Max Michel is no stranger to winning. As a professional shooter and captain of Team SIG, his achievements are legendary. Seven-time World Speed Shooting Champion. Ten-time USPSA National Champion. Five-time US Steel National Champion. He has won more than 200 other major championships throughout his career in addition to being a Guinness World Record holder. And to cap it all off, he won the sport’s top prize, the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) World Championships in 2014.

So, what does a professional athlete with that kind of resume do now? He prepares to compete for his second world title, of course. Scheduled to take place in Thailand in late November, the IPSC Worldshoot is the Olympics of the competitive shooting world with over 200 countries represented. Not surprisingly, Michel has often been compared to another professional athlete at the top of his game, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Quarterback Tom Brady. At the age of 43 and with seven Super Bowl titles under his belt, Brady is largely considered the greatest quarterback of all time.

At the age of 39 and with all of this success, Max Michel’s respect for Tom Brady should come as no surprise. “I look up to Tom Brady. He’s still the best and I love his mindset that he wants to be better,” says Michel. “It’s not enough that he has seven Super Bowl titles. He wants more. I have that same mindset and I continue to work and grind. I’m one of those guys who is always looking to get better, not necessarily win a trophy. Just because you’re winning, doesn’t mean you can’t be better.”

SIG SAUER is proud to present; Road to the Worlds, featuring Team SIG captain Max Michel. Follow along as Max prepares for the 2021 IPSC Handgun World Shoot.

Max Michel’s training regimen is unique to the sport of competitive shooting. That process is a mix of proper nutrition, training and coaching and is supported by a staff of professionals to keep him on his game. “It’s important to have a team of people around you to help you get better,” he says. “I work with a personal trainer as well as a nutritionist, a shooting coach, and a mental coach."

Max’s routine has him on the range three days a week, in the gym three days a week and then dry firing and checking his gear once a week.

Gym:

• 4 hours per session
• 1 hour physical therapy/warm up
• 2 hour full body workout
• 1 hour cognitive and vision training
• Cardio, speed, agility, core and stability exercises mixed throughout

Range:

• 2 days working on fundamentals of speed shooting (recoil management, drawing from holster, reloading, transition, movements)
• 1 day a week (5 hours) working on courses of fire (entering/exiting positions, swinging targets and plates)
• Mini matches and timing practice mixed throughout

As for nutrition, Michel says that he is not as strict as Tom Brady but makes sure he’s hydrated at all times because the first thing to go is his vision. “I make sure I’m eating the right types of food so I’m not lethargic or tired,” he says. “People make fun of me because I carry a cart with my liquids and proteins on match days but I’m the first guy they come to when they’re looking for chow.”

All of that preparation is what Michel hopes will give him the competitive advantage on the sport’s greatest stage in Thailand this fall. “I want to win the IPSC Worldshoot for me and my country,” says Michel, “but also for SIG SAUER and the P320MAX and the ROMEOMAX.”

• Max Michel Official Website
• VIDEO: Max Michel Guinness World Record 
• Max Michel: How it All Began
• VIDEOS: P320 Training Tips with Max Michel and Lena Miculek