Today, it would be impossible to find a person who does not know what archery is. It has been around for so long. Historically, archery was used for hunting and fighting and was introduced during the early Mesolithic times. Anyone can learn this sport, irrespective of age, gender or abilities, and is a widely used form of entertainment all over the world.
The popularity of archery has seen an enormous growth thanks to the success of the trilogy of the Lord of the Rings. It has also been showcased in a series of large-budget blockbusters, such as The Hunger Games, The Avengers, and The Hobbit, as well as in TV seasons like Arrow.
Someone may wonder what are the physical benefits of archery? Although archery may be seen to many as a fun hobby, there’s much more to it than that. It is a game that requires accuracy, control, focus, athletic strength, and dedication; making it an ideal sport to keep you mentally and physically fit.
Here are some of the benefits of archery that will no doubt convince you to give the sport a go.
14 Amazing Health Benefits OF Archery
1. The great form of Exercise:
Archery is an excellent exercise. First of all, let’s talk about exercise in simple terms. Exercise is any activity that makes you move.
The process of drawing the bow puts a strain on a variety of muscles, and this will, of course, require energy. Furthermore, retrieving the arrows from the target also involves walking and consumption of energy. This exercise will make you move and walk in a way that uses more muscles in archery and ends up burning more calories.
2. Develops Focus:
Archery demands not only some muscular fitness but also mental fitness. Archers are trained to ignore all the distractions, focus on their target and launch the projectile consistently.
Concentrating during archery training will also help you control and focus on other aspects of life effectively. It’s also a good idea to compete in tournaments to deal with high-pressure situations.
3. Builds Upper-body Strength:
There are multiple physical benefits of archery. All core body parts, particularly the chest, hands, arms, and shoulders, are used while practicing; muscle tension is maintained for several seconds before the release of the bowstring.
The right and continuous repetition of this movement strengthens these tissues and improves the strength of the upper body.
4. Increases Hand-eye Coordination:
Accurate and precise aim relies on the proper coordination of your eye and hand; it trains your hands to fire based on the input from your eyes.
Archery also involves a high-precision routine that needs to be embedded in the archer’s muscle memory and subconscious. So much is happening simultaneously with so little room for error that the coordination of all these movements is almost instinctual and improves overall body coordination.
5. Amplifies Patience:
Archery as a sport is fairly easy to learn and understand, but it is challenging to master the game. In order to polish your skill and for a long-term future in the sport, significant practice is needed with patience and dedication.
Archery is especially beneficial to young people as it teaches them the advantages of patience; the commitment to repeat the actions until they are perfect makes you a better archer and also a better person.
6. Boosts your Self-confidence:
Archery is a sport where sometimes you are actually competing against your own self by hitting Bull’s eye. It provides great gratification in integrating intellectual and physical abilities to hit the target.
This sport is all about practicing, setting goals, and recognizing what needs to be improved. Progression builds the self-confidence and esteem in archers.
7. Cultivates Socialization:
Archery can be either a solo sport or a team sport. Sometimes, when an archer competes in a competition or a tournament, they have to play in a group with other people to score; therefore, teaching the importance of teamwork.
Archery tournaments are often barrier-free and encourage friendships between people from all walks of life. It enables you to socialize with other players, and socializing is vital towards sustaining a healthy lifestyle.
8. Helps you Relax:
When you’re on the field and shooting well, time passes so fast. Archers develop the skill of staying sharp and accurate under pressure by controlling their breathing, focus, and nervousness.
It’s not a matter of competing with other players at times; it’s all about you and your crossbow. It is so calming and stress relieving to release an arrow while watching it fly and then hearing it hitting the target.
9. Inexpensive and Enjoyable Sport:
If you just want to play for fun and enjoyment, archery can be a relatively inexpensive sport. Even, several archery centers let you borrow their gear on rent.
The Recreational Archer’s primary objective is enjoyment. Rather than stressing about what others are doing, the archers usually concentrate on improving themselves. Archery is a lot more fun with that in mind.
10. Improves your Eyesight:
Archery practice includes aspects of some of the most commonly recommended exercises that improve vision. While targeting, you need to use your eyes in various ways to aim accurately, which will adjust and strengthen them in the same way as lifting weights build the body muscles.
Another useful exercise offered by archery is Fixation, referring to an individual’s ability to focus their eyes on a specific point. Fixation not only enhances eyesight, but it also improves mental concentration.
11. Teaches Safety:
Sports are often risky, and if the players are reckless archery can be highly lethal and dangerous. There are plenty of safety rules for this game that teaches the players to be responsible for each other and even for their gear.
12. Teaches Survival Tactics:
Archery is an art that comes in very handy, especially concerning survival tactics. Using archery, one can hunt down prey in the wilderness without having a fear of starvation. Archery can also help defend oneself in case of an attack or arson.
13. Improves Heart Health:
If we talk about the health benefits of archery. It is a perfect sport to boost your cardiovascular health. While many consider using a treadmill or running around in a park as a cardiovascular exercise, few know that shooting their bow is also a healthy practice to improve cardiac health.
14. Breathing Control:
Breathing is one of the vitals for human survival. The way we breathe can have a crucial impact on our overall health and approach towards life. Archery benefits us by aiding the respiratory process. The archer has to be very patient and hold his breath for some moments while drawing and releasing the shot in order to strike the target accurately. With a more controlled respiratory system, your other vitals like pulse rate and heartbeat are also regulated in a very positive manner.
Final Word
We have discussed just a few of the benefits of archery and their advantages, there are tons of more. It is a demanding yet beneficial exercise for health and survival. It is like a one-stop-shop, where you can get your daily exercise, develop your focus and coordination, improve body muscles and eyesight, and enjoy the sport while socializing with others.
If you are someone curious about archery but have not yet taken the risk, trust me releasing an arrow is extremely stress releasing and thrilling. In the beginning, you don’t need to buy expensive equipment, start from the basics and build your archery kit over time. Enjoy!
Master of Modern Bowhunting, Watson knows archery equipment forward and backward. An accomplished bowhunter in his own right, his successes in the field demonstrates to novices that bowhunting isn’t something to be kept behind closed doors. Making it more accessible to beginners and advanced bowhunters alike; Watson has become an expert in the construction and use of longbows, compound bows, crossbows, archery and bowhunting gear; he now shares his knowledge openly.