Archery Lessons in the Rain in Toronto

It has been raining so much in the last two months (April and May) that I am curious how many people actually want archery lessons on rainy days.

Normally if it rains I reschedule lessons for several reasons:

1. Water damages equipment.
2. Water also causes mildew to grow on equipment.
3. People are susceptible to getting sick if they get cold.
4. People don't want to be standing in a field holding a potential lightning rod.
5. People often feel miserable when shooting in the rain, which effects accuracy.
6. A downpour will effect the accuracy of individual shots.
7. The archer's ability to aim can be reduced by rain interfering with their visual sight.

However in theory if I used equipment that is immune to water damage I could teach on rainy days to people who are willing and up to the challenge. (I already have arrows suitable for this, although I might have to invest in different bows for teaching with than the ones I normally teach with.)

I am curious if there are people out there who would actually want archery lessons in the rain - perhaps there are people out there who really like a challenge.

If this sounds like you, send me an email and we shall explore this option.

Pros And Cons Of Swimming In Pool vs River vs Lake

Guest Post by Angie Earley.

Summer - Everyone’s Favorite Season

When the summer heat’s coming, you’ll bet that everyone around you is running to the nearest pool of water. While there are people that live in more populated areas and those that don’t, there’s surely a body of water somewhere. Like most people, when we think about getting away from the summer heat, we’ll dive into a pool of water. For others, they might feel like diving into a river or lake instead. Is it better? We’re going to discuss the pros and cons of swimming in pools vs. rivers and lakes.

The Difference Between Rivers And Lakes

There’s a clear difference between rivers and lakes, and many people have the two confused because their terms are sometimes used synonymously with one another.

Here’s the difference: A lake is usually a still body of water that’s surrounded by land and usually surrounded from all sides. The only exception to this definition is if it’s being fed into by a river, stream, or other moving bodies of water. A river, on the other hand, is a natural flowing stream of water. The water that comes from a river usually ends up in an ocean, sea, or lake. To illustrate, a river usually flows into a lake but a lake does not usually flow into a river.

Pros And Cons Of Swimming In Pools vs. Rivers And Lakes

Not everyone is able to afford a home and have a swimming pool in their own backyard but there are many benefits to swimming in monitored and sanitized waters instead of the natural waters that is given to us by nature. Here’s a list of some pros and cons:

Pros

• Pools are generally much cleaner as owners use good quality robotic pool cleaner and pool filtration systems to get rid of dirt and debris
• Pools usually contain a lot of chlorine, therefore ridding any and all bacteria swimming in the water
• Swimming in a pool puts you in the security of a lifeguard. Lifeguards sit and watch over the pool and ensure that everyone is safe inside the waters

Cons

• Swimming in a pool can be less accessible to some more than others especially if there’s no swimming center nearby
• It’s not uncommon for swimming centers to charge anyone using their pool
• Swimming in a pool can be dangerous if not supervised by an adult

Yes, swimming in a pool by consensus is much better than swimming in a river or lake. Let’s review the pros and cons.

Swimming in a pool by tradition, is incredibly clean, has much less diseases, and is much safer. Pools are usually sanitized and monitored by either the home owner or, if you’re swimming at a recreational center, then it is quality controlled by the facility. Pools are cleaned and sanitized with chlorine with a certain level of standard for cleanliness. The way they’re maintained eliminates the risk of diseases and is usually much safer than swimming in open water.

We do know that depending on the area that you’re living in, pools can be inaccessible. It can also be expensive especially if you have to pay membership dues in order to even use the facility in a recreational manner. On the top of that, although there’s usually lifeguards watching over swimmers, it can still be dangerous.

But to circle back around to the point, those are the pros and cons of swimming in a pool. The only real benefit of swimming in a river or lake, are: It’s free, you have complete freedom to do what you want, you feel liberated, you’re surrounded by nature. But aside from these benefits given to us by Mother-Nature, swimming in a pool is still the better choice. For one, there are always things lurking around in the waters and that isn’t just limited to animals or sea creatures. Natural bodies of water are usually home to thousands of tiny organisms naked to the eye, but it’s also a good breeding ground for parasites and diseases as well.

The Better Choice: Swimming In A Pool

There’s a certain attraction to the imagination when someone thinks about swimming in a natural body of water like a lake or river. And yes, there are people that usually loves Mother Nature so much, that all they want to do is swim with nature. However, when you weigh the pros and cons of doing so, instead of swimming in a pool, generally, the risks outweigh the benefits. The real question is, to help anyone make an informed decision, is: “Why put yourself through the dangers of becoming sick or infected by parasites for something so second-handed like swimming?” Certainly, anyone that cares for their lives, will see that it’s simply not worth it. Swim in a pool instead and shelter yourself from any foreign diseases.

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Author Bio: - Angie Earley is a founder of PoolVacuumHQ.com blog; it’s a blog about Pool Cleaning tips, guide, reviews, news, equipment and events.

Back when Jogging was Weird

Back in the 1950s and earlier jogging was something only soldiers, athletes and weirdos did. Although to be fair, the whole idea of "exercising for the sake of exercising" (or fitness / health reasons) was considered weird back then too.

And to shine a light on this check out the video below I watched yesterday which chronicles the rise of jogging as an exercise activity. It shows how jogging was once considered an oddity.



And to be fair, the whole modern idea of exercising is really a 20th century invention. Prior to the last 117 years, people rarely exercised for the sake of exercising. Sure, people competed in athletic competitions, but the idea of training, practice and maintaining a constant level of exercise - even in the winter! - was considered to be a weird idea and unnecessary.

That was before the advent of professional sports and sportsmen earning an annual salary for being a professional athlete.

Before bodybuilding became a competitive sport.

Back when bicycles were called Penny Farthings, had no brakes and the only way to stop was to crash it. (And usually had mustaches they combed with beeswax.)

It would take decades for many sports to reach a pinnacle in which a person could become a professional in their chosen activity and make a decent living doing it.

Even now many Olympic athletes still have to beg money from their governments and work full time / part time jobs in order to support their athletic endeavours.

Jogging is just one of many activities that were once considered strange and unusual.

Take archery for example.

While it is generally accepted that a person must practice regularly to be good at archery, it was usually a pastime in recent centuries thanks to firearms and only a rare few people did bowhunting. During the last 100 years archery and bowhunting has seen a resurgence in popularity and people can now be:

• Olympic Archers
• Professional Bowhunters
• Archery Instructors

So it is now possible to make a living doing archery in a variety of ways. Even former Olympic athletes can presumably become coaches when they retire from competing.

Making a living by jogging, well that is the stuff of:

• Professional Marathon Runners
• Olympic Joggers (5 KM, 10 KM, etc)
• Personal Trainers who teach people how to jog, train for marathons, etc.

So a lot has changed. Jogging is just a prime example of how things have changed.

And much more is still waiting to be changed. I am still waiting to see a professional women's hockey league in Canada to get televised coverage on the CBC.

Women sports (and televising them) has a huge potential to grow in the 21st century. Not just in North America where professional athletes are more common, but globally.

Outfitting your Archery Man Cave

Disclaimer - There is no reason why women cannot have their own "Archery Cave" or whatever people want to call it. I am simply using the vernacular "Man Cave" in this situation as it represents the often male urge to create dingy dark cave in which a man can indulge in their interests.

man cave 

nounhumorous 

noun: man cave; plural noun: man caves

1. a room or other part of a home regarded as a refuge for the man or men of a household.
   

   Example - "a man cave equipped with a pool table and pinball machine"

   
   

   
   

Right - Bo Jackson in his Archery Man Cave.

Typically many a man cave is dark (hence why they are jokingly called caves) and not very clean - as men are sometimes prone to not cleaning up after themselves.

Bo Jackson on the right clearly believes in keeping his Archery Man Cave organized, with lots of hooks to store everything on.

So what should an Archery Man Cave have in it?

#1. A target to shoot at and space to shoot. Any good Archery Man Cave should at least have a small shooting area within it so you can take a few shots if you desire to test out a new product, creation or just shooting for fun.

Speaking for myself, my "Archery Man Cave" is in my garage, but as you can see in the photo on the right a basement with a fair bit of length can also be used.

#2. Lots of hooks for storing for archery items on, or a toolbox to store them all in.

Because if you are like me, you tend to collect arrowheads, nocks, fletching, fletching glue, fletching tape and all manner of archery related items.

#3. A rack or container for storing arrows in.

eg. I think a Bowman Dairy Milk Can would be great for storing arrows in. The trick is finding one, because those old milk cans are tricky to find and collector's items now.

#4. A magazine rack or shelf for archery magazines.

There is a fair number of archery publications available out there, including:

• Archery Focus Magazine
• Bowhunter Magazine
• Petersen's Bowhunting Magazine
• TradArchers' World Magazine
• Traditional Bowhunter Magazine
• Ontario Out of Doors Magazine

The last one I listed, OOD, is a local magazine here in Ontario which is also about fishing, hunting and other outdoor activities - not just bowhunting. I do not subscribe to it myself, but I do keep an eye out for issues with articles about archery because they do sometimes have articles worth reading. Plus I enjoy fishing, but that is a whole different topic.

#5. A bookshelf for archery books.

Plus related books on bowmaking, arrowmaking, and general woodworking books. You might even store DVDs on that shelf about various topics like bowmaking, bowfishing, bowhunting skills, or even your favourite archery movies like Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, etc.

#6. A collection of woodworking tools commonly used for bowmaking.

• Rasps
• Files
• Draw Knives
• Sand Paper
• Tillering Stick
• Work Bench
• Vise
• Etc

You might even have items like a Fletching Jig or an Arrow Dowel Maker (I started building an arrow dowel maker two years ago and it is on my To Do List to finish making it...) and similar useful tools.

Photo Courtesy of ArtemisArchery.ca

Take Gary for example, the owner of Basically Bows Archery in Toronto. His archery shop, commonly just known as "Gary's", is essentially both his Archery Man Cave and his archery shop. He has all his tools there for doing woodworking, he has decorated the place, and has lots of archery equipment all over the place, but roughly one third of his shop is dedicated just to his tools and woodworking area.

#7. Archery Posters, Paintings and Decorations.

No Archery Man Cave is complete until you've added some decorative touches.

Paintings, posters, photographs, sculptures, beadwork, drawings, decorative bows, antlers or taxidermy - if it is artwork or decorative, it has a home in your Archery Man Cave.

It doesn't even have to be archery themed artwork per se. It is your "Man Cave", you make the rules for what you want to have in it in terms of decor.

#8. A Bow Rack.

Clearly this is something any bow collector will need. Now admittedly some people only have 1, 2 or 3 bows, but for the collectors like myself (I currently have 30 bows) having a bow rack is a necessity.

Below is the bow rack I built in 2015 and is currently in my living room.

 But there are many different ways to design a bow rack. You should not feel limited by one design. Here are a few more sample designs to look at.

 #9. Something to sit on.

I always find it annoying when you go somewhere and they don't have any seating. Stools, comfy chairs, whatever you can find. A nice sofa.

It was one of the first things I suggested to Gary when he opened Basically Bows Archery - get stools to sit on. I was his second customer after he opened years ago and I am happy to say he took my advice about getting some stools, because when you visit his shop you really need to sit down and take your time there. (He should probably sell drinks too, as talking about archery for long periods can be thirsty business.)

#10. Entertainment and Relaxation.

This may be an archery themed man cave, but it is still a man cave - so having some form of entertainment is a good idea.

My recommendation? A big screen TV, a PS4 and a copy of The Elder Scrolls - Skyrim Special Edition. Because frankly that particular game is so good you can play it for years and never get bored of it. The Special Edition version uses updated graphics and is smoother / more detailed, and includes all the expansions.

A friend of mine a few months ago gifted me with a map of Skyrim, so obviously that is something that would be used as decoration for a wall in some future version of my Archery Man Cave. For now I keep the map folded up and near our PlayStation.

Assassins Creed III (the one about the American Revolutionary War) also has archery in it and might also be on your list of games worth playing.

#11. Archery Comic Books.

Not all of us are into Green Arrow, Hawkeye or various other superheroes found in Marvel/DC or other sources (Japanese Anime for example), but for those people who are it would probably make sense that they would want to store all of the archery themed comic books in their Archery Man Cave.

You know, because you are just obsessed with archery, and that is frankly okay. You are not alone.

You might store them on a shelf, in a display case, framed on the wall like artwork - or in the same rack you store your magazines in.

And because you might enjoy other kinds of comic books, you might as well store your Batman comic books / etc there too. And if anyone asks why your Batman comics are in there too, just mention The Dark Knight Rises and how in the very first scene with Bruce Wayne he is practicing archery in his own little Archery Man Cave in Wayne Manor... Except his Archery Man Cave is way more well decorated than anything we could have. So there you go, in a round about way you now have an excuse to include any items pertaining to Batman in your Archery Man Cave. Congrats!

Bruce Wayne, right after scaring Catwoman with an Arrow.

When it comes to making Man Caves, Batman clearly deserves some attention right?

#12. Some Non-Archery Things that you nevertheless Enjoy.

Personally, I would include a dart board and good steel tip darts. Something fun to do when bored. I guess a dart board technically counts as entertainment, but it is more of a "like archery, but obviously not archery" item to put in the man cave.

A person might also store their throwing knives, throwing axes, javelins, fishing equipment or other items in their man cave.

Personally my Man Cave would have a lot of woodworking items in it. After all, I consider Woodworking to be Exercise.

Keeping my collection of dumbbells and other exercise equipment in there would also be useful.

So clearly #12 here allows for a lot of personal taste in terms of personalizing your Man Cave to suit your needs.

I quite enjoyed writing this. Enjoy designing and decorating your own Man Cave!

Does Walking really count as Exercise?

I think it is silly to be even be talking about this, but apparently there are some people out who think walking doesn't really count as exercise - because walking is something you do every day anyway.

However as an avid walker - someone who comes back from long walks/hikes feeling exhausted, hungry and yet feeling like I accomplished something - I must defend walking not only as an exercise, but as a great way to build up an appetite.

Exercise does NOT have to involve:

• Sweating
• Grunting
• Gasping for breath

Some exercises do, obviously, but it is definitely not a requirement. Anyone who tells you that exercises have to make you feel out of breath clearly has some funny notions about what counts as exercise.

So while we are at it, lets bust some myths people might have about walking by laying down some facts about walking.

Fact #1. Brisk Walking is actually a Moderate-Intensity Aerobic Exercise

Walking at a brisk pace that raises your heart rate into the moderate-intensity zone is recommended for the benefits of so-called "real exercise" for the cardiovascular system and to reduce health risks.

However even a slower pace counts as a Light or Lower Intensity workout. More so if there is  hill climbing or stairs involved.

A brisk pace is one where you are breathing harder than normal - you can talk, but you can't sing. If you take your pulse, it should be between 50 percent and 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. Walk at least 10 minutes in this zone for it to count as a moderate-intensity exercise session. You should aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per day, five days per week, which can be broken up into sessions of at least 10 minutes at a time. For beginners try doing 20-minute brisk walks at a time and over time go further distances for longer periods to build up your endurance.

Fact #2. You can build Endurance using Long Distance Walks or Brisk Walking

Going for a longer distance walk (such as a 2 hour hike) will help build your endurance. You can do the same thing using brisk walking, but over a short distance. Brisk Walking for 30 minutes or more, five to seven times per week will build more muscle in your heart and lungs. Aim for a fast walk that brings your heart rate into the zone of 65-75 percent of your maximum heart rate.

If you prefer longer walks / hiking, aim to get your heart rate to reach the 40 to 60 zone.

Fact #3. You can use Walking as Exercise for Weight Loss

The truth about any exercise for weight loss is that it can help keep off extra pounds, but controlling what you eat will have the biggest effect. A healthy low-calorie diet combined with regular exercise - whether it is walking or something more intense - will help you to burn fat and consequently lose weight.

At least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity is great for weight management. But getting exercise only solves half the problem - you also need to watch your eating habits and reduce your calories.

You can't outrun or outwalk what goes into your mouth

Fact #4. There are Health Benefits to Low or Easy-Intensity Walking

Walking the dog or going for a stroll at an easy pace works your muscles and joints. This is especially beneficial if you are overweight, aged, or at risk for arthritis. Strolling at an easy pace reduces the loads on the knee joints by 25 percent while actually burning a few more calories per mile than walking faster - assuming you are going the same distance regardless.

What burns more calories? Walking 100 meters really slowly, or jogging 100 meters?

Walking at a speed of 4 km per hour (average walking speed is 5 kmph) a person can walk 100 meters in exactly 1.5 minutes. A 200 lb person walking 100 meters at this speed burns 6 calories.

Jogging at 10 kmph a person can jog 100 meters in exactly 36 seconds. The same 200 lb person jogging that distance at that speed burns 8 calories.

So going faster only burned 33% more calories, but did it in less than half the time.

Walking slow also doesn't have the cardiovascular benefits of brisk walking (which would have burned 7 calories in the above example), but it is a good starting point for adding activities to your daily schedule that burns more calories.

Fact #5. Low-Intensity Exercises that Break Up Sitting Time reduces Health Risks

Many studies are finding that sitting or simply standing still for more than 30 minutes at a time can raise your health risks, even if you do a full bout of exercise at some point in the day. Walking around for one to three minutes every half hour or hour has been shown to be needed to reduce these health risks.

Getting up and circling the office or house thus can lengthen your life span. One study found that these short, easy walking breaks improved glucose control and insulin response. An increasing number of fitness bands have inactivity alerts to remind you when it's time to get up and move.

And lastly, another study determined that taking breaks from periods of sitting also reduced your stress and improved your sense of well-being, which in turn has an effect on mental health and even boosts your chances at weight loss because depressed people are more likely to overeat.

Fact #6. 10,000 Steps Per Day is a Good Workout

If you are addicted to tracking your daily footsteps and make the effort to reach 10,000 steps per day, does that mean you are exercising? For most people, that number is an indicator you have engaged in exercise during the day, as it is difficult for most people to log more than 6,000 steps just in daily activity. You could log 10,000 steps at an easy pace during the day, and it obviously wouldn't qualify as moderate-intensity exercise, but it would still count as a low-intensity workout.

Many fitness trackers, such as Fitbit, analyze your steps and record those that are aerobic or exercise steps done at a pace they consider fast enough to quality. Thus if you want to ensure you are getting a "real workout" then look at that number as well as the step total.

Fact #7. Race Walking is an Olympic Sport

Walking is a physical activity regardless of what speed you enjoy doing it, from a slow stroll through a fast brisk that is practically jogging. eg. Like competitive walking, aka "Race Walking" - which oddly enough is also an Olympic Sport.



Conclusions

Yes, walking is exercise. Indeed, it is even a sport.

That said, you should balance walking with other physical activities that benefit various parts of your body. Strength training to build and maintain muscle. Cycling is very beneficial for walkers as it works the opposite leg muscles. It is good to engage in a wide variety of activities, so all of your muscle groups are challenged and strengthened. Keep walking and hiking and jogging, whatever it is you do - and remember, you are still exercising.