But just like in any activity, excess often causes damage.

As for the study on shooting heavy bows to see if they cause injury/damage, well good luck on that one. But I'll bet if you polled the folks on this site to see how many shot heavy bows in the past and who have had shoulder injuries, there would be a definate correlation. [/QB][/QUOTE]

Excess of anything will lead to damage. Heck, my pinky finger hurts from pounding this keyboard!    :D  I truly do believe that if we polled members here there WOULD be many who shot heavy bows who now have shoulder problems. You would have to control for all the variables to determine a direct correlation however. Was that about all they did for exercise? (Yo-Yo Ma has back problems from playing the cello. He has to perform exercises now for his other side). How was their form? History of arthritis or joint problems in the family? etc. There is nothing inherently true or incontrovertible in the statement: "I am protecting my shoulders by shooting a lighter bow." I could be shooting a 62# bow with less stress on my joints than someone shooting a 45# bow; particularly if 62#s is a light weight for me, do you see what I am saying? I think we all would agree that shooting a bow the wrong way for our body is bad for it.
Once again though, I am not meaning to insult anyone for shooting a light bow. I did exhort those to who it applies to get in better shape-that is a good thing, and I am challenging the belief that my shooting a bow that is comfortable for me, though it be heavy, will likely cause shoulder problems down the road. Lastly, anyone who is an ethical hunter is welcome in my camp. Oh! Again, had I not wanted to hunt moose in NH, I would be shooting a 50-55 lb bow. I don't shoot a 70 or 80 pounder because I like a lightweight 62!    :D   Peace!

Everyone is different. What will injure me, may not injure you.

We are all forced to accept limitations in the things we do. Hopefully we are able to learn our limitations, and not push ourselves beyond them.
We should however, always push ourselves UP TO our limitations, otherwise, they will push back.

Luckily, bows in the fory to fifty pound range will handle most of our hunting endeavours, so we can enjoy shooting and hunting well into our "golden years".

only thing we'r scared of Ben is hurting their feelings when we Woop them    :D    

"Incidently, not to start an arguement but Pope and Young, and Mr. Hill bow prefered 50-55# bows when they got older and hunted."

Just for the record, I've never seen anything in print which indicates this statement is factual.

It has been reported many times that Hill shot 75# into his last years.

Nothing to indicate a change in bow weight for Pope and Young either, since neither lived into their fifties.

This thread is dead in the water.

OK, here's the worst case scenario, it's a short story about my uncle that loved to bow hunt and is responsible for getting me interested in bows many years ago. He started with recurve bows and moved on to compound bows when they became the rage. He liked heavy bows and I recall his later compounds being around 78#, now for the bad part. He now shoots a CROSSBOW because arthritis has robbed him of the ability to draw a bow  even a low poundage bow. Not to mention the fact that I had to disown him for shooting a CROSSBOW!

I think the answer is a combination of all of the above coupled with the fact that later in life has a mind of it's own.

Charlie. I agree on all points.  

...I for one love shooting my 110# @ 32"... 130# starts to hurt after a couple of shots.

I'm much younger than you guys, I guess, at my age of 16.

I love power; my 110 gives me twice as much fun as a 55#... that's why I like it  

Nick

I've shot what everyone thinks are heavy bows for a long time...I'm overweight, and a desk jockey. I don't have shoulder or arm or joint problems of any kind.

I think a lot of these archery injuries may be more related to what these people did in the way of sports in school, what they do for a living such as swinging a hammer..and then on top of that excessive shooting of bows.

Ray is right. Sports and work can make a big difference.
I have had several joint repair surgeries for injuries/problems that were not related to archery. They have had a direct influence on my bow hunting. I now shoot recurves at up to 50# and I am happy I can still do that. My 60# bear takedown limbs will just have to keep gathering dust (or maybe I will sell them). Age, injuries and arthritis have taken their toll. All in all, hunting is still better than taking up the rocking chair and not having any fun.

I have shot bows in the 65-70 lb. range since my twenties (early). I'll be 55 y.o. this October. Guess I've been lucky.  GY

Can you do it into old age?  Yep.

Are you likely to?  Nope.  


Health, like so many other things is a game of percentages.  Shooting heavy bows at advanced age is a very long shot indeed.

I shot a 70# recurve for 20 years and now have shot 65# for 10 years.  I'm 5'9, 160# and 52 . I also have a physical outdoors job that has had more effects on my shooting than visa versa.  

I personally find that dropping down in bow weight for recreational shooting then jump back up 15 pounds for hunting is very difficult.  

It seems at work the people who get injured the most are the ones that takes it easy most of the times, but then has to do something strenuous:)
 
I also find that  I  don't shoot more than 2 or 3 times a week any more.  But if  I do get away from shooting for 2 or 3 weeks then I will get a few aches until I shoot a few arrows.  

I also agree with the statement that after 55/60 pounds there isn't much gain in performance unless increasing the arrow weight.

                                   Jeff

One benefit of shooting a heavy bow (65+ lbs.) is the ability to shoot a heavy arrow FAST.  It seems to be understood to some that if you shoot a heavy arrow that it has to be moving slow.  
I am currently shooting a 733 grain arrow at 181 fps.  That is not the fastest arrow in the world but that setup is a win/win without having to give up anything in return.

I started shooting 65@27 when I was about your age, I am now 55 and had a detatched bicep tendon and surgery in my drawing arm 2 years ago, but am still shooting 63lbs..and dont see dropping any weight in the near future,  I think it has to do alot with keeping in decent shape, I have a lot of friends drop bow weight because others thought they should, either because of simply getting older or others belief that they were over bowed for some reason. Most have tried to get back to shooting thier original weight because they didnt like the feel or performance of the lighter bows, and have found it difficult to go back up to a weight they were comfortable with originally.. its a personal thing,and we are all diffrent, but if ya can handle it ok, stick with it, and listen to your body..

I for one admit that I had a hard time pulling my new 70# longbow for the first time, even though my posterior pulling chain is strong.

To prevent potential injuries, I now start out sessions with windmills and other warm-up exercises. Then I begin shooting with my old bow (a really old 35# bow) until I feel warm, before grabbin' the longbow. When done shooting the longbow, I switch back to shooting a few arrows with the oldie.

Besides, it feels great to pull a lighter bow when you have the strength to pull a heavy bow  

You won't know until its too late. I use to shoot heavy bows 70- 80# and now I am fifty six and hurt every day but still manage to shoot my 45# and 55# bows. Oh yeah! the last twelve years all the deer I killed were just as dead as the ones I killed with the 75# bows and I can't think of a time when the heavy bow would have made any difference. Take care of yourself. What does bragging rights do for you anyway.
Mike Lee

Who ever shoots a heavy bow just to brag about it, is shooting for the wrong reasons.

FB,
I like that warmup routine. I'm going to start doing that with a 30# bow I have.

How many people do you know that are 60+ years old does NOT hurt in their joints to some degree.  The LARGE majority are in pain at that age.  They hurt whether they shoot a heavy bow or not.  If anything..exercise and strength is going to help prevent aches an pains.  Hellooo.....common sense maybe?  If you physically can't pull a heavy bow then don't justify it by trying to tell someone that something is wrong with their heavy bow.  If you just can't stand to shoot an arrow that is NOT flying a perfectly flat trajectory then say that you like to shoot light arrows.  It does take more strength and hard work to shoot a more powerful weapon that does have advantages.  If you just can't hack it.  Say you can't hack it.  It may be that you are afraid of a little muscle burn and excercise.  If you're scared get a dog.