bigcountry

It sounds like you made the right choice. I am at the point that I have some microtears in my my rotator cuff. Looking back its just stupid that I let it get that way from bow shooting, and especially since a 55lb bow easily kills deer.

davepjr71

okiejaco,
Good luck with your new bow and have fun shooting.


This topic usually brings up a debate and being the only onethat posted on this threadthat I know shoots over 70#'s I'm going to weigh in on this some more.

I've been shooting over 60#'s since I was 18 yrs old and have 0 shoulder problems from shooting. I've even dislocated my right shoulder and injured my left shoulder while playing basketball and when shooting my bow at 73#'s it does not bother me a bit. Why, because I also work out a few days a week or at least when possible.

I have no doubt that there are a lot of people with shoulder injuries from shooting. The draw cycles were harsh and even 55# bows were nasty. The let-off wasterrible and if you had to let down a bow it just about janked your shoulder out of the socket. That's just not the case anymore.

If people would spend a few hours a week working out instead of that time shooting they'd be thanking themselves down the road. Besides the benefits it gives you while hunting and shooting archery your body will thank you when you get older. If you have time to shoot your bow 5 times a week you have time to work out too. Even if you shoot at 50#'s more people should be doing this.

Roskoe

Same here. I shoot a 50/60 Hoyt Pro Tec as well - maxed out 61.7 lbs. Just recently got a Reflex Growler 50/60 - also maxed out to 61.3 lbs. I'm getting 260 fps out of these bows with 400 series Axis arrows. Not sure what real advantage there would be to a 70 lb. bow shooting the heavier 340 series arrows. And he disadvantage is that I would not be able to shoot as much without shoulder pain; and would eventually require rotator cuff surgery sooner.

PS - I finally got rid ofmy Pro Vantage Hunter this spring - traded it for a dozen Axis arrows.

bigcountry

Dave, I have never understood why its so important for you to try to push people to shoot 70 or 80lbs. Anytime the subject comes up, you are first in line. I guess I am asking is why do you care so much? I still shoot several 70lb bows, but assure you, PA MD deer do not require it.

I bet I work out more thanmost of the people on this page and can assure you, that might make your rotator cuff worse. One of my best friends, in this area is the power lifting champion for the DC/Balt area just blew out his right rotator.

Roskoe

I'm assuming the difference here is a 35 year old point of view as opposed to a 55 year old. Not to down play exercise; but no amount of working out is going to fix anaging rotator cuff.

davepjr71

big,

Here's the problem. You say I'm pushing 70# bows? Aren't you all pushing 60# or less bows? I'm not promoting anything. I'm just giving my point of view on the subject. I'm the first one to speak up because I've been shooting heavy bows for a long time without incident. I also know a bunch of people that do the same. Aren't I allowed to respond to why I think 70#'s is better or only the guys that like lighter shooting bows allowed to speak up?

You will get a dramatic increase in performance out of a heavier arrow out of the 70# bow. Will it matter on a perfect side shot, no. Will it matter if that deer turns while you are shooting and hit the shoulder, yes. A lot of people on here promote heavy arrows. Why not push those arrows as fast as possible? I bet it helped when you took the 60 yd shot on that doe.

No, working out will not fix rotator cuff damage but i assure you it will prevent it if done properly. Furthermore, power lifting isa totally different venue than the type of work outs I'm promoting. I'vedone about every type of lifting you can think of since i was 14 yrs old.I know therisks involved with power lifting and why youshouldn't get into it unless you plan on putting your body through heck. I've torn the sheathing on my right quad and the dislocated shoulder is from power lifting. So please don't compare that to doing high rep low impact workouts to protect the body. Or, assume that I have no experience inexplaining why I thinkworking out is important.


Roscoe,

Iagreewith your lastpost. However, today's bows are so much smoother to draw and hold than the bows I grew-up with and definitely what you shot at a younger age. I pulled out my old Whitetail Legend this spring and at 60#'s it felt like I as pulling 80+ lbs. There are still a lot of guysthat shoot high poundage bows out there that are older. I think that also needs to be brought up anytime people start to say that all the older guys are dropping to 50#'s and such. Plus, this is a hunting website, not target.

Every time this issue is brought up someone says about the target shooters they know that have bad shoulders. Repetitive motionwill wear out a joint.Repeat an unnatural motion a few hundred or thousand times a week and it will wear out joints. Just look at golfers. There is no weight involved with the golf swing. However look how many golfers have bad backs, shoulders or elbows


Bottom line is that I'm not pushing anything. I'm just giving the other side of the story and this being an open forum I believe that is why we have a forum in the first place.

bowdoc1

I have been shooting 43 years at 70 lbs and 60 years old and stiil shooting 70 lbs TFOX It wouldn't feel right to me if I didn't. I alway shot around 65 lb recurve when I was younger back in the 60's I would been a call a P%$# if I didn't shoot ar least 55 lb,s becuase every one shot around that for hunting. You need to shoot what you can handle and can pull good out of a tree stand, but I think if you can do that with 70lbs thats what you should be shooting, but if not only can handle it shoot 60 lbs shoot that. I will always shoot as much as I can handle. If I can only handle 50 Lbs thats what I will shooting. I hope that day never comes I owe it to the game to shoot as much as I can.

MDBUCKHUNTER

I believe you should hunt with a bow that has as much poundage as you can comfortably and safely handle. If that means 40lbs or 95lbs...so be it. This topic is all about personnal preference. Absolutely nobody can tell me or anyone else what poundage of bow to use.

Low poundage bows can typically be held longer.

High poundage bows have better arrow performance.

Find out what turns you on the most and go for it.

The biggest myth that I would like to kill right here and now is injuries due to higher poundage bows. Just because you shoot at 70lbs, doesn't mean you are going to injure yourself or have rotator cuff problems. There is proper form for drawing a bow just like there is proper form forholding a bow for the shot. Learn proper techniques and know your physical limitations. Too many old farts come on this site and complain about injuries due to their bow. Well, if you learned how to properly draw the bow in the first place and listened to your body when it was growning on the draw....then you could have avoided such injuries.

Lets all usea little common sense and stop preaching to these younger hunters what they should be using because YOU are using it.

bigcountry

Sure you are, but I think our reason for pushing is entirely different. Mine reason is because I know what can happen, and sure don't want that happen to someone else. Yours reasons are well obvious I think. You say working out helps this or that. I show it may or may not. Accidents happen at any gym. No matter what the workout. Sooner or later, you will hurt yourself, no matter if your doing 5 sets of10 of 120lbs, or if your doing 3 sets of 3 250lbs.Proof is in the pudding.

I currently don't have a 60lb bow, but plan on changing that in the next few years. I own 3 compounds, and 3 trad bows. All compounds are 70lb bows. And trads range from 40lb to 55lbs. I guarantee you I could hit with a 60lb bow at 60yards just as easy.

davepjr71

My reasons are sinister and evil.I want everyone to shoot 100# bows!!! lmao

I'm not pushing anything. But it ruffles all your feathers not to agree with the "old school" guys on here. Every time some one new disagrees you guys all get your panties in a bunch for no reason at all and it quit humorous. You are disagreeing with me on how working out helps the body even though anyone with common sense knows that to be true.

To say sooner or later everyone gets hurt working out is ridiculous. It's virtually impossible to hurt yourself with low weight lifting if done properly. If you don't want to do weight at least do push ups and such to keep the muscles toned so that the stress from drawing the bow doesn't cause a pulled muscle. To compare that to doing heavy 3X3 sets is preposterous and really show how little you know about weight training. I worked out in a nationally ranked drug free weight lifting facility from the timeI was 16 untilI moved here 7 yrs ago and before that was given training routines that were used by professional athletes.The only injuryI ever suffered was from a poorly constructed incline bench doing heavy lifting. The amount of stress that is put on a body doing power lifting or heavy lifting is far great than used for strength andconditioning. And to say that it will not help is down right idiotic on my mind.

Making guarantees is like crapping in your hand. Both make no sense and after they're made all you have is a handful of $--t.