When an archer gains strength, the draw weight that feels comfortable does not change accordingly
1 study · 49 archers measured
The summary today
In the registry the question has a single study, from 1967, of 49 beginner university students, 21 men and 28 women, measured before and after a 24-lesson course with a bow attached to a tensiometer that recorded the pull. On average both rise: maximal pull by 5.7 pounds in the women and 5.1 in the men, the pull judged comfortable by 7.9 and 6.2 pounds. The two increases do not go together, though: the correlation between how much strength grows and how much the comfortable pull grows is 0.05 in the women and -0.16 in the men, so those who gain the most strength are not the ones who raise their comfortable load the most. The comfortable pull stays between just over half and two thirds of the maximum, and the beginners accept the bow they are given as comfortable and keep it for the whole course, even when its draw weight does not match what they had indicated. The limitation is a big one: these are beginners on a university course, with no control group, and the very idea of a comfortable pull is unstable, because in the women the first test correlates at just 0.42 with the second.
Also phrased as: "moving up when the bow feels light"; "comfortable draw weight"; "choosing draw weight by feel"; "strength and the right draw weight"
In practice
Archers are advised to move up in draw weight once their current bow starts to feel light, on the assumption that the sense of comfort follows the strength gained through training.
Evidence
-
1967
For Archers Published later
49 beginner university students, 28 women and 21 men, before and after 24 lessons: the correlation between the gain in maximal strength and the gain in comfortable pull is r = 0.052 in the women and r = -0.155 in the men, while the mean gains are all significant (women +5.70 pounds maximal, t = 5.69, and +7.93 comfortable, t = 4.99; men +5.13, t = 3.88, and +6.15, t = 2.60).
Relationship between Perception of Pull and Draw in Archery · Helen M. Eckert, Dorothy M. Wendt
-
1967
Context Archers Published later
The pull judged comfortable sits between just over half and two thirds of the maximum: at the first test 22.64 out of 40.06 pounds in the women and 44.82 out of 69.46 in the men, after 24 lessons 30.57 out of 45.76 and 50.97 out of 74.59. The percentages, from 56 to 68 per cent, are calculated from the reported means.
Relationship between Perception of Pull and Draw in Archery · Helen M. Eckert, Dorothy M. Wendt
-
1967
Context Archers Published later
After four lessons all 49 said the assigned bow was comfortable and kept it for the rest of the semester, while the listed draw weight they were given correlated with the comfortable pull at the first test at r = 0.455 in the women and 0.081 in the men (significance threshold 0.310). In the women the comfortable pull at the first test correlates with that at the second at just r = 0.421.
Relationship between Perception of Pull and Draw in Archery · Helen M. Eckert, Dorothy M. Wendt
Status history
- 1967 Reported In 49 beginners, after 24 lessons, both maximal draw strength and the pull judged comfortable rise, but the two increases do not go together: the correlation is 0.05 in the women and -0.16 in the men. Those who gain the most strength are not those who raise their comfortable load the most. It is a single study, a before-and-after without a control group in beginners, with the claim written in the direction of the result: evidence in favour, and limited.
Related
Related articles
- How long you can hold the bow at full draw: seconds, maximal strength and draw weightHow much strength it takes to hold the bow at full draw, what holding time says about your score, and how to read draw weight against maximal strength.
- Which bow to buy when you start, and when to buy itWhich bow to buy when you start archery: why wait, the take-down recurve, draw weight, arrows, and the FITARCO, World Archery, FIARC and IFAA rules.
- Does strength turn into points? The two steps between the gym and the targetA strength programme makes an archer stronger, but extra points are a separate question: what the studies have measured and where they stop.
Research lines
Cite
Campagna, M. (2026). When an archer gains strength, the draw weight that feels comfortable does not change accordingly (Version 1). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/comfortable-draw-weight-strength
@misc{campagna2026_trazionecomodaforza,
author = {Campagna, Matteo},
title = {When an archer gains strength, the draw weight that feels comfortable does not change accordingly},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/comfortable-draw-weight-strength},
note = {Version 1; accessed 2026-10-16}
}
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