Practice problems

[Bob B.]

Well,
 I ahve a practice question.  I have been shooting very well this year.  However, once or twice a week I have seem to have some kind of brain fart and do not shoot well at all.  I thnk it is mental, I believe my mechanics are sound.  When this malady strikes, i jsut put the bow away and shoot again latter in the day or the week.  I figured I do not want to lose confidence or develop a bad habit.

An example would be like last night.  I was shooting at a little pieces of bone on a hillside (about the size of a golf ball).  I shot very well.  Today I repeated my practice only to shoot a circle around the target.  The more I shot the bigger the circle got until I was shooting 5 to 7 inch circles around it.  So, I quit.

My question is should I continue to shoot until I "get it together" and improve my shooting or am I doing the correct thing by stopping when I do not shoot well?

Bob.

[Pat B]

Walking away is your best option. IMO. If your mechanics are good and occasionally you are off, put the bow down and come back later. That is what I do!

[WRV]

Like Pat B says above-Take a breather and come back later.......Randy

[red hill]

I agree with Pat. Let it rest. Frustrations cause problems to escalate. After coaching Jr. and Sr. High sports for many years, I see this happen often.
Stan

[cbCrow]

Everyone has those kind of days, you are doing the best thing.

[cvarcher]

Gee, I do the opposite.IF things arent going well I stay the course and work it out. I reccomend shooting no less than 50 yds and no target so you just perfect form shooting. Then when you have to make a shot or two at something you will either hit it or just miss but not by much. Be happy with that . This is not gun shooting proficiency.

[Pat B]

CV, for me that works the opposite. If I continue to shoot my problems get worse. I have sat out for up to a month between shooting sessions because I couldn't concentrate on my shooting for one reason or another. When I did come back my shooting was better than ever because I came back with a clear head and my mechanics took hold so my brain didn't have to try to fix the problem at the time.  This is where lots of practice with shooting and form(very important) comes in for new shooters so they can learn the mechanics of shooting. When crunch time comes I don't want to think about anything except where the arrow WILL go! Everything else is deeply ingrained and happens automatically.