 seconds, requiring still more tension to correct. If the available light is greater, then the corresponding eye muscle correction tension is lower, resulting in less change as the tension fades in and out and thus less eyestrain.

Your groups will NOT suffer from a slightly larger aperture, I promise!

Focus your eye on either the front sight or the scope reticle, DO NOT focus on the bulleye.

All this is very basic, Good luck, Joe

I would say you are almost there Cat whisperer.

I would offer just a few last pointers.

No caffeine drinks prior to the match. Do not be distracted from the idle banter which one hears on every firing line. Try wearing earplugs, and over these wear a good pair of ear muffs. Almost totally eliminates all background noise. Now it's just you and the target. 
When you step up to the firing line, Concentrated on the target, and eliminating muscle tremors. Breath control which you mention is important. Next cradle the rifle into position. Now while you're holding steady ease your finger onto the hair trigger. Next shut your eyes tight, and quickly jerk the trigger back!! hehehehe........

Well something like that anyway................

Bruce

WOW!

Excellent suggestions, references!  And more questions.

I understand the the 'natural point of aim' and finding it by closing one's eyes - and not 'muscling' the rifle.

Focus on the front sight?  I tend to switch focus from front to target and back - often.  Is it better to hold focus on the sight (peep sights front and rear on my practice rifle, will switch to scope early this summer).

Visualization - YES!  Cafene - I dropped it when I started taking blood pressure medication - it just didn't seem right taking that pill with coffee.

:This reminds me of going over a couple of counties to a fellow reservist's range to practice for a 'Commander's match' with M16's.  The owner of the property asked me if I was going to shoot with them at the match.  I responded that I was shooting with them today and against them at the match.  We're still good friends.


Lots of stuff to review, THANKS!

Sir    Place a small stone under your off leg foot. It will change everything for you. Try it next time you shoot.

Cows come cows go. the bull stays.

Good info.  (I know I've got a LONG way to go.)
But how big are the rings ?
(Looking for a way to translate to different ranges - group size does that.)