How to Improve Your Bow Hand Release Accuracy

The bow release is a skill that many archers spend a lot of time perfecting. It’s easy to get discouraged when you’re not seeing improvement in your accuracy, but there are some simple things you can do to improve quickly. In this blog post, we’ll talk about how to improve your bow release accuracy and what the best practices are for improving your shooting form.

Tips To Improve Your Bow Hand Release Accuracy

• First off, understand that your bow is not a bow fishing bow.

• Your bow needs to be in the middle of your chest or slightly up when you’re aiming at a target that’s far away.

• Try using wrist bows for bow release accuracy improvement because they’ll help guide and keep your hand steady as you shoot forward and backwards with it.

• Another tip is to get your bow release off the bowstring.

• This means you should get more of a grip on it with your fingers because this will make it easier to let go when you’re ready to shoot.

• Also, don’t try and aim at one spot for too long or you might not be able to hold steady any longer!
• Lastly, bow release accuracy is all about practice.

ARROWS

When it comes to choosing the right arrow, some archers believe they benefit by shooting larger-diameter arrows because fatter arrows catch lines on the target’s scoring rings more easily. However, bigger isn’t always better. Arrows that are too big for your bow might not flex enough meaning they’ll miss their mark more than they hit it.

ANCHOR POINT

The point at which the bow is pulled back prior to firing is known as your anchor point. Consistency and precision here are both very important. If you’re just getting started in archery, you’ll want to experiment with your anchor points until you find the position that works the most consistently for you. Common anchor points are to place the hand that pulls the string under the cheekbone of that side and to pull the string to the tip of your nose. Again, you’ll want to experiment with this position until you find one that is both comfortable and gives you consistently accurate results.

Just like every other aspect of archery, there is no right or wrong anchor – if you can repeat it from shot to shot. Having the correct draw length is very crucial in comfortably anchoring with the method I’ve just described. Assuming your equipment fits you perfectly, this three-part anchor method is, in my opinion, the best way to go about fine-tuning your archery game. Always remember your release-to-hand, hand-to-face, and string-to-face contact points. Stay consistent with all three and your anchor position will never fail.

PROPER POSTURE

Proper stance alone is half the battle in improving your shot. It will increase your accuracy and power and make it easier to locate your anchor points. When shooting, your feet should be perpendicular to the target and just a bit less than shoulder-width apart. Always check your stance before raising the bow and finding your anchor point.

DISTANCE

One of the easiest, and most effective, things you can do to improve your accuracy is to practice at longer distances than your goal range. With long-distance shots, any small mistake in your shooting form will be accentuated. What would most likely be a bulls-eye hit at 20 yards can quickly turn into a wide miss when shooting from 60 yards. At first, you’ll have a hard time adjusting, but keep at it and eventually you’ll start hitting the mark from those longer distances. Once you’ve done that, your short distance accuracy will look like a chip shot.

FOLLOW THROUGH

After releasing your arrow we know it can be tempting to drop your bow and look elsewhere, but stay in your stance! The old saying “keep your eye on the ball” is just as important after your shot as it was before and during your shot. Keep the bow up and keep your focus on that target until the shot has landed. This is a habit that can greatly improve your aim and keep it steady over time. Have a friend or one of our experienced instructors watch you shoot to tell you if you’re releasing your stance too early.

RELAX AND HAVE FUN

The most important tip we can give you to improve your accuracy is to stay calm and relax. While archery can be a competitive sport, remember that it’s also a hobby you engage in for fun, enjoyment and stress release. If you teach your body to stay relaxed and natural when shooting, you won’t experience any of the subtle problems that can result from tension. Unless you’re preparing for the Summer Olympic games, keep the game fun and you’ll find yourself a better shooter in the end for it. 

Compound Bow : Release Accuracy

TUNE YOUR BOW

Many archers do not ever take this into consideration, even though it is one of the most likely reasons why their compound bows aren’t shooting accurately.

There are two parts of tuning your bow to take into consideration, and those are timing and center-shot alignment.

• Timing only affects bows with more than one cam, and refers to your bows’ cam rotation, and whether or not both cams rotate the same way and reach full rotation at the same time.

• Center-shot alignment refers to your bow’s rest and nock placement. You want your rest and nock to be placed effectively to ensure that your arrow leaves your bow heading straight at where it’s aimed.

PRACTICE YOUR FORM

One key to having good form starts with just being comfortable and relaxed in general. Heavy breathing and shakiness will not help your shot. Try to focus, but remember to relax and just breathe when you draw back your bow. Another thing to keep in mind is having a near-perfect stance. In your shooting stance, your feet become the shooting platform. You have to be sure that your feet are not too close together, nor too far apart.

Challenge yourself with your shooting limits

In both target archery and bowhunting, you will not always be shooting from the same distance. Every situation is different, so if you only practice shooting from a certain range, you will most likely be inaccurate with a shot from any different distance because you will have no experience shooting from those limits.

Adjust your draw length and weight accordingly

This will throw off your accuracy, and you will be shooting arrows all over the target, as well as create not-so-good shooting habits! Until your shooting muscles are stronger, lower your bow weight. As you practice and build up your muscles, you can increase your draw weight as needed. You also want to adjust your draw length. So many archers make the mistake of trying to increase shooting speed by adjusting the draw length. But what they might not realize is how this affects accuracy.

If the draw length on your bow is too long, your body and shooting arm will be stretched out too far back and pointed near your backside. This throws your bow arm out of alignment with the area, which causes your shot execution to be off every time.

Another indication of a too- long draw length is if your upper body starts leaning backward, away from the target and bringing your face back to meet the string.

Relax your release

It is very important that your release during a shot is relaxed and smooth. A mechanical release is much simpler to use and results in more accurate shooting. Once you have drawn, anchored, and aimed, put your finger on the trigger. Relax and smoothly squeeze the trigger. Be careful not to jerk or “punch” the trigger, causing the arrow to fly out of the shooting lane.

Add sights and stabilizers to your bow

In order to get your sight farther away, you can buy a sight that has a longer bar than your current sight. This will push the sight pins further away from your eye. You can also choose a sight with smaller pins, such as a size 0.29 or 0.19. With a stabilizer, the purpose of this accessory is just what it’s called. It will stabilize your bow, resulting in better accuracy. It adds stabilization by adding weight to the bow’s bottom, therefore making it stay in a vertical position while shooting.

Adjust your bow grip

It is extremely important to develop a good grip on your bow, especially if you want to accurately shoot at long distances. A quick way to help this is to shoot with a bow that fits and works nicely in your hand, but it mainly falls down to you and your actions when gripping the bow.

Maintain your follow-through

The follow-through is often overlooked in archery and Bowhunting, yet it is very vital to accuracy. Many archers don’t realize that even once they have released the arrow, how they hold the bow in the seconds afterward affects the shot. The final step in improving bow accuracy is maintaining a good form and following through after releasing an arrow. This will help ensure that every shot has accurate aim and bow hand release.

How To Shoot Your Bow Two Times Better

Shooting your bow is a skill that takes patience and practice. It’s important to have the right form so you can get more power behind your shot, which will help you shoot farther. We’ll show you how to shoot your bow two times better!

• Adjust Draw Length and Weight

Draw weight and length are two factors that determine how accurately an archer can shoot their bow. If they are too short or long, it can throw off bow hand release and accuracy.

Install a Peep Sight

A bow peep sight is a small device that attaches to the bow string. By adding one of these, you will be able to aim and see where your arrow will hit much more precisely than before. A peep sight in the bowstring serves the same purpose on a bow. Those awkward, leaning, bending and twisting shots you’ve missed through the years will be much simpler with a peep sight that locks you into a consistent anchor point regardless of position.

Learn to Relax

Tension is the enemy of accuracy. From the ground up, your whole body should remain relaxed throughout the shot. It starts with your feet and legs. However, a relaxed bow arm is especially critical to solid aiming. Rather than creating tension by forcing it to stay straight at full draw, bend your bow arm just enough to unlock the elbow. This will cause the arm to relax more fully and serve as a shock absorber. If you find yourself fighting the bow, you’ll never shoot your best. Don’t be too proud to turn your draw weight down a few pounds. You can always turn it back up as your strength increases with more practice.

Follow-Through

If you have a good, steady follow-through, you can overcome many flaws in your shooting form. In fact, the first thing I look at when I’m helping someone with their shooting is their follow-through. Invariably, if they are having problems with consistency, they are not holding their bow arm steady until the arrow hits the target.

Usually, they are dropping the bow arm just as soon as the arrow is released. That creates all kinds of problems with accuracy. Keep your arm up in the aiming position until the arrow hits the target. That is the number one tip I can offer for anyone struggling with their shooting. Your bow hand must stay relaxed until the arrow hits the target. 

How to Stand when Shooting a Bow

Archery at a glance seems simple. You pull back a string and let it go, right? How hard could it be? Well, the answer is pretty dang hard if you’re looking to be the best archer possible. Archery is made up of so many steps you must be able to repeat to shoot consistently. One of those many steps is your stance.

Stance is the foundation on which your shot rests, and if it is different from one shot to the next, chances are your arrows will hit in different places too. Some of the key components of a proper stance include keeping your feet shoulder width apart, pointing your toes slightly outward and opening your hips to the target.

Different Practice Bow Release 

There are a lot of different Practice bow release types, but few can beat the accuracy and reliability of bow releases with drop-away rests. They allow you to shoot without having your bow stick in the ground or other objects while aiming at targets that are close by.

PRACTICE STANDING OR KNEELING

Both standing up straight and kneeling can be beneficial for bow accuracy. Stand up straight if the target is very close and you need more stability, or kneel down when shooting from a distance to get a steadier shot while still being able to quickly stand back up should your quarry escape into the brush.

Practice standing with half of your body weight on one foot and then switch to the other foot. You can shoot from this position while standing on that leg.

PRACTICE A LOT

The more you practice bow accuracy, the better your bow release will become and eventually it’ll be second nature every time you pull back on your bow string. Continue shooting targets until form becomes natural so there are no more wasted arrows.

TARGET PRACTICE

Practice aiming for the same spot on your target every time you shoot to improve bow accuracy and consistency. For example, if you want an arrow dead center in the bulls-eye then make sure you hit it there each time by practicing until form becomes natural instead of forcing yourself to aim at a particular spot on the target.

PRACTICE INDOORS AND OUTDOORS

It’s easier to practice bow accuracy indoors, but you should also shoot in open spaces outside to get used to varying distances and wind changes that can affect your shot without a high-tech simulation studio. You might find it helpful for indoor shooting sessions to shoot at a bow target taped on the wall of your house.