Want to improve your shooting, get bow fit and be the best archer you can be?
Improve your Archery is a series of articles, blogs and videos from Archery GB, created by archers, for archers.
Aimed at all levels of archers who want to improve, learn or develop within our wonderful sport. The topics cover recurve, compound, barebow, and longbow; target, 3D, clout and field archery; and include para and non-disabled elements.
We also incorporate elements of strength and conditioning to help you improve in a whole body way, on and off the range.
Setting goals can help your progress in archery mentally, as well as physically. There are three main types of goals:
Outcome goals are specific results-driven goals, usually used in competition. Performance goals are to make improvements over a set period of time in regard to your performance. Finally, process goals, these are attributes a competitor should be concentrating on when carrying out a specific skill.
Setting goals for the whole year can feel overwhelming. Naomi Folkard, Lizzie Warner, and Cameron Donaldson give us an insight into how they do it.
Getting your equipment right is vital in helping you shoot safely and well. Keith Harding talked to Archery GB on how to choose the right arrow length for you.
Barebow, recurve, compound and longbow - which one is right for you? What are the different styles and how do you choose?
Wales Archery's Adam explains the differences in bow styles and which one might suit you best.
Archery makes you feel powerful, strong, and self-reliant. The sport requires control, endurance, mental toughness, focus, physical strength, and like all sports when striving for perfection, it requires determination.
Clout archery has grown in popularity massively over the last 20 years, mainly due to archers taking it seriously. There’s so much to achieve, as Peter Gregory, aka Mr Clout of Goldcrest Archers, explains.
Patrick Huston has travelled the world with archery and has extensive knowledge of competing. From club level to the Rio Olympics, he knows what to expect! Patrick explains what you might find at your first archery competition.
Louisa Piper, European Junior Field Champion, explains why she has such a love for field archery and why everyone should give it a go this year!
The English longbow is one of the most primitive, yet iconic, bows you can see on the shooting line both in clubs and at tournaments. Achieving accuracy with a longbow can be difficult at the best of times and daunting to archers who are new to the style.
Alex Newnes is a frequent medalist at National events, field, target and 3D. Alex breaks down the different ways to aim with an English Longbow.
Izzy Carpenter has represented the GB Compound Youth Team since 2014. Since then, she has won Women's Team silver at the World Youth Championships in 2017, Mixed Team bronze and Women's Team gold at the 2018 European Youth Championships. She has since gone on to win the women’s team European Champion titles at Munich 2022. Izzy explains why shooting in a team dynamic is essential to archery.
Archery is a colourful sport; that's why Instagram is an ideal social media platform. Catherine Whyte interviewed Caroline Homer, Royal Richmond Archery Club's social media manager, to give her top ten tips for running a winning Instagram account.
A good shot routine can mean a consistent shot, which will lead to a consistent score. Penny Healey explains how she writes her shot routine and gives her top tips to help you create your own.
Gap shooting is one of the primary aiming systems employed by barebow archers who don’t use a sight. It is a method of aiming where you use the tip of your arrow at full draw as a reference point and place it a certain distance below, above or on the target that you want to hit.
Alex Newnes explains how he gap shoots in this two-parter!
Sarah Bettles, a member of the GB Archery Team, has participated in many different sports. She explains the key benefits that different sports have on archery.
Three archers, Nicole Burdett, Siri Mantravadi and Archie Bromley, discuss what Pathway weekends are like for athletes. They explain what they've learnt, gained and developed whilst attending Pathway weekends.
How do you stay focused during archery? Patrick Huston explains different ways to stay focused and enjoy archery through practice and competition.
Archery is a repetitive sport, therefore the simpler your technique, the easier it is to repeat. Complicated movement patterns in the body and head can create tension which makes executing a good shot difficult as well as making consistent repetition tricky.
Naomi Folkard explains how to get the right head position for beginners.
A key archery feature, that differs from many sports, is that archers score themselves. This means that, whether you’re 7, 17 or 70, a novice or an Olympic archer, everyone on the target has an equal part to play.
Eleanor Piper explains how scoring works for target events.
How, in sporting terms, can you best stay motivated and hungry to carry on training, competing and striving for your own version of success?
Tom Barber explains how he has kept motivated this year and shares some tips and guidance to keep your motivation going, even during these unprecedented times.
One of the best ways to get the most out of your shooting, both competitive and practice, is to plan. Izzy Carpenter explains how to plan productive sessions and progress within your own shooting.
Shooting a large volume of arrows over the course of a day or weekend can be utterly exhausting, even for performance athletes. Phoebe Paterson Pine explains how important it is to stay hydrated and fuelled whilst shooting in competition or training.
It takes a huge amount of work and sacrifice to be on the national archery squads. The Olympic squad’s Yulia Larkins tells us about some of her latest challenges.
Shooting barebow involves a lot of personal preference, but there are some considerations which will help your shooting. Tom Williams and Andrew Barham explain how to do a barebow set up.
There are three, maybe four, definitive styles of aiming when shooting barebow. Each one can be just as effective as the other, but some require more practice than the others. One in particular needs dedication, practice, and faith in yourself and your subconscious to make it work.
Tom Williams and Andrew Barham, teach us how you can aim a barebow.
Being cold can make executing a good shot difficult, so it’s really important to wrap up well to retain as much body heat as possible. It’s also vital to performance that we are able to stay mobile and keep the string free of the chest and front arm, which can be quite challenging and limits what can be worn on the upper body.
Naomi Folkard explains how to stay warm in colder weather.
We asked archery shops around the UK for gift ideas for archers, either as a little treat from themselves or from friends and family. Have a look at some of the suggestions!
Shooting in the wind is one of the most challenging environmental factors an archer will come up against. Jamie Harris, part of the Paralympic Squad, explains skills and tips on how to shoot in the wind.
How to shoot in the wind Part 1 How to shoot in the wind Part 2
Staying calm on a finals field is something that archers at all levels can struggle with. Whilst it might be daunting, nerves aren’t something we should be afraid of. Izzy Carpenter is no stranger to a finals field. Here are her hints and tips.
Adam from Wales Archery discusses how you know it's time to upgrade your kit. It's important to know during your archery journey!
What should you look out for when purchasing second-hand archery equipment? What do you need to know? Where can you buy second-hand equipment? The do's and don'ts of purchasing second-hand archery kit!
Archery is an incredibly skilled sport using a lot of fine motor control under high tension. This makes injuries easy to pick up. Stuart Taylor explains different elements to consider to help you prevent injury and stay safe while shooting.
Heading to the range for the first time, or after a break might feel daunting, so to help, here's a quick list of what you should take to the range.
It’s easier than you may think to become a volunteer in archery. You can start in your local club, and progress to judging, coaching, supporting Archery GB national competitions and/or the ambassador programme. If you're thinking about becoming a volunteer, here are some simple tips to get you going!
Why is mobility important for archery? During lockdown, Archery GB ran the Mobility Mondays and Workout Wednesdays campaigns to help our membership increase their mobility, keep active and help prevent injury.
Mental Health Awareness Week reminds us to connect with nature as a way of rebalancing our mental health. With many archers loving shooting outdoors, spending hours in the fresh air, we’d like to remind you of some of the other benefits that archery offers, such as enhanced focus and concentration.
We asked our followers on social media what archery apps they use whilst training and in competition. Here’s a round-up of their favourites.
Archery GB’s Paralympic Technician Kieran Carr is on hand to answer your questions about kit maintenance and improvements.
Archery GB's Senior National Coach Richard Priestman shares his wisdom.
