tykempster

I'm 14 and of small build and want to bow hunt. I can pull back 50, but much more than that is asking too much of my skinny arms. Most people around here have pulls around 70-75lbs which I can't use. Are there any exercises that can increase the strength needed to pull back a bow?

flyinfeathers

IMHO I would practice with your bow set at 50lbs and keep on until your strength is better. Then crank it up in 5lb increments and work at it again.
Don't try to be all macho. You may hurt yourself and you don't need to pull 70 lbs to kill a deer. Good luck.

kevin1

I concur , one of the things that I've learned about archery was to accept my limits and adapt to them . Accuracy kills game , speed just shortens their last momnent slightly .I shoot a 50# recurve , and I can assure you that it's more than enough to blast an arrow right through a deer sized animal . Enjoy the gear that you're confident with .

tykempster

I can pull back a 50 lb bow...but don't have one. It was a friends but he traded it for one with a...70 lb draw so I'm outta luck there. I just bought a new gun so I'm kinda outta money for a while, which means no bow.

PSEsilverhawk55

go for the 50# i shot a 55# bow last year and it killed a deer, but u would have to stay with fixed blade broadhead and would prolly have to keep with in 25 or 30 yrds. i shot at my button buck last year with 55# with NAP spitfire expandable and only got arou 8 or 9 inches of penetration and that was only at 10yrds. good luck

stillhunt04

Hey how's it going? I'm fifteen and I kind of had the same dilemma there. I got my bow in August, and could barely pull back fifty pounds, and now just a few months later I'm in the sixties range. What I do is I start with a weight that I know I can pull, but that I also know will be a challenge and a work out. What I've learned is that while you use a lot of strength in the arms, your back is the one that does a lot of the work. When I first started my back would hurt every night after I would shoot only a few arrows, but after awhile it went away, and I've increased my draw weight over 10 pounds since I got it a few months ago. Try some push ups too.

jimmy the foot

this is what i do and it works for me
bent over dumbbell/barebell raises
cable rows
pulldowns
forearm curls
reverse forearm curls
bicep curls
reverse bicep curls
shoot your bow
total body work out is ideal, but if you dont have time or the funds to join a gym do push ups, pull ups and ask mom and dad for some 60 lb dumbells for x-mas

muzzy100

50lbs is plenty to kill a deer... i could use a lot more but i choose to use about 55-60lbs just because it is a lot easier to hold steady and to hold longer.

Finch

60 pound dumb bells for a 14 y.o.? That seems a little excessive don't ya think.[:-]

Vogt_51

Yeah, I think 60 lbs for a 14 year old does sound a bit much. 60 lbs doing bent over row would be a killer now for me, but that doesnt say much because I dont lift anymore....the sad thing is, I could do bent over row with 60s when I was 14, as a matter of fact every one of my lifting maxes....bench, squat, dead, clean......are ALL higher than now....

But anyways....yeah, I would reall suggest all the lifts that Jimmy the foot suggested....mostly though, it will come in time....the strength workouts, and the actual shooting of the bow....However, dont strain yourself too much with trying to shoot a heavier bow or you might get some bad habits.