Trouble drawing bow?

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  • Gordon

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 20, 2011
    1,119
    Baltimore City
    Went to the range yesterday to do a little bow practice with my Damon Howatt 55 lb recurve no issues drawing. Set up to shoot my Hoyt Ultra tec set at 60 Lb and couldn't pull back to save my life!!!! Made several attempts and nothing,it was like the left arm was weak and right shoulder had some pain. I tried with my glove I use for my recurve and managed to draw back but didn't feel right. I guess it's a trip to the Dr's. this sucks.
     

    Melnic

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    Dec 27, 2012
    15,278
    HoCo
    some people will hold stiff with left arm and pull with right. Some find it easier to hold still with right arm and push out with left. Others will start out in the middle and push/pull.
    what ever you do, just don't sky draw
    How you breath before you draw and during draw also can affect things.
     

    MaxVO2

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    ****In my experience, shooting with a bow is a somewhat perishable skill from a physical perspective. There are of course physical issues with firearms, but the physical part seems to manifest itself quicker with bows.

    Doing exercise, particularly specific exercises to strengthen muscles used for bow shooting can help a lot. I have several bows setup at different draw strengths and start my first few practice sessions with mostly my 40-45 lbs pull bow, and then do a few pulls with the 50-55 lbs bow to get used to it. Physical fitness is basically overload and adaptation. If you haven't been using those draw muscles much in the off season - they have probably weakened and need to be worked on. Rotator cuff tears, subluxation of the shoulder and other capsular type damage is very possible if you try too much to soon. The rotator cuff muscles weaken, and the shoulder becomes unstable leading to possible capsular tears (SLAP tears, etc..), that are very debilitating and very very painful.

    It's much easier and smarter to work up to the heavier draw weights by doing a few sessions with lower pull bows until your body gets used to it again. It's far preferable to prevent a rotator cuff or other shoulder injury than to treat it. The rehab sucks, takes a long time, and you are often never really the same.

    You get in shape to play sports, you don't play in sports to get in shape, especially if you are a bit older, or you've taken significant time off, or are recovering from injury, etc.. Plenty of people just jump right into where they left off several months back and then injure themselves to the point they are basically incapacitated and in constant pain because they didn't back off a bit and work up in a sensible manner over a few sessions to let the body adapt and get stronger.



    Good luck to you.
     

    Pushrod

    Master Blaster
    Aug 8, 2007
    2,979
    WV High Country
    I had this issue after shoulder surgery for a labrum tear. I now have to point my bow up and draw down before lowering and putting the bow sites on target. It really sucks for deer hunting as it is 50/50 that the deer will spot you lowering after drawing. I try to draw when the deer get behind a bush or tree momentarily, but sometimes I'm holding the draw too long waiting for them to get back into a clearing and have to ease my draw.
    Getting older sucks!
     

    Gordon

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 20, 2011
    1,119
    Baltimore City
    Thanks for input,I probably didn't help matters a week ago by relocating half a dozen bags of 80 lb bags of concrete. I have several lighter bows to work up from.
     

    gtodave

    Member
    MDS Supporter
    Aug 14, 2007
    14,156
    Mt Airy
    FYI my Hoyt was much harder to draw back this year (I started a thread here on it). A new string and corrected timing and it was good as new.
     

    outrider58

    Eats Bacon Raw
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 29, 2014
    49,810
    If I don't shoot just about every day I can feel myself start to lose muscle mass. There's kind of a medical reason for that though.

    archery is definitely a perishable skill though. It's all about repetition.
    :lol:
    Musta found some extra primers he didn't need...
     

    outrider58

    Eats Bacon Raw
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 29, 2014
    49,810
    What did he say so I can avoid that?

    He decided all of a sudden after 7 years, to achieve 50 post at around 4am this morning.

    I figure he found the motherlode of primer stashes and wanted to dump them here.
     

    BigRick

    Hooligan #15
    Aug 7, 2012
    1,140
    Southern Maryland
    Went to the range yesterday to do a little bow practice with my Damon Howatt 55 lb recurve no issues drawing. Set up to shoot my Hoyt Ultra tec set at 60 Lb and couldn't pull back to save my life!!!! Made several attempts and nothing,it was like the left arm was weak and right shoulder had some pain. I tried with my glove I use for my recurve and managed to draw back but didn't feel right. I guess it's a trip to the Dr's. this sucks.

    My dumb ass just got back into shooting archery after 20 years. Found out the hard way that I can’t pull 70lb’s like I could when I was 25. Pretty sure I tore something in my shoulder. I’m hoping it heals. Getting old sucks!
     

    MaxVO2

    Ultimate Member
    MDS Supporter
    My dumb ass just got back into shooting archery after 20 years. Found out the hard way that I can’t pull 70lb’s like I could when I was 25. Pretty sure I tore something in my shoulder. I’m hoping it heals. Getting old sucks!

    ****If it doesn't "heal" quickly, say a week - you should get it checked out. If you tore something, it's better to find out sooner than let other muscles atrophy to the point you become debilitated, or becomes painful 24/7 doing normal things..
     

    lawrencewendall

    Been There, Done That
    Oct 10, 2009
    1,744
    Went with a crossbow when my shoulders when south. Need to shoot at 40 yards since I was splitting too many bolts. Not looking back!
     

    mauser58

    My home is a sports store
    Dec 2, 2020
    1,755
    Baltimore County, near the Bay
    Many go with a crossbow. Hell when I started hunting with a crossbow my first two were 150lb pull. Now some are over 300lb. My son has an Excalibur and that is a beast. That is why many have the crank to load them. I had bad shoulder injury back in the early 80's and go a crossbow permit before they allowed them for bow hunters. I got a permanent permit back then and not needed now.
     

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