How much is too much?

[cacciatore]

I live with my bows literally on my hands,having a range at home is addictive and with 100 bows in my stabble really wears me out. I shoot all day and night long so sometimes my muscles are so tired that my precision suffers and I have problem to shoot accurately bows that are light to me.
Who shoot that much and how much do you shoot?
I know that I have to rest few days a week but I would like to know how you act.

[GANDGOLF]

I'll HELP you out !! Send half your bows to Me and you won't have to work so Hard !!     ----Dano

[McDave]

What a relief to read your post, Felix!  At least now, when I think of my obsession with traditional archery, I can say to myself, "Well, at least I'm not as obsessed as Felix."  Although I suppose the only reason I'm not is because I don't have room for 100 bows, and my old body needs time to recover from shooting now and then.

I shoot regularly with two friends Mon-Wed-Fri mornings, about 70-100 arrows/day.  I shoot on Tue-Thurs mornings with other friends who don't shoot as regularly, so maybe half the time.  I usually have some thought on my mind during the day about archery, so I shoot some arrows when I come home at the end of the day to either work out those thoughts or test some new arrows, etc.  I shoot on weekends either in tournaments if there are any or sometimes just with my dog.  So I'm sure if you put that all together I'm shooting arrows more days than I'm not.

[myshootinstinks]

My shooting range is not at home but I have real nice area to "stump" on the N Platte river about a mile from my house. I shoot about 8 hours a week and find that if I shoot too long, my arms get tired, I do not focus well and therefore my accuracy suffers. About 1 1/2- 2 hours per session is my limit.

[VA Elite]

That's awesome.

[centaur]

I shoot pretty much every day, so you would think that I would be a better shot, but Howard Hill I'm not. Anyway, I try to spend some time on target shooting, but then do some roving and stumping, where I don't shoot as many arrows, but I believe that it is better practice for hunting, and it is way more fun than plunking away at a target bale. As for numbers of arrows loosed, it really depends on how I am shooting, but probably 50 to 100 arrows a day split into a couple of sessions is about average.

[Steelman]

well I'm no expert on how much is to much and I didn't stay at a holiday inn last night. If we were just talking about working out or training with weights you normally do one day on and one day off. You wouldn't work the same muscle on back to back days. If you did your muscles wouldn't have time to recover and you set yourself up for injury. I know some people that shoot every day. I can't due to time constraints, or I may would. I think over traing is a negative on your proformance regardless of the sport. A few arrows every day would be ok I think, but all day long may be a little much. Or maybe on days when you want to shoot all
 day drop the weigh of your bow and work on release, bow hand  ect.

[maineac]

I am on a break right now from shooting.  I essentially stopped in mid-December when our late expanded archery season closed.  I will start again when I start my archery club/team here at school next week.  I will then shoot almost every day until next December, and then I might shoot straight through. This year I decided to let off for a month of two, just to focus on some other things,. Generally I shoot a dozen to several dozen arrows a day.  Though I think about archery and shooting, or hunting with the bow on a daily, even hourly basis.

[Orion]

I don't have as many bows, but I do have a range in my basement and shoot daily.  Have been doing that forever, but don't shoot as many arrows per session now as I did in my younger days.  I manage to shoot just about every one of the dozen or so bows on my rack in a two week period.  I also shoot 3-D shoots about every weekend during the summer. When I'm not shooting, I'm making archery stuff and/or planning my next hunt and getting gear ready for them.

[DanielB89]

i believe in quality practice.  Work on specific aspects of your shot each time you go out.  

I don't have the luxury of a great range in my back yard, just one target that is falling apart. lol.  

But i do go out and shoot it to pieces even more.  I just want to be sure i'm hitting where I'm looking!

[Kevin Dill]

Felix...you've got a serious problem there my man. I suggest you take two Schafers and call me in the morning.    :D  

I have the reverse situation. I'm an avid hunter but I really don't suffer from an archery addiction. My bow is my weapon, but I only shoot it infrequently and prior to hunting. Not unusual for me to shoot my last arrow of the year in November and not another one until July of the next year. It all depends on how busy I am and whether I have any spring or summer hunts to get ready for. For me it's 100% about hunting...and honestly sometimes I wish it was different!

[nineworlds9]

I shoot whenever I get the chance for at least 5-10 minutes minimum to get in some quality shots, most sessions are 15-25 minutes...on days I'm really feeling it or tuning a new bow I'll go 30 minutes to an hour.  It's nice to have a multi-angle 30 yd or less shot right in my back yard whenever I want.

While I do not have a lot of bows, under 10 actually, I do shoot almost every day, a lot!

Sometimes my body tells me when I overdo it!

Bisch

[Pat B.]

I have only a dozen or so but generally concentrate on one at a time..  I do switch longbows fairly frequently though. I'll shoot one for a week or two then switch.

I'll shoot maybe 20 arrows a day most every day.
Almost 100% is roving or stumping..  Love it !

[JD Page 1965]

Mark twain said, "Too much of anything is bad" (half the line but you get the point) You have enough equipment why not teach some beginners, you can always improve by watching and helping others.

[njloco]

I shoot pretty much every day, I try and make my first shot totally cold and make sure it counts. If I am shooting well ( 3" ) or less I don't shoot too long, 15-25 arrows. If I'm not shooting well ( 6" +), then I'll shoot until I figure out what's wrong, or lose the light.

[Tim]

I'm an everyday guy, like you Felix. I have a target in my basement, in the back yard and can wander for hours around the house and surrounding property stump shooting.

If I couldn't hunt I'd still shoot daily.  I've had surgery on both shoulders and their strong as they've ever been...  

I have found that 50 lb bows allow me to shoot as often as I'd like with no soreness or no bad habits.  

Tim

[Bowwild]

I too love to shoot my bows. I've been on a self-imposed hiatus since December 27th after moving some furniture. I hope to return to shooting next week. I don't shoot more than 1-3 dozen shots at at time but I like to shoot at least once per day. I have a range downstairs (13 yards) plus the usual outdoor outlets off the deck and in the woods.

[Harleywriter]

That would be too much shooting for me. I find that when I take a little time off, I come back to shooting extremely well.

I also find that shooting one arrow and retrieving it makes me shoot far better than shooting five or six and then retrieving them.

One quality shot is worthy way more than two bad shoots. I am not saying you take bad shots, I am saying that for me, oftentimes less is more.

John Schulz said that it was impossible to shoot a thousand arrows a day, 'do the math' he said.  Well he was wrong. With two large targets, 20 yards apart, 18 arrows in a bucket, it is possible to shoot 250 arrows an hour.  In two hours 500 arrows, after that, the rhythm slows down to a bit over 200 arrows and finishes out a bit under 200 arrows an hour. In five hours of constant shooting you will get sore fingers, a stiff neck, sore shoulders and have gained nothing.  Pick a bow shoot it for an hour, then quit, you will be better off.