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PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF BIOMECHANICS PRINCIPLES TO ARCHERY

0.0 - INTRODUCTION

The physiological characteristics presented in section 1.0 are theoretical, biomechanically sound principles. However, Archery has its practical and mental aspects and efficient structural and skeletal loading is only the first of 5 principles that help to employ the biomechanical science to this sport. A more complete list of the principles of sound archery is:

-Efficient structural/skeletal loading.

-Body alignment that makes for a smooth, consistent release.

-Simple actions that are easy to coordinate

-Repeatability.

-Avoiding synchronized activities.

The previous manual, Optimizing Performance – 1, discussed the first principle, efficient structural/skeletal loading. This principle is irrefutable. It provides solid quantitative information from a theoretical perspective. The remaining four principles have a practical aspect and are the result of applying the theoretical information from the first principle to the real, physical and mental, sport. This section introduces these principle which are critical to attaining the theoretical best form.

1.0 – BODY ALIGNMENT THAT MAKES FOR A SMOOTH, CONSISTENT RELEASE:

At the point of release, the body and bow go from a static state to a dynamic state. Within a few hundreths of a second, the arrow is fully free of the bow and string. What happens in those few hundredths of a second after the release is what truly determines the flight of the arrow. This time is too short to affect any changes and the action is driven by the tensions in the body at the time of the release. Thus, a full knowledge and understanding of the loads and stresses on the body, at the time of release, is critical to determining the optimum body position and alignment for a reliable and smooth release. A detailed analysis of this topic is presented in the manual “3100 Pre Stresses”.

Figure 2.0-1 shows a range of the stances commonly use by archers. Even though some of these stances, such as the open stance, have obvious flaws, they are still used by many archers, who fail to understand the importance of proper alignment. Analyzing these stances, and comparing them to the stances with better alignment, such as the closed stance, allows us to understand the principles that make for a smooth release.

1.0 – BODY ALIGNMENT THAT MAKES FOR A SMOOTH, CONSISTENT RELEASE:

At the point of release, the body and bow go from a static state to a dynamic state. Within a few hundreths of a second, the arrow is fully free of the bow and string. What happens in those few hundredths of a second after the release is what truly determines the flight of the arrow. This time is too short to affect any changes and the action is driven by the tensions in the body at the time of the release. Thus, a full knowledge and understanding of the loads and stresses on the body, at the time of release, is critical to determining the optimum body position and alignment for a reliable and smooth release. A detailed analysis of this topic is presented in the manual “3100 Pre Stresses”.

Figure 2.0-1 shows a range of the stances commonly use by archers. Even though some of these stances, such as the open stance, have obvious flaws, they are still used by many archers, who fail to understand the importance of proper alignment. Analyzing these stances, and comparing them to the stances with better alignment, such as the closed stance, allows us to understand the principles that make for a smooth release.

2.0 – SIMPLE ACTIONS THAT ARE EASY TO COORDINATE:

2.0 - SIMPLE ACTIONS THAT ARE EASY TO COORDINATE:

The concept is simple. - do things one step at a time, using one major muscle group at a time.

An example of not doing one thing at a time is what many beginners do. After loading the arrow, they raise the bow and draw back simultaneously so that they arrive at anchor as their bow arm arrives at its fully extended position and they reach full draw. These archers are merging raising the bow, setting the draw shoulder, alignment, drawing, anchor, transfer, and aiming, into one single action. There are too many things being done at once, both physically and mentally.

A better technique is to accomplish this by doing one physical activity at a time, such as:

-Raise the bow arm and draw hand together,

-Set the bow shoulder and bow arm alignment,

-Draw the bow back,

-Setting the draw hand in the anchor position,

-Transfer load to achieve proper alignment,

-Aim, Draw through the clicker, etc.

By breaking the action into multiple, simple, steps, the archer is more likely to perform each activity the same, each time, and arrive at the same position, each time, when he releases the final shot.

An example of using one major muscle group at a time is the slow draw through the clicker. Rather than trying to pull the draw hand straight back, which requires coordinated activity between the shoulder, upper and lower arm, the archer simply rotates his upper arm about the shoulder, using back tension, and allows his arm to simply follow. This uses only one major muscle group, and requires no coordinated effort between multiple muscle groups.

3.0 – REPEATABILITY:

Repeatability and consistency is the key to good shooting. If the task is done in the exact same manner, every time, it should yield the same result, every time. Thus, at full draw, and release, the objective is to minimize variability. What determines proper shooting technique is the ease with which an archer can perform the action in a consistent and repeatable fashion.

Any technique, done repeatedly and consistently, can be successful. With enough practice an archer can evem learn to do trick shots with accuracy. The question that biomechanics seeks to answer is, given a certain amount of training, what technique will provide the best result for the most archers.

Key to avoiding variability are three factors:

1 – Contact and reference points that are easily verifiable and can put the archer in the same position every time.

2 – Reduced muscular variability. This is attained by holding a position where the skeleton holds as much of the load as is possible.

3 – Single action release. Using a minimum of muscular effort at full draw, and avoiding SYNCHRONIZED activities.

4.0 – AVOID SYNCHRONIZED ACTIVITIES

There are two types of synchronized activities:

1 – Using multiple muscle groups, in coordinated effort, to accomplish a single act.

2 – Performing multiple independent actions simultaneously.

To understand the first type of synchronized activity, consider holding the elbow stationary and moving the hand through an arc. It is a simple activity and is highly repeatable because it is based upon a single muscular action, pivoting the forearm about the elbow. Now consider the complex activity required to move the hand through a straight line. The same forearm action about the elbow is necessary, but upper arm action about the shoulder is also required to keep moving the elbow so that the hand continues on a straight track.

Applying this concept to an archer action, consider drawing through the clicker. When done correctly, this uses only the back muscles, to rotate the draw arm back, pivoting about the shoulder girdle. This results in the draw hand coming back (Figure 4.0-1). It is a simple rotational motion based upon the actions of one muscle group. When done incorrectly, the archer tries to pull the draw hand straight back, through a path that can only be accomplished by coordinating the efforts of multiple muscle groups (Figure 4.0-2).

Comparing the actions of the archers in Figures 4.0-1 & 4.0-2, the archer in Figure 4.0-1 has a simpler action to control and is therefor more likely to have a consistent draw and release. The archer in Figure 4.0-2 moves his draw hand straight back by moving his draw elbow back and down, involving back and side muscles in a coordinated manner.

Synchronized independent activities are even more difficult to keep consistent. These activities can be close, but they will never be precise enough to provide consistent performance, day after day, in a progression to overall improvement.

A very good example of this type of synchronization, that is often confused with being a single action, is at the release. When properly done, an archer releases and his draw hand moves back. Many people see this as two actions, releasing and moving back. With the same misconception, they see releasing and the draw hand staying still as a single action. The complication is clarified when considered from a physics perspective. Compare the draw arm and the bowstring to two teams on a tug-o-war. If the rope breaks, the opposing teams fall in opposite directions – just as the arrow and the draw arm. Thus, this was a single action. The rope broke. Everything else continued as it was before the rope breaking. However, if one team knew the rope was about to break, and at the exact instant of the rope breaking, they stopped pulling, the string would break (action-1), one team would fall down, (a natural result of action 1), and the other team would stop pulling (action-2). This would enable them to stand still and upright, after the break.

Applying this observation back to the archer, it is obvious that releasing and moving back is a single command action – Release. Nothing else changed. Everything else is simply a natural response to the single action of releasing. Meanwhile, releasing and stopping the draw hand is 2 commands that must be synchronized. Compare the archers in Figures 4.0-1 & 4.0-3. The archer in Figure 4.0-1 continued pulling through the release and his draw hand moved back after the release, as a result of this. The archer in Figure 4.0-3, however, stopped pulling at the instant of release. Note how the draw hand has absolutely no motion between the point at full draw (left), and the point when the bow has made a full tip and the stabilizer is pointed straight down (right).

The ‘Release’ and ‘Stop’ commands can never be synchronized well enough to obtain consistent results, day after day, on a path to overall improvement.

5.0 – SUMMARY

Through biomechanics, we can look at the archer and determine how and why the archer should be aligned and conduct his release. We can see the exact consequences for any misalignment. We can also look at the result of a release and determine what the archer was doing at the point of release. Internal loads and stresses that cannot be seen from the outside become evident when we see the bodily response after the release.

The science of Biomechanics can provide significant information about the theoretical practice of archery; however, this theoretical information must be put into practice. The data from macro modeling is merely information unless interpreted and used correctly. Archers can become very focused on the real and tangible while Analysts can become too concerned with the theoretical. It is the coach’s job to bridge this gap. To do this the coach must fully understand the theoretical and how to apply it for his archers.