After some lessons at the club, when I first started, the training changed a lot.
In my first weeks, targets were placed just 10 meters away. Sometimes, we even shot at balloons. It was a lot of fun, of course, not with my own bow, the club lent us wooden bows to begin.
Then when I bought an Olympic recurve bow, the real training began. First, the club made me move 20 meters away and at the same time, they took the targets away so that we were shooting into the hay bale behind. The objective was for all our shots to be as close as possible to the first one. To keep our shots grouped. I was told it was an exercise to prevent target panic in a later stage of our training.
What is target panic?
Target panic is a psychological state where the mind tries to get ahead of the shot, and becomes afraid of not hitting the center of the target.
Basically, you’re already anxiously thinking about how the arrow will travel before the shot is actually released. When that happens, the mind is not focused on your position, your body, or your draw. Not only can target panic hinder an archer’s confidence in their ability, but it can also result in negative physical reactions. For example, flinching, hesitations, poor release, bad standing position, shifting the pin hold from the bullseye, and often causing an archer to not get to their full draw length.
Many athletes require psychologists to help them overcome this “fear of failure” at competitions, to cope with defeat, and to prepare their minds for a hard training session. The situation is not that dissimilar for target panic in archery.
That’s the reason why my first coach made us start by shooting straight to the bale. In this way, we would begin our training focusing on our technique rather than the target. I didn’t pay much attention to it at first, I was more interested in just shooting the bow. However because my second coach brought up the subject of target panic several times, I decided to look into it further.
How do I know if I have target panic?
This is not a sickness! But I like the analogy and think it works well for discussing target panic, so let’s go over the common symptoms.
First, and one of the worst things that can happen, is that you’re unable to reach your maximum draw length. This happens because you’re focused on a possible negative outcome rather than concentrating on following your usual shooting routine. Shooting before reaching the draw length is something that happens to many of us at the beginning. But if you find it happens when you’re thinking about other things, it’s probably not because of your back strength is failing or lack of training, it’s probably because of target panic.
Another common symptom is awkward shooting releases. Since our minds are more focused on the trajectory that our arrow will take before it’s even left the bow, our hands tend to pull a little more than usual. Or, it causes the string to move to the side, becoming unstabilized and making the arrow have an errant trajectory. This is also joined by another problem – letting the string go lax a little bit. This makes the arrow have less strength when being released.
The last and most common result of target panic is not being able to group your arrows when the target is in place. If your shots are all together when shooting without a target, but then become scattered as soon as the target appears, that means that your release is being affected by the presence of the target. It is something most coaches will notice immediately and that you must be willing to fix as soon as possible before it becomes a constant in your shooting technique.
Best recommendations/solutions to overcome target panic
My coach told me his simple rule for overcoming target panic – lots and lots of practice. But practice without the target, shooting straight to the bale.
It might be boring, and it takes away part of the fun of archery for some people, especially when you’re with other archers.
For me, it’s a lot of fun to see who can get the highest score. And the truth is that practicing without the target gives you a perfect opportunity to focus on placing each shot next to the other. It is a great exercise to group your arrows and get consistent with your shooting form. Once you have a great mechanic, repeated the same way in every shot, it is harder for you to be affected by target panic in the same way.
Another great recommendation I have comes from the ancient Roman instructors. They used to say that a training day, is really combat without blood; and that real combat was a bloody training day. It’s a way to say that you must take real action the same as any training day. Just do what you know, stay shooting by the book and it will all be fine. Take it easy at competitions and do not focus your mind on the place where the arrow will land. Instead, stay focused on your shooting and remember that there will always be a next shot. My coach has a similar phrase to the Romans, which is a little more practical for today’s settings. He says that a competition is another training day but with a protocol to follow. So just take it easy. Practice with and without the target and it will all be alright. You can do this!
Is it really psychological?
Yes, it is totally psychological. The fear of having arrows outside of the yellow areas is almost continually on your mind.
Target panic is just a name given to archers, much like stage panic for actors. We are all afraid of failure. If you have target panic, don’t ever feel ashamed. Many basketball players need a psychologist to overcome final shots missed in important games. There’s a reason why sports psychology is an entire field of study in the modern day. That’s why when archers realize that they are being inconsistent, they often take away the target and all the colors and realize they are able to group their arrows with no problem.
Can I fix it physically?
Sort of. It is possible to practice your way out of target panic. Almost like shooting with your eyes closed. To do this, stop aiming and just trust your instinct to do the job. Many people who have been practicing a sport for several years have an almost automatic instinct in their field. Messi’s kick is almost an instinct, just like Stephen Curry’s 3-point shot. With archery, it is the same. So much of it is muscle memory which you develop over time. You can be afraid, but if you practice your way out of that zone and just trust to repeat the exact same shooting, you can be psychologically afraid, but still hit the target.
Difference of target panic with guns and bows
While guns and bows are both tools that will shoot an object far away from you, the effect of target panic functions in a different way for each. With archery, you are afraid of missing the yellow area. With guns you are not afraid of where the shot will land, but what the gun recoil will do. Studies show that in archery, since you can’t control entirely where the arrow will land and because it can be altered by slight movements in your draw, you’re afraid of missing and you try to move your hands to prevent it. This alters your shooting mechanic.
On the side of guns, when they shoot at close range, they are so powerful that the shot will be a straight line. However, in this case, the mental anxiety comes from fear of the recoil. Shooters try to compensate for the recoil before they fire, just like archers try to compensate for the trajectory of the shot they haven’t made yet. It is literally like trying to be in the future and foresee what will happen.
With guns, it’s not such a bad thing since you’ll quickly get familiar with the recoil of the gun. Normally, that fear is only at the beginning when you’re not aware of how strong the gun is. Of course, some firearms are a lot more powerful than others. There are several videos on the internet of people being thrown several meters away because of poor positioning and maybe lack of strength.
Personal experience with target panic
My personal experience with target panic was not as bad as it was for some of my friends. Like I said at the beginning of the article, my coach made me practice several times without the target as well as with the target.
It is his method of getting ahead to the issue with his archers. It has only happened to me during my first competition. I was so afraid of the potential results and didn’t want to let my club down that I actually started pretty well. But like I’ve said in other articles, each round is a new beginning. So, I had great rounds followed by a bad one, which made me scared and then I started modifying my shot thinking that I would “help the arrow”. In my case, I started shooting faster, figuring that it would prevent my hands from shaking which would allow the arrow to go in a straight line.
Sadly, it didn’t work! My next round was even worse. Thankfully it was my 6th round so we had a short break, in which my teammates who were competing after my category, realized that and spoke to me. They made me practice a little bit with some elastic bands so that I could focus on the positioning and mechanic instead of the arrow. Then I went back and my shot was much improved. I didn’t win, but my score was good enough for my coach to consider promoting me to the next distance.
Closing thoughts
As we have seen, target panic is a state of mind. It is a name for the fear of missing a shot and feeling like you need to do something different for a shot to compensate that something might go wrong.
Remember that your shot can be affected by several things, like the wind or rain. Those things are totally out of your control, so you have to trust your instinct and training and follow the book. A competition is just another practice.
If you feel nervous, try talking to your teammates, relax, and enjoy the moment. These practices can help with the psychological side of target panic. On the other hand, if you need something physical to do, remember what my coach did with us from the beginning: practice without the target.
The exercise is pretty simple, make sure all your shots are as close as possible to the first one. If you practice grouping your shots together, then you’ll try to do that automatically when the target is set in front of you. Then, it’s just a matter of adjusting the sight a little bit to make sure it’s going to the yellow area. Keep your mind clean, and practice with and without the target in a religious state of mind.
Last but not least, if you think too much when shooting, talk to your teammates about their experiences with target panic. Their stories can help encourage you and make you realize you’re not alone. Don’t keep things to yourself, share and let them share.
Keep practicing and happy shooting.
