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The Calculations Women Make

Women make countless calculations to protect themselves when declining an invitation, ending a relationship, or leaving an uncomfortable situation because they cannot always know who will respect their decision and who may retaliate. Training can give women greater awareness, confidence, and options, but responsibility for violence always belongs to the person who chooses it. Women deserve the freedom to say no without fear, and men of strength and character help protect that freedom by respecting boundaries, recognizing warning signs, and standing against the attitudes and behaviors that allow violence to develop.

09/10/2026

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16 Women Prove Their Strength at A Girl & A Gun Combatives Camp

Sixteen women gathered at Martial Way Legacy in Austin for A Girl & A Gun’s three-day Combatives Camp, where they practiced realistic self-defense techniques, ground defense, ambush escapes, weapons retention, and other close-contact skills. Through scenario-based training and physical challenges, they built strength, confidence, and resilience, proving that they were willing to fight, adapt, and never give up.

09/09/2026

2. Mastering Fundamentals: Blue Track

Grip, Trigger, Sights: Diagnosing the Strong Hand

Strong-hand-only shooting has a wonderful way of telling the truth. When we shoot with two hands, the support hand contributes stability, grip pressure, and recoil

09/08/2026

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August 2026 Recap

A Girl & A Gun expanded its national impact in August, with 2,794 women participating in 460 chapter events, an 18.49% increase over last year, as membership reached 35,804 women and five new chapters opened nationwide. The month showcased the remarkable breadth of the organization’s influence, from advanced Sniper School training, where more than half of the participants successfully engaged a target at one mile, to instructor development, purposeful marksmanship programs, and exclusive research revealing how women invest in sporting clays equipment. With 594,385 social media views, more than 118,000 website views, and 31,382 unique visitors, A Girl & A Gun continued to educate, connect, and inspire women across the shooting sports. Explore August’s training insights, market research, member achievements, and national highlights below.

09/07/2026

1. New Shooter Zone: Amber Track

Yes, You Can Shoot With One Hand

Strong-hand-only shooting tends to look much more intimidating than it actually is. Your strong hand is already holding the pistol, operating the trigger, and doing much of the important work behind every shot. Your support hand certainly helps. It adds stability and plays a significant role in recoil control and recovery. Take it away and the pistol will feel different and yes, it will move more. The good news is that different does not mean unmanageable.

In fact, the biggest hurdle often happens before the first shot is ever fired. The brain is wonderfully creative when given an opportunity to imagine recoil. You brace for it, add tension, squeeze harder, and prepare for the pistol to do something far more dramatic than what is actually about to happen. Then the shot fires and the reaction is often, “Oh. That was it?”

Successful one-handed shooting is not about being stronger or muscling the pistol into submission. The real game changer is knowing what to expect and having the right technique to manage what the gun actually does. Give one hand the right job, build good structure behind the pistol, and let solid fundamentals do the rest.

09/01/2026

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A Girl & A Gun Celebrates National Shooting Sports Month

A Girl & A Gun chapters nationwide celebrated NSSF’s National Shooting Sports Month by welcoming women to the range for firearms education, skill development, friendly competition, and community. Several members were also featured on NSSF’s social media pages, earning national recognition while demonstrating the growing influence of women as participants, mentors, instructors, competitors, and leaders in the shooting sports. #letsgoshooting

08/31/2026

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CONQUER 2027: What to Expect at A Girl & A Gun National Conference

Recently, Robyn Sandoval, A Girl & A Gun’s President & CEO, jumped on Zoom with members of our Wimberley Valley, Texas, Chapter to answer questions about attending National Conference for the first time. Their questions were the same ones we hear from women across the country: Am I skilled enough? What gear do I need? How do I choose my classes? What if I have never flown with a firearm? What happens if I show up and discover that something is wrong with my equipment? Those are important questions because Conference is a big experience, but it should never feel intimidating. Every part of the event, from our Color Tracks and Gear Check to class scheduling and Facilitator support, is designed to help you arrive prepared, train at an appropriate level, explore new opportunities, and leave Colorado with greater skill, confidence, and community.

08/28/2026

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Book Club: The Secrets of Women Who Never Give Up

What does it really mean to be a woman who never gives up? This candid conversation goes far beyond resilience, exploring confidence, mentorship, authenticity, and the people who help shape who we become. Through honest stories about setbacks, self-doubt, hard-earned wisdom, and finding confidence both in life and on the range, these women uncover what determination really looks like. It’s the kind of conversation that may leave you thinking differently about your own journey, and the women walking it with you.

08/27/2026

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Dry Fire Training: The Complete Guide to Practicing at Home and Choosing the Right Training Aids

Dry-fire practice is one of the simplest ways to stay connected to your skills between range days, and for A Girl & A Gun members, it is also an opportunity to learn more about how your firearm, your gear, and your body work together. A few focused minutes can reveal whether your grip is consistent, whether your sights come into view the way you expect, whether your holster is truly working for you, and whether the skills you rely on feel as familiar as they should. Because confidence is built through repetition, not assumption, making dry fire part of your regular training routine can help turn occasional practice into lasting proficiency.

08/25/2026

3. Formidable Holster Skills: Green Track

Transitioning Between Firearms

Most of us don’t own just one gun. We have the gun we love to shoot at the range, the gun we carry and maybe a different gun for home defense. There might be a winter carry gun and a smaller summer option. Many of us also have a variety of competition guns, too. Others have a deep-concealment setup as well as an off-body concealed carry pistol option. Then there are rifles and shotguns, each with their own jobs and personalities. Over time, we build a collection of firearms dedicated to different tasks.

Which is great. Until you pick up one you haven’t worked with in a while and suddenly discover that your hands have apparently never operated a firearm before. Welcome to the wonderfully humbling business of transitioning between guns.

08/24/2026

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Revolvers and Cartridge Types: Rimmed vs. Rimless

What’s the difference between rimmed and rimless ammunition, and why does it matter? If you’re learning about revolvers, semi-automatic pistols, or handgun ammunition, understanding the difference is a great place to start. Learn how to identify rimmed and rimless cartridges, why each design is used, how the cartridge works with the firearm, and what to look for before choosing ammunition for your firearm.

08/21/2026

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Faster, Smarter Target Transitions: Virtual GNO

This month’s Virtual Girls Night Out featured Tatiana Whitlock, National Director of Training, exploring Target Transitions and how shooters move their attention, their eyes, and ultimately the gun from one shooting problem to the next. Transitions can look fast and athletic, but Tatiana emphasized that speed is not where the process begins. Efficiency is. See sooner, move with purpose, arrive predictably, and make a good shot.

08/20/2026

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Before You Need That Phone Call: Understanding Self-Defense Legal Plans and Insurance

Self-defense is about more than choosing the right firearm and learning how to shoot. Understanding self-defense legal plans, concealed carry insurance, firearms instructor insurance, and the potential legal and financial aftermath of a defensive incident is another important part of being prepared. Using data from 1,239 A Girl & A Gun members, this guide explores what women gun owners are actually choosing, the common self-defense legal protection and instructor insurance brands they encounter, what these products may and may not cover, and the questions every gun owner should ask before spending her money. Whether you already have a self-defense legal plan or are among the nearly 62% of surveyed members who said “None or not yet,” this guide will help you understand your options and make a more informed decision before you ever need to make that phone call.

08/20/2026

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A Girl & A Gun Sniper School Combines Riflecraft and Fieldcraft in Training Designed for Women

Seventeen women took on four intensive days of long-range shooting, fieldcraft, observation, and teamwork at A Girl & A Gun Sniper School in Raton, New Mexico. By the end of the program, more than half had successfully engaged a target at one mile, an extraordinary achievement that reflected far more than marksmanship. Each hit represented reliable data, careful problem-solving, confident communication, and the determination to keep learning as the challenges grew.

08/19/2026

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Instructor Mastermind 3Q2026

The hardest moments in firearms instruction are rarely about the drill. They are about people. What do you do when a student repeatedly struggles with a safety standard, fatigue changes performance, a spectator begins coaching, or an experienced shooter challenges your instruction? More importantly, what do you actually say? This Instructor Mastermind session introduces a practical four-stage framework: Correct. Accommodate. Remove. Resolve. Through real-world scenarios, instructor language, and group discussion, we explore how to make difficult range decisions with confidence and professionalism while protecting safety, instructional quality, and individual dignity. Warmth in the delivery. Clarity in the words. Safety in the boundary.

08/18/2026

1. New Shooter Zone: Amber Track

Drill of the Month: Kelly’s 3×3 Reload Challenge

Some of the best drills are born from a simple idea, a handful of ammunition, and a shooter who looks at the range and thinks, “You know what would make this more interesting?”

Meet Kelly Palomera from the Southern Maine Chapter. Kelly has been a vital part of the Southern Maine A-Team for the past five years. She is an avid pistol shooter, a certified NRA pistol instructor, a Chief Range Safety Officer (CRSO), and a NRA certified shotgun instructor who also teaches shotgun through L.L.Bean’s women’s programs to name a few of her shooting accomplishments. She is inventive, creative, always ready for a challenge, and exactly the kind of person you want dreaming up new ways to keep range day interesting.

This month, we are featuring one of Kelly’s creations: a deceptively simple drill that combines accuracy, reloads, target transitions, mental processing, and a little friendly competition.

It can be run as an individual challenge, a head-to-head competition, or a chapter activity. Better yet, it is easy to modify for different shooter skill levels.

08/18/2026

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A Girl & A Gun Joins Supporters at Gun Prom Benefiting A Girl & A Gun Legacy

A Girl & A Gun leaders joined shooting sports enthusiasts from across the nation at Gun Prom in Columbus, Ohio, for an evening of friendship, celebration, and purpose. The event benefited A Girl & A Gun Legacy, a separate nonprofit organization working to establish a permanent training and gathering space where future generations of women can learn, connect, and belong.

08/17/2026

2. Mastering Fundamentals: Blue Track

Faster Target Transitions: 3 Ways to Improve Shooting Efficiency

Once target transitions start to feel comfortable, most shooters want the same thing next: more speed. Instead of chasing speed, start cleaning up the process. Efficient target transitions depend on your eyes and hands working together. Your vision identifies where the pistol needs to go next, then your hands deliver it there. As that relationship improves, unnecessary movement and hesitation begin to disappear. For most developing shooters, there are three places where this work can make a noticeable difference.

08/09/2026

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July 2026 Recap

A Girl & A Gun continued to expand its impact on women’s firearms training and the shooting sports in July, with 2,600 women participating in 406 chapter events nationwide, a 19.1% increase over last year, as membership grew to 35,503 women. From firearms education, leadership development, and hands-on training for women gun owners to the sixth annual Women’s Clays Extravaganza, where 107 female shooters from 12 states engaged 26,094 registered targets, the month demonstrated the growing participation and influence of women across the firearms community. A Girl & A Gun also published new firearms industry data examining how women influence firearm and accessory purchases, develop brand loyalty, upgrade their handguns as their skills progress, and select trusted rifles, optics, gear, and training equipment. With 430,909 social media views, more than 107,000 website views, and nearly 16,000 active app users in July, the data offers a compelling look at the growing community of female gun owners, competitive shooters, firearms instructors, and women shaping the future of the shooting sports. Explore the latest A Girl & A Gun statistics, women’s firearms market research, training insights, gear data, and event highlights below.

08/08/2026

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Finally, a Clear Picture of the Women’s Sporting Clays Market

Discover exclusive data on what women sporting clays competitors are actually buying. At the 2026 A Girl & A Gun Women’s Clays Extravaganza, 107 women from 12 states participated in a comprehensive Gear Check, creating one of the most detailed datasets available on women’s purchasing decisions in the shooting sports. From shotgun brands like Beretta, Syren, and Browning to performance eyewear, hearing protection, shooting vests, shell pouches, and accessories, the findings reveal how experienced women invest in equipment that improves comfort, fit, and competitive performance. As one of the largest women-only registered NSCA sporting clays events, the Women’s Clays Extravaganza provides manufacturers, retailers, and industry partners with valuable market insights into the fastest-growing segment of competitive shooting. Explore the trends shaping women’s sporting clays equipment purchases and learn what this benchmark data reveals about the future of the shooting sports industry.

08/05/2026

1. New Shooter Zone: Amber Track

Build Skills With Purpose: The A Girl & A Gun Marksmanship Programs

Improve your shooting skills with A Girl & A Gun’s Pistol Marksmanship Program (PMP) and Defensive Marksmanship Program (DMP). Learn how these structured firearms training programs help shooters build accuracy, confidence, defensive skills, and measurable progress through guided practice. Discover which program is right for your experience level and how purposeful range training leads to long-term marksmanship success.

08/04/2026

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More Than Marksmanship: Tatiana Whitlock’s Approach to Teaching

What makes a great firearms instructor? It takes far more than marksmanship. At A Girl & A Gun, Director of Training Tatiana Whitlock has built a comprehensive instructor development program that teaches women not just how to shoot, but how to teach. Through Train-the-Trainer, teachbacks, mentorship, and ongoing education, the organization is redefining firearms instructor training by equipping women with the coaching, communication, and leadership skills needed to develop confident, capable shooters in communities across the country.

08/04/2026

1. New Shooter Zone: Amber Track

A Beginner’s Guide to Target Transitions

Target transitions are one of the most enjoyable skills you will learn because they add movement, problem-solving, and rhythm to your shooting, even when your feet stay still. Instead of simply firing one accurate shot after another, you are learning to shift your attention, move the pistol with purpose, and build a new sight picture for the next shot. It feels like a natural next step because it is. The same fundamentals that helped you become an accurate shooter are still at work. You are simply learning how to connect them from one target to the next.

08/03/2026

3. Formidable Holster Skills: Green Track

Beyond the Malfunction

Then something interesting happens. The mechanics are no longer the challenge. The questions simply change. Experienced shooters eventually discover that restoring the firearm to operation is only half the lesson. The more valuable question is, Why did it stop in the first place? That shift marks an important stage in a shooter’s development. The goal is no longer to simply solve the problem. The goal is to understand it well enough to keep it from happening again. That is where some of the most valuable conversations in advanced training begin.

07/28/2026

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Book Club: Strength Begins Within

A Girl & A Gun’s July 2026 Book Club meeting brought together two books that approach personal growth from different perspectives but ultimately arrive at a remarkably similar conclusion: true strength begins from within. The discussion centered on Lisa Bevere’s Girls with Swords and Janet Charbonneau’s The Journey Inward, exploring themes of courage, identity, self-discovery, faith, confidence, preparation, and becoming the woman you were created to be.

07/23/2026

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Weight Loss and the Shooting Sports: The Side Effects Nobody Warns You About

Losing a significant amount of weight can dramatically improve your health, but it can also change the way your shotgun fits your body. As your body composition changes, factors like length of pull, cheek weld, recoil management, balance, and gun mount all shift, often leading to missed targets and unexpected discomfort. This article explains why weight loss affects shotgun fit, how it impacts shooting performance, and the simple adjustments that can help you regain consistency and confidence on the range.

07/22/2026

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What Women Want from Their Pistols: Insights from Gear Check Data

What can a woman’s pistol tell you about her journey as a shooter? More than you might think. Drawing on A Girl & A Gun’s Gear Check data, this article examines the predictable progression of the upgrades women make and what those choices reveal about training, purchasing behavior, and skill development. Whether you’re an instructor helping students make smart equipment decisions or a manufacturer designing the next generation of products, these insights offer a data-informed look at how women invest in gear that supports meaningful progress, not passing trends.

07/21/2026

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A Girl & A Gun Women’s Clays Extravaganza Opens Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch’s New Home with Historic First Registered Shoot

The 6th Annual A Girl & A Gun Women’s Clays Extravaganza brought 107 women from 12 states to Defender Outdoors Clay Sports Ranch in Joshua, Texas, July 17-19, 2026, for a record-setting weekend of competition and training. As the first registered National Sporting Clays Association (NSCA) event hosted at Defender’s new facility, competitors shot more than 26,000 registered targets while women of every experience level, from first-time competitors to Master Class shooters, participated in competitive events and optional instructional clinics. The event highlighted A Girl & A Gun’s mission to grow women’s participation in the shotgun sports by providing a welcoming environment for learning, competition, and community.

07/20/2026

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Understanding and Practicing Malfunctions with Purpose: Virtual GNO

Every shooter begins with the same goal: make the gun fire accurately and consistently. We spend countless hours learning grip, stance, sight alignment, trigger control, and recoil management. Those are the skills that get us started. Eventually, however, every shooter reaches the same inevitable reality. Firearms are mechanical tools, and mechanical tools occasionally stop working as expected.

During this Virtual Girls’ Night Out presentation, Tatiana Whitlock, Director of Training for A Girl & A Gun, explored an often overlooked but critically important part of becoming a confident shooter: understanding malfunctions and practicing how to solve them with purpose.

07/20/2026

3. Formidable Holster Skills: Green Track

When the Gun Stops

One of the greatest misconceptions in shooting is that confident shooters never encounter problems. They do. The difference is that they don’t interpret every unexpected event as a crisis. They understand that equipment, ammunition, weather, fatigue, distractions, and even human performance are all variables that can influence the outcome of a training session. Rather than fighting reality, they learn to work through it.

That mindset is one of the defining characteristics of a Green Track shooter. Success is no longer measured by whether everything goes according to plan. It is measured by the ability to remain thoughtful, observant, and disciplined when it doesn’t.

07/19/2026

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