mahoningbuck

Every week I put myself through the excersise that this is the biggest buck I have ever seen! I practice my breathing which is rediculous in a real life situation but I try! The roof oh I love to get on the roof and shot down but the anticipation is killing me! Nothing can relate to the real thing so I want to know what you do to put yourself in the I am going to release this arrow mentality. What works to prepare you for that once in a life time shot? Practice makes perfect but how close can you get!

Shootem up870

i only shoot about 2 or 3 times like this while im practicing. i pull back my bow (with an arrow nocked) then hold until i start to shake a little then i shoot. usually i start to shake when im about to shoot a deer so thats the closet thing i can do to simulate a deer. plus it makes the muscles stronger.

maybe someone else has a better way

buckeye

I have been pounding them 3-D courses twice a week since march.

If you can hit your anchor with good solid form, buck fever won't get the best of you. If you naturally *naturally being the key word* hit anchor without having to think about it the battle is nearly won. I saw you are from Ohio in a different post. I would assume Mahoning county??? There are a lot of nice 3-d courses around here to shoot at. I am near the Trumbull Mahoning border. Give me a PM or email if you are interested in any 3-D. Good luck.

txmarshmonkey

I do try practicing "real" shots whenever I can. I just recently started trying to grunt right before I release. Man was I suprised at how much movement that caused. I'll be practicing this a lot more.

b2simple

Sometimes, I will go out and run before I shoot. I get my bow out and then run around until I get my heart rate up and my breathing is heavy. Then I practice calming my self down and getting my breathing under control, while at full draw. For me, this is the best way to practice "the real thing".

NY Bowhunter

I adopted a practice routine years ago and have stuck with it religiously now. It's along a slightly different line than what you are describing in regards to buck fever but maybe it will help.
I have a treestand set up in a practice area at work. Every morning I will place my 3d in a location, get in my full hunting clothes, and climb into my stand. Depending on how much time I have that morning, I'll sit as long as I can trying to simulate a real hunting situation as much as possible. I take on arrow with me and hang my bow just as I would while hunting. I don't really have a set time limit of when I'm going to shoot, I just decide to get up and go through the process just as I would while hunting. The beauty of it is that you know you only have one shot and have to make it perfect or you lose.
Nothing can replace the feeling of having a live deer under your stand, but for me this puts that little extra pressure on your mind if you can get yourself in that state of mind.
This seems to have helped me prepare for the real deal so I stick with it. If I make a less than perfect shot, I don't get back up with 5 more arrows and try to correct it. I do that while doing my normal practice with my form. I simply chalk it up as a bad shot and I lost!! Just like you would have to do in the woods.