Archery is an asymmetric sport, which should be taken into account when conditioning for it. While shooting, the bow arm has to function completely differently than the draw arm. The lower body has to maintain balance and stabilization for a concrete stance and consistency. Stabilization should be taken into account during all of your exercises, as well as the ability for your body's parts and limbs to move independently of the others.
Conditioning Program
"Free Motion" recommends practicing a program in three phases: stabilization, strength and power. The first phase should consist of circuit training, with rest only occurring between sets instead of between exercises. The second phase transitions to supersets, where two exercises are done back to back with no rest between sets -- only after sets. The third phase is similar to phase one, but with a longer rest period between sets. Phase one and two have a one-minute rest period, and phase three has a two-minute rest period.
Phase One
Begin warming up your legs and upper back on the foam roller, followed by 10 minutes of brisk walking. Transition to torso rotation on the cable machine, balancing chest presses, rows, shoulder presses, biceps curls and triceps pulldowns. Finish with stepups to balance and calf raises. When possible, work one arm or leg at a time so you do not risk one compensating for the other. Cool down with five minutes of walking and static stretching.
Phase Two
Phase two follows a similar warmup. The exercises begin with a wood chop on the cable machine followed by alternating dumbbell rows on a stability ball. Follow that with single-arm chest presses on the cable machine and side planks with a pushup in between. Move on to seated rows, standing lat pulldowns, alternating shoulder presses, single-leg hamstring kickbacks, squat to rows, quadricep presses and lunges with chest presses. Cool down with walking and stretching.
Phase Three
Phase three changes the exercises to where the body is doing more multiple movements at once. Practice one-arm chest pressing while the other arm rows. Do single-leg deadlifts, single-leg forward and rotational hops, lunges with chest presses, squats with shoulder presses, upward wood chops, stepups with rotation, and multiplanar squats. Finish with walking and stretching.
Cardiovascular Training
In addition to strength training, cardiovascular training is an important part of your conditioning. Improving your heart rate and cardiovascular level helps in high-stress situations during competition, keeping your shot steady and consistent. Aim for 30 minutes, two to three days a week, of such activity as jogging, swimming, cycling, jumping rope or rowing.
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