Injuries and Trad Folks

[Bladepeek]

Originally posted by Bowwild:
[QB]

"The doctor has prescribed naproxen (500MG) twice daily and some silly (seems so) arm raises with 3 pound weights to strengthen the bow shoulder. Ice it too.  Because these seems silly (read ineffective) too me I'm not too diligent following doctor's orders."

So I guess I'd ask why go to the doctor if you don't take his advice? If I'd reacted the same way to the physical therapy prescribed for my back pain and my knee replacement, I probably wouldn't be walking.

Sometimes those "silly", un-manly exercises really do work out the problems without over-stressing things.

[Whitetail Addict]

Originally posted by GreyGoose:
I worry a lot more about getting injured muscles or joints shoveling snow or some such than when I'm shooting.

Absolutely. I've got two really messed up rotator cuffs, along with herniated and ruptured discs in my back and neck, and two worn out knees that need to be replaced.

Obviously my knee problems weren't caused by shooting a bow, but the rest of my problems weren't either, as far as I know. It was all caused by years of hard physical work.

I have to be careful not to over do it by shooting too much, or I'm unable to for a while. I shoot a few arrows each day to stay sharp, but I sure wish I could shoot like I used to.

So let me be a lesson to you. Shoot your bow all you want, and stay away from hard physical labor.  

Bob

[Veneficus]

One thing we can all do to reduce injuries that hasnt been mentioned is myofacial release. That is, taking a softball,lacross ball or whatever and roll your forearms,shoulders,biceps and triceps and around the elbow(not directly on bone) on the ball.  If it hurts that means you have a 'trigger point' and you keep rolling on it and it will eventually stop hurting. If you have alot of pain when doing this you should do it daily until the pain is gone.
What is happening is over time you get knots in your muscles and facia(the thing covering your muscles like a sack) and that causes pain,decreased strength and reduced flexibility.
Also,stretch your shoulders,chest and forearms.

When you lose fexibility you lose strength,when you lose strength other muscles have to help then you will get injured more than likly.
I should mention Iam not a doctor but I am a personal trainer.

[reddogge]

Most of the people including me injure themselves doing other thing than shooting a bow or they have arthritis in their joints.

Yes, warm up and shoot sensibly but also be careful in everyday activities.

[The Whittler]

Like the guy said, if I had known how long I was going to live I would have taken better care of myself. :-))

[Veneficus]

Warming up  is always good practice for any activity, however I use a bow weight I can shoot comfortably with my muscles cold.The reason being after sitting in the woods for a few hours not moving, that animal isn't going to let me do some arm circles before shooting

[KSCATTRAPR]

I have a crappy shoulder brought on from too much baseball and football and too much weight lifting. I've had to change my shot sequence to compensate but no big deal. In the past, I liked to hold at anchor for at least a 5 count but recently I've had to change that. I like the new shot sequence I've switched to better, seems to fit me better anyway.