I remember some punk years ago that went off on me when I was shooting  my Mini 14 off a bench rest and how my gun was a piece of crap and that I had to learn how to properly use a sling.   Well, back then I took it because I always had the “student” mindset and not a “know it all” like some people in this Industry.   One of the best things taught to me was when someone told me that the best way to win a fight in combat is to be in a “good firing position”.    There are plenty of War stories where one guy had the upper hand, just because he was in the best position to lay down accurate gun fire.   Sure we need to train to shoot under stress and sometimes that means kneeling, standing or being prone, but using your backpack, bipod or anything else is no disgrace.

Reloading is a great way to learn ballistics and fine tune rounds to your firearm, you can see key holing and limits in what your barrel twist rate, and sometimes at different ranges.   The differences between penetration, fragmentation,  accuracy at different ranges all with the same firearm.   Shooting off the bench is more challenging but when you are trying to get accuracy, why make it more difficult.   You can always make your own bench rest from sandbags or pick up gun rests that are adjustable in elevation that make a differences as well as other options that can adjust to the stock size so you have virtually zero movement and only have to worry about properly squeezing the trigger.   Patience, not heating up the barrel, and watching the wind are sometimes as much fun as shooting an MP5 at water jugs.