Archery is an ancient sport with roots dating back to the Stone Age. It served as a tool for hunting and fishing and brings many benefits to those who pursue the sport today. Many of those benefits directly correlate with modern athletic performances, and here is how novice to pro athletes can take advantage of the ancient art of archery:
Archery Improves Coordination
Although archery is a primarily stationary sport, it can vastly improve coordination. This is especially beneficial in sports such as basketball or tennis which require intense hand-eye coordination.
For example, Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors is regarded as potentially the greatest NBA shooter of all time. It requires tremendous skill and hand-eye coordination to become a scoring leader in the NBA—including tying the record for the most threes in one game.
Hand-eye coordination is a learned skill that is enhanced through archery and can bring enhanced performance in a variety of sports.
Archery Builds Upper Body Strength
Upper body strength is another essential piece of the puzzle for modern sports. From baseball to basketball and football, developing upper body strength can help athletes in overall performance.
Drawing a bowstring places stress on the arms, chest, shoulders, and back. This position maintained for several seconds as the archer aims the bow and fires the arrow. The drawing and releasing of the bow is a repetitive motion that can help improve upper body strength in athletes.
Achieving Better Balance and Posture
Improved balance and posture can help reduce risk of injury. When an athlete has control over his or her motions, it puts them in a position for higher performance and reduces the chance of both large and minor injury.
Balance and posture is essential in archery for accuracy. The torso, arms, chest, and shoulders must be properly aligned and balanced before firing. The importance of posture in archery is brought down to a science, as the head and shoulder alignment needs to be 60-to-80 percent in line with the target.
Archery Increases Mental Strength and Focus
Although athletes rely on their physical strength and skill in sports, the truth is that mental strength has a major impact on performance.
Archery requires intense focus to hit the optimal target. The mind must tune out surrounding distractions and give intense concentration to the target.
This mental focus is beneficial to many athletes, whether it’s golf or running. Endurance athletes such as runners need to maintain a certain level of physical output for extended periods of time—which requires physical strength as well as mental strength.
Perfect Your Skill with Top-of-the-Line Tools
When it comes to archery—and a variety of other outdoor sports, including hunting and fishing—wind speed can greatly impact performance. Kestrel Instruments offer top-of-the-line weather data instruments to track wind speed, temperature, barometric pressure, and more. Consider using weather data tools for archery and other outdoor sports—and master the art of your chosen sport.
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