Six Tips for Beginners
You are a beginner and you are so excited to get some practice time in with your new bow. You make your way to the local shooting range and start shooting but your shots are not going where you want them to go. Consider these six helpful tips that will help to improve your precision:
- Use the same anchor points with each shot. An anchor point is the place on your face where you pull the string back to each time. For more precise and consistent shots you want this anchor point to be the same every time. Most archers put their index finger right below their chin with the string of the bow barely touching their nose but you may want to try different anchor points to find what is more comfortable for you.
- Grip. Your grip on the bow should be relaxed and comfortable. Gripping the bow too hard will cause the bow to twist and your arrows will go in the direction of the array.
- Relax. This may be this hardest part of all, at least for most of us. Take a few deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth, and clear your head. Then when you are relaxed inhale deeply and release the breath slowly, this will help to calm your nerves. Being nervous will only affect your aim.
- Focus. It does not matter if you are just using targets or you are in the woods hunting, it is very important that you focus on THE spot that you want to hit, at least for a few seconds before taking the shot.
- Follow through with your shot. Once you have release the arrow it is important to follow through by keeping your bow arm up and focusing on the target until you arrow lands. Otherwise you could lower your bow before you should, causing your arrow to go down.
- Practice makes perfect. Practicing is very important because this is how you will perfect your technique.
