A mobility and stretching programme improves an archer's flexibility
1 study · 30 archers measured
The summary today
The only study of archers points the expected way, with a large effect. Thirty Indonesian archers of regional and national level, chosen because they lacked flexibility, followed twelve weeks of three 45-minute sessions of foam rolling, stretching and mobility work, with load and hold times rising every four weeks: on the sit and reach they went from 13.2 to 22.6 cm (d = 2.01), gaining 5.7 cm in the first six weeks and another 3.7 in the second six. The response was similar in men and women and across ages, slower in those with a body mass index above 30. Three limits stop the reading going further: there was no control group, the sample was chosen precisely because it was stiff, which makes gains easier, and the sit and reach measures the posterior chain, not the shoulder and thoracic mobility that shooting asks for most. Nobody then looked at the score after the programme.
Also phrased as: "stretching for archers"; "mobility for archery"; "archer flexibility"; "stretching and archery"; "foam rolling for archers"
In practice
Archers are advised to give a few sessions a week to stretching and mobility, on the idea that a looser body finds the shooting position more easily and keeps it the same arrow after arrow.
Evidence
-
2025
For Archers Published later
30 Indonesian archers of regional and national level (15 men and 15 women, aged 14 to 43, at least two years of practice), selected for a starting sit and reach of 25 cm or less, three supervised 45-minute sessions a week for twelve weeks, no control group: sit and reach from 13.2 ± 4.1 to 18.9 ± 4.7 cm at week six and to 22.6 ± 5.3 at week twelve (+9.4 cm, p < 0.001, d = 2.01; F(2,58) = 48.73, eta squared 0.632). Between weeks six and twelve another 3.7 cm is added (p = 0.004, d = 0.78).
A 12-week tailored sit-and-reach metrics intervention for archery athletes with flexibility deficits · Hidayat Humaid, Ferry Yohannes Wattimena, Hernawan, Muhammad Gilang Ramadhan, Made Bang Redy Utama, Ayu Purnama Wenly
-
2025
Context Archers Published later
The programme is described in enough detail to repeat it: in weeks 1 to 4 perceived intensity 4 to 5 out of 10, foam rolling 2 to 3 minutes per area, stretches 3 sets of 30 seconds and mobility 3 by 12; in weeks 5 to 8 intensity 6, 45-second holds and mobility 4 by 10; in weeks 9 to 12 intensity 7 and contract-relax, 3 sets of 10 seconds of contraction plus 30 of relaxation. The response does not differ between men and women and is consistent across ages, with a tendency to improve more slowly above a body mass index of 30, with no numbers given. The sit and reach, best of three trials, has a test-retest reliability of 0.89.
A 12-week tailored sit-and-reach metrics intervention for archery athletes with flexibility deficits · Hidayat Humaid, Ferry Yohannes Wattimena, Hernawan, Muhammad Gilang Ramadhan, Made Bang Redy Utama, Ayu Purnama Wenly
Status history
- 2025 Reported The first flexibility programme measured before and after in archers: thirty regional and national archers, chosen because they lacked flexibility, take the sit and reach from 13.2 to 22.6 cm in twelve weeks of stretching, foam rolling and mobility work, with a large effect. The gain does not stall halfway, 5.7 cm in the first six weeks and 3.7 in the second six, and it is similar in men and women. It is a single-group before and after design, with no control and in a regional journal: the evidence in favour is there, and it is limited.
Related
Related articles
- Thoracic mobility, diaphragmatic breathing and HRVThoracic mobility, diaphragmatic breathing and HRV for archers: the exercises, an eight-week protocol and what the studies on archers show.
- Warming up before shooting: what static stretching, dynamic stretching and foam rolling changeStatic stretching, dynamic stretching or foam rolling before you shoot: what studies on archers measured, how much it moves the score and where the data stop.
Research lines
Studies describe groups of archers, and your own numbers show how far the finding applies to your shooting.
See the programmeCite
Campagna, M. (2026). A mobility and stretching programme improves an archer's flexibility (Version 1). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/mobility-programme-archer-flexibility
@misc{campagna2026_mobilitaflessibilitaarcieri,
author = {Campagna, Matteo},
title = {A mobility and stretching programme improves an archer's flexibility},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/physical-training/mobility-programme-archer-flexibility},
note = {Version 1; accessed 2026-10-16}
}
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