Building up to heavier bow weights???

[mike hall]

Check out the piece in the June/July TBM on pg.94 titled "Strong Like The Bull". Fred Asbell gives some tips on building strength to handle those stiff sticks.

[casey allen]

Has anyone tried the "BOWFIT" exerciser to try and increase their bow weight pulling abilities?
thanks

[Troy D. Breeding]

Havn't tried the bow pull method but, may add it to my work out. The way things are around here this time of the year I'm lucky if I get 15 minutes shooting time each week. Trying to keep with the free weights and pull ups just to make sure I don't fall back in strength. So far it's working pretty good.

[LoneWolf]

Hey Troy, when your useing the weights.  Get a chair, put one knee and one hand on the chair ( so that most of your upper body is parrallel to the floor) hold the dumbell in the other hand and lift it straight toward you.  If your doing it right it is the same motion as drawing a string.  exercise both arms the same of coarse, it builds up the back of the shoulder and upper back.  That should help as well.  I used to have to do those alot working out, and you know what poundage I was shooting(still shooting sometimes).

[One eye]

Yes, that is a very good video.  I had to back down in weight due to a serious shoulder injury.  I am just working my way back up.  I am trying to increase 5 pounds of weight every 2-3 months.  Great excuse for new bows    

Dan

[wattensawbohuntr]

troy, traditional bowhunter june/july edition has an article with that exact title "building up to heavier bows" written by Fred G Asbell it shows different exercises you can do if you dont have it or cant find it email me @ [email protected] and i will send it to you. it may be on their website

[Troy D. Breeding]

Just to let everyone know I'm still with the free weights and chin ups but, had to back down to about every three days due to work.

The one good thing is I've been on a diet and with all the hard work I had to do after the fire I've managed to loose afew pounds. As of this past week I had lost 31#. The weight loss and physical labor is helping when it comes to standing all day dipping arrows or walking long distance. Blood pressure is back to normal (my family Dr. freeked last year when it topped out at 167 over 132)and colestrol level is back to 167 (it too got alittle out of hand. Almost 100 points higher to start with).

I still have trouble finding time to shoot as much as I would like to but, when I do get to shoot I'm finding it much easier to shoot the 65# bow for longer periods. Hopefully by bow season I'll be able to atleast feel confident that I can handle it to hunt with instead of wishing I could warm up for the shot with a lighter bow.

[wattensawbohuntr]

congrats on the weightloss troy, that should be a big help even outside the shooting,

[Troy D. Breeding]

Never knew how much high bloodpresser and carrying that extra weight could effect someone. Once I went on meds to help lower the BP I found out I wasn't loosing my temper quite as much and wasn't getting headaches everyday. I'm now down to half amount dosages and hope to be off it before fall. With the drop in weight my feet and legs have stopped hurting all night after a hard day of working on arrows and such. Heck, nowdays I feel so much better I find myself trying to find time to shoot instead of having to make myself go out and prectice.

[LocDoc]

Although I don't hunt Really Big Game like the rest of you guys, I still enjoy reading your posts. I'll have too second the Matt Fury idea mentioned earlier. His "Combat Conditioning" workout is the ultimate 'body weight' workout. You will benefit overall health, not just strength. I strongly recommend it. I shoot 72 pounds @ 30"
Best to all

[Hooked]

Made an exercise device like was talked about in TBM.  Just thought ya'll might be interested.  Cost about 5 bucks to make.  Heavy duty surgical tubing bought at local medical supply store and PVC trap from home depot.  If you wanted to make it heavier you could make two and tape the two pieces of pvc side by side.
 

[devildog66]

Well Troy, Haven't heard about the progress lately.  How goes it?

[Troy D. Breeding]

dd77,

Still on the diet. At the last weigh in I'm down 42#. Excercise program seems to be really paying off. I'm still using the free weights but, backed off the chin-ups due to feeling some sharp pains in the right shoulder.

I started walking alittle more and have found that my legs are in less than exceptable condition. Gotta find more time for this part of the excercise program.  

Yesterday while shooting the 210 piece bow I caught myself overdrawing it. In the last couple of weeks I havn't had to use the lighter bow to warm up with. The 210 piece bow pulls 63# @ 29" and I caught myself pulling past my 29" draw. Best I could figure I had to be pulling atleast 29-1/2". That makes my bow weight pretty close to 65#. Gonna warm up with the 210 bow today then start moving on up to my 65#@29" bow. If I get to where I can handle it without problems I'll only have one more bow to move up on before I have to build something alittle stronger. I'll know alittle more as to how well I can handle the current bow weight soon as the temps drop. Sitting in a stand or blind for several hours in cold weather can make for a hard pull.

[devildog66]

Troy,
That's great news about the weight and the conditioning program.  Sounds like you'll be walking the mountains flat this year.  I think that one of the others has mentioned this but it sounds like you may want to start a regimen for your shoulders to increase the strength and flexibility of your rotator cuffs.  These muscles and ligaments aren't very strong but are crucial to your shoulder joint well-being.  Another vulnerable part of the shoulder is the biceps tendon; it can be injured rather easily through repetitive strain.  Using ice after you lift and using a theraband BEFORE you lift can really help cut down on any show stopping injuries like these.  Keep it up and will talk to you soon.

DD

[Troy D. Breeding]

Whooooo Weeeeee, tried shooting the 65# bow alittle yesterday and talk about kicking my butt.

Warmed up with the 63# bow without any problem. When I moved to the next bow it felt like I had grabbed an extra 10# in weight. I hear fellows talk about shooting light weight bows during the summer to tournament shoot then pick up their 10-15# heavier bow to hunt with. Unless they are shooting it alittle during the summer they must really shake. I felt like a dog trying to pass a peach seed.

[devildog66]

LOL, haven't ever seen that but I have seen my new Grizzlystik Safaris with your custom cresting and fletching!  The arrows are awesome and I have picture saved digitally and will learn to convert to UBB and post the sucker for all to see.  Thanks Troy, for the great arrows.  I am also working up to be able to shoot them through my 78#@27 Widow MB that I just got.  I am getting it on target but not able to comfortably shoot consistently yet without my draw breaking down; however, makes the 70# longbow feel like soft cheese.

DD77