How to "shoot in" a bow when you cannot shoot?

[JW_Halverson]

While I have never really enjoyed shooting the bows I make, I used to be able to force myself to take a finished bow to the range a few times and shoot it for at least a few hundred shots. But now my left shoulder is out of the game and I cannot even pull the 20# lb kids bow I finished up.

Can you replace actual shooting where the string is released and the limbs work against the load bearing arrow with just exercising on the tiller tree?

[Pat B]

John, I think shooting a bow is the only way to shoot one in. There are things you can do that will help without actual shooting. Exercising on the tiller tree, gradually out to full draw is one. Sweating the bow, leaving it braced for periods of time, starting with an hour and gradually extending that time to as much as 6 hours over a few days. Both of these things help to educate the bow to bend and recover and let you know that the bow can be braced for a while, like while hunting, with minimal loss of energy. I think the only difference is the effects your bow hand has while shooting.

[bassman211]

We will all be there some day. It is just a fact of life. I feel for you. I shot 55 bows most all of my life. Now I am down to 25 to 35 lb bows. Not from muscle strength, but from bone joints. What Pat said.

[Del the cat]

We will all be there some day. It is just a fact of life. I feel for you. I shot 55 bows most all of my life. Now I am down to 25 to 35 lb bows. Not from muscle strength, but from bone joints. What Pat said.

Yeah, I had a lot of elbow trouble. A while back I found I couldn't even do one push up 
Gradually got back to doing 12 but with my knees on the floor. A good thick neoprene elbow support helps while shooting.
I really wanted to use my flight bow to push out my PB.
Its hard work keeping even passably fit. 
Keep on keepin' on guys.
Del

[bjrogg]

I hope you can get shooting again JW

A little over ten years ago my shoulder was killing me. I couldn’t work with my arms above my shoulders.

I had to go to physical therapy first, before any surgery or treatment.

My therapist said he was sure I had a torn rotator cuff and that the other muscles would take over if I trained them.

He had me do several exercises and then gradually some more. I wasn’t really expecting much but my shoulder is good.

I went for my back about a year and half ago. It’s helped and I have gotten back in better shape, but my back still hurts.

I definitely would recommend physical therapy if you haven’t already tried it.

Bjrogg

[JW_Halverson]

I hope you can get shooting again JW

A little over ten years ago my shoulder was killing me. I couldn’t work with my arms above my shoulders.

I had to go to physical therapy first, before any surgery or treatment.

My therapist said he was sure I had a torn rotator cuff and that the other muscles would take over if I trained them.

He had me do several exercises and then gradually some more. I wasn’t really expecting much but my shoulder is good.

I went for my back about a year and half ago. It’s helped and I have gotten back in better shape, but my back still hurts.

I definitely would recommend physical therapy if you haven’t already tried it.

Bjrogg

Docs ran me through a battery of push-pull tests and range of motion and said I have no rotator cuff damage. He did send me to physical therapy for my lower back and I talked the therapist into exercising the shoulder. But it just keeps getting worse.

I might have to demand an MRI to look at the soft tissues and figure out what this is. At this point, just getting dressed has become incredibly painful.

[bentstick54]

My wife and Ihave decided you really have to advocate for yourself now days. Too many doctors just pass things off as “ you’re just getting older”. Don’t be afraid to insist on a MRI if it just keeps gett Ing worse like you said.

[mmattockx]

Its hard work keeping even passably fit. 

This is a warning to all of us. No one is getting any younger and it is far easier to build your strength and mobility when younger and then maintain it into older age than it is to build it when already older. Some time spent earlier in life is an excellent investment in long term fitness. No matter your age, the time to start is now and stay on it.

People think strength training and weight lifting is for the young, but the greatest benefits of it are for the old as it keeps you going and able to live independently and do the things you want.


Mark

[sleek]

I hope you can get shooting again JW

A little over ten years ago my shoulder was killing me. I couldn’t work with my arms above my shoulders.

I had to go to physical therapy first, before any surgery or treatment.

My therapist said he was sure I had a torn rotator cuff and that the other muscles would take over if I trained them.

He had me do several exercises and then gradually some more. I wasn’t really expecting much but my shoulder is good.

I went for my back about a year and half ago. It’s helped and I have gotten back in better shape, but my back still hurts.

I definitely would recommend physical therapy if you haven’t already tried it.

Bjrogg

Docs ran me through a battery of push-pull tests and range of motion and said I have no rotator cuff damage. He did send me to physical therapy for my lower back and I talked the therapist into exercising the shoulder. But it just keeps getting worse.

I might have to demand an MRI to look at the soft tissues and figure out what this is. At this point, just getting dressed has become incredibly painful.

I have a similar issue in my right shoulder. Been that way for almost a year and a half. I had to get a cortisol shot and that helped for about 4 months but thats wearing off now. Its not torn, I cant recall what the doc said it was, but the remedy is PT apparently. Im not so certain.

[Doug509]

Getting old or injured is no fun.  Maybe time for an apprentice to pass the heavy lifting and knowledge to.  Speaking of knowledge how does one shoot in a new bow?  Do you shoot at shorter draw lengths gradually getting to full draw?  What are you trying to achieve that cant be done on a tiller tree? I hope you stay healthy...

[bentstick54]

Doug, I think PatB summed things up pretty good. I pretty much do like he suggests in the last few inches of final tilling. Then actually shooting the bow at full draw for 100 or so arrows before i am satisfied that it will remain a bow, and apply my finish to it. At that point I start trusting the bow will be trustworthy of handling the shock of the sudden release of stored energy.

[Badger]

There is a simple fix for bad shoulders that works a large percentage of the time, even on shoulders where dr,s say it needs surgery. About 1/2 way between your neck and your shoulder and about 3" down, have someone poke around with their finger and search for a tight ligament. You can feel it pretty easily, if you can't feel it ask the person with a shoulder problem to let you know when you hit a tender spot. Once you find it, just take your finger tips and work out the tightness with your fingers, slightly painful but usually gives relief by the next day and stays fixed for a long time.

[JW_Halverson]

There is a simple fix for bad shoulders that works a large percentage of the time, even on shoulders where dr,s say it needs surgery. About 1/2 way between your neck and your shoulder and about 3" down, have someone poke around with their finger and search for a tight ligament. You can feel it pretty easily, if you can't feel it ask the person with a shoulder problem to let you know when you hit a tender spot. Once you find it, just take your finger tips and work out the tightness with your fingers, slightly painful but usually gives relief by the next day and stays fixed for a long time.

I have a wooden cane that I use to hit tough knots in my neck and shoulders. Hurts like a bear until the knot relaxes.

This is actually in the joint itself, feels like burning and tearing at certain angles when either pushing or pulling. I borrowed a sling and have been keeping my arm supported and resting for about 3 days now. Things feel better, so I am hoping resting and icing will help heal things up.

[Aaron1726]

Look up a coops bowsmith.  It's for the wheelie bows, but has a wench to pull the bow back and then you pull the trigger on the release aid, so you don't actually have to draw the bow.  Might be tricky with a primitive bow to draw and release quick enough, but they look pretty cool.  Although its just an 80 20 aluminum frame so you could build one pretty easily.

[Eric Krewson]

When I make a bow, I shoot it a dozen or so times between scrape and check sessions once it is one the short string. I do this at my waist instead of proper shooting form and mark the arrow so I don't draw above the target weight.  I feel that all you need to register a change in tillering is the short snap of an arrow release.

In your case you could put the thumb of your bad arm through a belt loop to hold the string and push the bow out with your good arm. Sounds nutty but I bet it would work.

I think an MRI is in order, what you described is exactly like my surgeon described when he looked at my neck MRI a few weeks ago. He said saw an area that needed work and asked me if I was feeling symptoms like you described, fortunately I wasn't.

My latest set back had me thinking my fake hip was failing big time, terrible pain right in the ball of joint, at times I couldn't walk 20 ft with out that lightning bolt hitting me in the fake hip.

An MRI dispelled my theory of having my fake hip failing, the pain was generated by two bulging disc at L4 and 5 but didn't manifest itself until it got to my hip region. I got the shots in my problem area 3 weeks ago, it didn't appear that they worked but a week ago I felt something shift in my back and the pain started fading away, so far so good, I walked 2 miles of very hilly ground yesterday with no pain.