The new year has arrived, new plans are unfolding, and new ideas are coming in. You’ve got new year resolutions that you wish to put in motion as the year is already moving at its own pace, new activities that you want to engage in, new sports that you want to try out not only as a hobby but also as a means of keeping the body fit for the year.
Well, if you have any of this in mind, especially the new sports activity to try out and you are wondering which to choose from the vast number that there is, there is one for you that would be just right. Archery, yes, archery.
Now you would be asking why on earth you would want to try out archery and what is in it for you. Well, worry not, this article brings you seven great benefits of trying archery.
What is Archery?
Archery is the act of using a bow and arrow to hit a target for fun or a means of livelihood. It is an activity as old as man’s survival skills, although it has evolved over time from being a pre-historic act to being a sport loved by all and widely recognized internationally too.
Essentially what archery entails is the use of a bow and an arrow or a fletcher to shoot a target. There are many types of bow, but you can opt for one of the three most popular ones. They include the longbow, the compound and recurve bow. The basic technique for shooting is pretty much the same. However, there are different methods for bow release for fun(target shot) and hunting. So the best bow release for hunting can be completely different from recreational bow release.
7 Great Benefits of Trying Archery
- For Exercise: If what you seek is a means of keeping yourself fit, then archery is perfect for you as it works most parts of your body from the upper part to the lower part. As an exercise, archery helps to burn about 280 calories per hour and this does not include the amount of energy expended in walking around and the amount of energy exerted when focusing. As archery is a very intensive and captivating game, and, the chances of burning even more calories are foreseeable.
- Helps build your focus: Archery is a game that requires deep concentration, like a game of aiming, the archer needs to filter all that is going on around him and maintain his focus. With the need pressure of hitting the right target also, there is a great need for focus on the part of the archer.
- Improves your patience: With archery, the need for patience is heightened as to hit a target is not a thing of speed or great strength but rather of patience and calmness, one needs to be patient enough, for with patience the archer is assured of figuring the best way to hit the target whether the target is a static one or a moving one.
- Hand-eye coordination: Aiming and firing, which are the basic components of archery is basically the work for the eyes and the hands. With archery, you increase the simultaneous coordination of both as the game requires the archer to observe and at the slightest and tiniest opportunity and time-frame release the arrow and shot. Archery gives you a great synchronized work between both the hands and the eyes.
- Improved flexibility: With archery, there is a need for continuous practice and engagement of the hand and the fingers. The continued practice eventually leads to the muscles of the fingers and arm as a whole being more flexible and more easy to manipulate and direct in accordance with the need of the sport.
- Strength building: Archery is seen by many as a simple activity but in reality, it is not. It involves the full usage of core and non-core muscles of the body. Areas like the chest, the arms, the fingers, the upper back muscles, the shoulders are all involved in the act of archery and all are built over time as the archer progresses in his prowess hence making the muscles more fit and increasing their strength.
- Acute level of overall control: Being an archer means being able to control all around you in the shortest period of time to be able to make the perfect shot. Keeping out distractions, focusing on the target, keep the body in the perfect posture alongside the arms, calculating the distance and the eventual result all require control on the part of the archer.
Conclusion
There are so many great benefits of archery, and it’s only a matter of time for you to discover what else this fun game has to offer. How about starting it now to know what else you can benefit from this historic sport.
