Confidence issues

[rybohunter]

I'm struggling fellas, too inconsistent for my comfort. About a month ago I was on fire, full confidence, no hesitation that I would not be prepared for this fall.
Then something happened....I've been up and down WAY too much for my comfort level, and the more consistent I try to be the less it works. I tried that whole, having a bad day, put the bow down, all that did was make me not shoot.
I go thru runs where I drill 4-5 arrows in a row, perfect, then it's like I've never picked up a bow before.

I'm having a tough time dealing with the inconsistency, especially after I've seen what I am capable of.

[rastaman]

Ryan, i would slow it down and try to analyze what you do right when you "drill" the arrows...at the same time slow down & think thru the shot that goes awry.  Was it a plucking the string, short drawning, dropping your bow arm at release.  Concentrate on each aspect of what you do when the shot is good...your form was good, but what is your form?  What is your shot process?  and then be careful you don't allow the negative demon inside your head that has wrecked many a shot before it even leaves the bow.  Get close to your target...shoot shots with your eyes closed concentrating on your form only for a few shots...then make some good up close shots then back up from there...Keep the positive confidence going...this is a bunch of mish mash but it works for me...good luck & keep the faith...you will be ready.

[kennym]

"Get close to your target...shoot shots with your eyes closed concentrating on your form only for a few shots...then make some good up close shots then back up from there...Keep the positive confidence going.."


         

[sweet old bill]

archery is not a physical sport. It all in the head, so I tell myself when I come out put a arrow in the bow and draw and it in the spot... now when the next arrow hits the deer target in the not planned spot ( backside) it still a mind game. I try to make each shot one at a time, if I start having very bad days I go back to 10 yards and just work on form.

 Now yesterday I made one other change, I was playing with 3 different bows, 3 sets of arrows and they all seem to hit a target at 20 yards on most days. I put uip all but one bow, went finally down to a set of carbons I made up two years ago, been shooting them inside at 10 yards, just did not want to lose a arrow that cost $ 6.50 each, compared to wood that I made up for less than $2
or 1916 alumn at just $ 2.50....so I now will be working with one setup and hoping to get better.

Bill

[frassettor]

Boy I've had that same pboblem...Some days its right on then others my groups seem to spread out a little. Then I focus and try to clear my head and Im back on again... For me its 100% MENTAL

[COMBER]

How many arrows do you shoot before you pull them? If you're shooting more than a couple try to limit yourself to one at a time I found this really helps my shooting and forces me to make that one shot count. I also start thinking about my next shot as I'm walking down to pull my arrow and that really helps. I was in a real bad habit of shooting a dozen or so arrows and not concentrating because I had so many to shoot. I now shoot rounds of three arrows. Maybe it will help you as it did me.

Thanks,
       Jake

[Hamish]

DONT THINK! FEEEL. Sorry the karate kid thing came to mind. LOL. But it is all about focus IMO.

[Steertalker]

rybohunter,

Your problem is inconsistency in your form....which tells me you haven't really found "your" shot.  The way to find "your" shot is by blank bale shooting.  

Start shooting at a blank bale, backstop or whatever, no target, no more than about 3 yds away.  DO NOT concern yourself with aiming.  Go thru your shot process analyzing every part.  In other words....stance, grip, string hook, draw motion(back muscles), anchor and follow thru.  Work on trying to make each part the same...shot after shot.  It make take a few days, weeks or whatever.  When you can shoot say...5 braces of 5 with machine like repetitiveness then you can try shooting at a target, but start out close.  It is important that you be able to duplicate your bale shot while shooting at targets.  Be totally honest with yourself.  If you can....great!  But if you cannot then go back to the bale.

It is important to remember it is not how many arrows you shoot, but rather the quality of each shot taken.  And make the bale part of your daily practice routine....no matter what.  I promise...you won't regret it!

Brett

[SteveMcD]

I know what helps me. I would recommend that you do some extensive close bale work. Get close to the bale no farther than 8 feet. And just practice your form, i don't close my eyes, I leave them open, but all I am doing is form work not "aiming". You have to be honest with yourself and identify for yourself, where your issues in form are. After a while, you will know exactly what good form is for you, and also when you mess up, you'll know it before the arorw even hits the bale. I do close bale work once a week regardless. I usually practice every other day, and always start out with 10 -20 arrows up close. I would recommend you get Brian Sorrell's book on "A Beginners Guide to Traditional Archery" and follow the practice sessions described in his book EXACTLY. There are no short cuts. Good luck.

[trapperDave]

I had one of those days yesterday. Lost 2 arrows over the target and into the riverbottoms  :D  First I've missed the target in months, and done it twice  :(

[Otto]

For me....it's ALL about form.  90% physical, 10% mental.  Blank bale shooting can establish the form, then I have to carry that form over into how it feels for every shot.  Muscle memory and repetition of the form required to make a good shot are what does it for me.

Once I have the form down, aiming is easy.

[Molson]

If you were doing every physical aspect correctly, you wouldn't have any mental issues.  Mental issues develop from incorrect physical execution.  That is not to make light of the mental aspect of the sport.  I just got done mentally demolishing myself on a hunt in which I just could not make myself get the bow back. The mental aspect is a large part, however...

How do you correct a mental problem? Focus?  Concentrate?  Focus on what?  Concentrate on what?  Go ahead and double up on your Prozac... It won't help.  You have to identify where you are breaking down physically, even if some elusive mental problem is causing the physical breakdown.

Fact is, the more you worry about a problem, the worse it becomes. And if you don't know what that problem is, well...  That creates stress and the body's natural physical reaction to stress is to turn in to itself which is exactly NOT what you want if back tension is your goal.

Keep shooting away and in no time at all, your arms will be taking up the slack.  You won't realize the change because you'll still be shooting good enough.  Then pretty soon, you'll start releasing without actually thinking about it.  It won't matter though because you still hit where you want "most of the time".  Next your draw starts getting shorter.  Maybe you creep, pluck, collapse, whatever...  That's when you start worrying... and that's when that big angry monster we all call Target Panic jumps on your back and takes a bite out of your... er... backside.

At least that's how it went for me.  Now I have to break down every shot and physically rebuild my muscle memory correctly.  I suggest you take each shot for what it is, not where the arrow hit. Don't fix a shooting problem with more shooting.  Fix it with smart shooting. Identify where and why you are losing back tension (which ultimately IS the problem) on each shot you do not execute correctly.  Find out the why and fix it now.  Focusing on concentrating or concentrating on focusing... or whatever it is you're suppose to do when you have no idea why something is happening is about as likely to work as a welfare baby.

And, as always... I could be completely wrong on this... So take it for what it's worth!

[Swamp Pygmy]

I'm new at this, so take it for what it's worth.

Get very close to the target. Like seven yards. Really try to dial them in and start moving back. Sometimes I start having a bad days and I'll do "walk backs" rather than my regular routines. And they help.

[wislnwings]

What worked for me was to do as others have said and shoot a few arrows close to work on form and try to fix anthing I might be doing wrong, such as not getting a smooth release.  The other thing that I find helps (and this is assuming it is safe to do where you are shooting of course) is to shoot at night.  I turn on one light that gives the target just a faint glow.  It really forces me to concentrate on the spot I want to hit.  I find most of the time I shoot much better in the dark.  Less distractions.

[rybohunter]

Thanks for all the help guys, this has been very frustrating after having been on such a shooting high thru the spring & early summer.

I've gone back to blank baling, moving up, taking several days off and it only helps for a short time. I don't know whats going on. Sometimes everything feel right and it still misses the mark.

I don't know if the worry of a bad shot on an animal is adding to my mental break down or what? I need the confidence I had just a few weeks ago.

[wislnwings]

I think thats why I shoot better in the dark.  I have to concentrate so hard on hitting my spot that I can't mentally convince myself that I might not hit it.

[mrkbsm]

One different idea (don't think it's been suggested here yet) is to find somebody kind enough to snap pictures of you with a digital camera as you're shooting.  I find it's nice to see pictures of myself just before release.  If possible, video clips can be helpful as well.  Side views, rear views and top views (pointing down from a step ladder works) all help you see what you look like while shooting.  Ideally you could get pictures for comparison, both for good shots and for bad shots.

[mrkbsm]

Oh, and one more to think about.  You said you shoot 3 or 4 well, and others are scattered?  Is that 3 or 4 in a set?  One problem that I've struggled with in the past is hand placement on the bow between sets of arrows.  Generally when I'm shooting a set I'll keep my hand on the bow the entire time, then I set it down, retrieve arrows, and shoot again.  It's easy to vary hand placement from set to set and if your placement is off, it can mess with your alignment.  In my own experience, if my alignment is off it creates for unsteady, sporadic shots.  
One more thing to consider  
Mark

[Bear Heart]

Maybe you stopped haveing fun and shooting became work and stressfull.
PS. It is supposed to be Fun!

[tasaman]

What I do to help settle myself is to go out and have some fun. I try not to view it as a responsibility or a need or a job. Just grab some cheep arrows put on some blunts or field tips and go out and stump shoot. Shoot a tree knot. Shoot a leaf on the ground or a tuft of grass and pretend there is a wily rabbit in there. Have some fun. Go with a buddy and have some friendly competition. One thing I try never to do is to shoot more than two arrows at a "target". Make the yardage part of the game.

 When I do this I forget about hand placement. Just grab and go. I forget about anchor just get to anchor, hold and let her fly. I find by doing it this way all the previous training takes over and leaves your mind to focus on the target. Sometimes taking a step back will put you more forward than you think. I may not be as good a shot as some but I can hold my own.

  Bear Heart beat me to it but I agree with him. Keep it fun. What I do for my daughter to keep it fun is put some small balloons out and let her pop em. Not saying thats what you need but what I'm saying is don't beat yourself up. I won't get to hunt at all this year with a stickbow because I'm in Afghanistan right now and won't have time to tune up when I'm on leave. No way could I end up with the 3 inch groups or less that I demand from myself to hunt with one but I will surely pull out my Martin Diablo, dust her off and have some fun.