In archers' physical preparation, the legs are neglected

The summary today

Two studies from 2024, independent and carried out in different ways, point the same way for the legs. A questionnaire of 200 archers aged 13 to 20 at the European Youth Championships finds that 84.5 per cent strengthen the upper body, but only 49 per cent train the lower limbs and 49.5 per cent do aerobic work, with no difference between girls and boys. In 18 young recurve archers from Indonesian regional centres, a cluster analysis of physical tests finds only 3 athletes with a balanced profile between the muscles that hold the posture and those that hold the bow, and the authors infer that training was concentrated on the arms, with little attention to the legs and trunk. For the trunk, though, the data fall short: the questionnaire did not ask about it, and in the Indonesian study the largest group, first for arm strength, was second to last for sit-ups but third on the plank and the lumbar hold, in other words mid-table; that is why the claim covers only the legs. These are cross-sectional descriptions: the first counts what archers say they do, the second reconstructs training from test results. Nobody has measured what it costs, in points or in pain, to leave the legs behind.

Also phrased as: "archers skip leg day"; "conditioning biased towards the arms"; "archers only train arms and shoulders"; "lower-limb training in archery"

Evidence

• 2024
  For Archers Published later

  Questionnaire of 200 archers aged 13 to 20 at the European Youth Championships, in a study on injuries and pain. Among training components: upper-body strengthening 84.5 per cent, dominant arm 72.5 and non-dominant arm 63, but lower-limb strengthening 49 per cent (51 in girls, 47.1 in boys, p=0.70) and aerobic work 49.5 per cent; 54.5 per cent have an annual physical assessment. The trunk was not among the items asked about, although in the discussion the authors speak of the legs and trunk being neglected together. It is what archers report, not a training log.

  Injuries and Persistent Pain in Elite Adolescent Archery Athletes: A Cross-Sectional Epidemiological Study · Nikolaos Vasilis, Athanasios Kyriakides, George Vasilopoulos, Maria Chatzitimotheou, Grigorios Gonidakis, Athanasios Kotsakis, et al.

• 2024
  For Archers Published later

  18 young recurve archers from regional centres in East and West Java, nine physical tests (including sit-ups, plank, lower-back hold, pinch grip, shuttle run and bow hold) and 72 qualification arrows. K-means analysis splits the athletes into 6 clusters: only 3 of 18 have a balanced profile between the muscles that hold the posture and those that stabilise the bow. The largest group, 8 athletes, ranks first for pulling arm strength, right pinch grip, right-leg balance and the shuttle test, third on the plank and the lower-back hold, and second to last for sit-ups. The authors conclude that work was concentrated on the arms, with little attention to trunk and lower limbs: it is an inference from the tests, not a description of the programmes. Only pinch grip, right and left, is associated with score.

  Physical capacity and performance correlation in sub-elite Indonesian archery athletes · Afif Rusdiawan, Donny Ardy Kusuma, Muhammad Labib Siena Ar Rasyid, José Vicente García Jiménez, Mochammad Purnomo, Himawan Wismanadi, et al.

Status history

1. 2024 Reported Two independent studies in the same year say the same thing by two different routes. Of 200 elite young archers, 84.5 per cent strengthen the upper body, but only 49 per cent train the lower limbs and 49.5 per cent do aerobic work. In 18 recurve archers from Indonesian regional centres, a cluster analysis of physical tests finds only 3 balanced profiles between postural muscles and the muscles that stabilise the bow, and the largest group has strong arms but is second to last for sit-ups. For the legs the two studies agree; for the trunk the second gives a mixed picture, with the main group second to last for sit-ups but third on the plank. Both are cross-sectional descriptions: reported.

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Research lines

• 48 studiesWhat predicts the score, and how talent selection tried to use it
• 102 studiesFrom the total on the scorecard to the arrow's coordinates

Other claims in this domain

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• ReportedA few weeks of archery improves children's balance1 study · 32 archers measuredStatus since 2009
• ReportedA mobility and stretching programme improves an archer's flexibility1 study · 30 archers measuredStatus since 2025
• ReportedA spell of reduced training makes the score drop1 study · 9 archers measuredStatus since 2021
• ReportedA strength programme away from the range increases an archer's measured strength15 studies · 316 archers measuredStatus since 2018

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