Squats - A Good Foundation for Any Exercise Routine

If you think of working out like building a house, then squats would be like pouring the foundation.

Squats are an essential move to help strengthen your lower body, and they help fortify the base for all the rest of your movements. Squats are a crucial move not only because they work so many different muscles, but also because the muscles they build work to balance your body when you are doing other exercises, thus benefiting your exercise routine for the rest of your body.

Thus if you are going running, why not do 20 squats first?

If you are starting a weight lifting workout, why not do 20 squats first?

Yoga? 20 squats first.

Some people swear by stretching before a workout, some people are against stretching because the stretching can sometimes cause sports injuries because people overdo the stretching. But 20 squats is not a huge number and they will certainly help to build the muscle groups that you will be using often.

They also cost zero equipment. So squats rank high on the frugal exercises.

There are also many kinds of squats. You are not limited to one kind. Just pick your favourite and add it to the start of your workout.


Example: Barbell Squats

GIFT VOUCHER, Extension of Expiry Date due to COVID

1. Gift Voucher Expiry Extension

Anyone who has an older Gift Voucher for Archery Lessons from Cardio Trek which was set to expiry during 2020 can still redeem their Gift Voucher in 2021.

I am extending all such older gift vouchers which would be expiring at any time during 2020 so that they now expiry in December 2021. (I may amend this later if the Covid Crisis + Lockdown lasts into 2021, although I doubt that will happen. I am currently expecting to be teaching archery lessons as soon as September 2020.)

2. New Expiry Policy

Where previously Gift Vouchers had an expiry of 18 months, giving recipients a sum of 1.5 years to redeem the gift voucher before it expires, starting immediately new Gift Vouchers will now have a 30 month (2.5 years) period before they expire. That should cover the duration of the COVID Lockdown and then some extra.

Notes

If anyone has any questions about Archery Lesson Gift Vouchers feel free to ask by emailing cardiotrek@gmail.com.

If you are really anxious to begin learning archery NOW I can recommend the following:

• "Precision Archery", an impressively good book by Steve Ruis and Claudia Stevenson.
• "Archery Focus Magazine", edited by Steve Ruis (with articles by myself and other archers).

International Archery Day, Second Saturday in May

Saturday, May 2nd 2020.

Today is the first Saturday in May. Next week, the Saturday, will be International Archery Day.

International Archery Day (also known as "National Archery Day" in the USA) is observed annually on the second Saturday in May. The date was chosen because it is usually fairly good weather and it doesn't interfere with any popular holidays or events (eg. Mother's Day).

One of the oldest sports still in existence, archery has been around for tens of thousands of years, with some of the oldest bows ever found dating back to 8,000 to 9,000 BC. The oldest bow thus far found is an elm Holmegaard bow dated to 9,000 BC and was found in Denmark.

Cave drawings, other artifacts and similar stone age depictions are dated much further back, suggesting that archery is significantly older. At least 65,000 years old.

When celebrating International Archery Day it is traditional to invite a friend to try archery out for the first time. So get out there, invite a friend to try archery (or learn archery yourself) and enjoy one of the oldest sports known to mankind.

International Archery Day falls on the following dates in upcoming years:

• May 9, 2020
• May 8, 2021
• May 14, 2022
• May 13, 2023
• May 11, 2024
• May 10, 2025
• May 9, 2026
• May 8, 2027
• May 13, 2028
• May 12, 2029

 Happy Shooting!

How to Practice Archery while Social Distancing

#1. Practice archery in your basement.

#2. Practice archery in your attic or garage.

#3. Practice archery in your home.

While it is not generally recommended, some people have been known to set up a mini archery range in their living room, a hallway, or other location. You will need to make an effort to avoid damaging the floors, walls, furniture, etc.

#4. Practice archery in your backyard.

You will need to make efforts to make the space you are using SAFE as you don't want neighbours getting injured or complaining about the lack of safety precautions. If they call the police then the cops will want to check to see what efforts you have made in order to ensure safety.

If you have lots of spare time currently to build things you could even convert your backyard into an archery dojo.

#5. Build an archery range in the countryside.

Find a place in the countryside which you can periodically visit and practice your archery skills. Helps if you already own land in the countryside.

If you have friends or family who live in the countryside then you could ask them if you could build a small 3D archery range / walking trail on their property. No social interactions necessary beyond phone calls and emails. You could give even gift them with alcohol/chocolate/etc to show your appreciation.

If you don't have friends or family who own land in the countryside you could potentially rent a wooded area on a section of farmland. All you need to do is find a farmer who has wooded areas of their property that are unused and is willing to rent that property to you for a small monthly fee.

Then you build some homemade archery targets and set them up on a walking trail within the wooded area.

I don't recommend going out and purchasing a big 3D target because there is certainly the chance it could get stolen.

Lesson Plan for Compound Archery

The lesson plan for Compound Archery differs dramatically compared to that of traditional recurve, Olympic recurve and other archery styles. This is because Compound Bows are so fundamentally different in their structure and design that it necessitates teaching it in a different way.

There are some things which are similar or the same when compared to the other lessons, but much of what a compound shooter learns will be focused on issues and aspects that are unique to compound bows. 

Lesson One

• Safety Lecture
• Eye Dominance Test, Optional (Honestly, this should have been done in the store before you purchased your bow. It would be an issue if the store failed to do this and sold you the wrong bow.)
• Lecture on Proper Form
• Tuning the Sights at 20 Yards

Lesson Two

• Fine Tuning Sights at 20 Yards
• Stabilizers and Form
  
• Arrowhead Lecture
• Tuning Sights at 30 Yards

Lesson Three

• Warm Up at 20 Yards
• Fine Tuning Sights at 30 Yards
• Arrow Spine Lecture
  
• Tuning Sights at 50 Yards
  

Lesson Four

• Warm Up at 20 Yards
• Variant Distances / Field Archery (Useful skill for hunting as the prey is rarely exactly at 20 yards.)
  

Lesson Five & Beyond

Varies upon the needs of the archer. Might include topics like shooting at moving targets, shooting long distances, shooting while sitting or kneeling, etc.

Sometimes archery lessons may include other topics like equipment maintenance, installing new equipment, answering the student's questions, issues related to bowhunting, etc.

Lessons can vary from student to student and are often modified to meet the needs of students.

The Bear Cruzer Vs the Diamond Infinite Edge, Two Excellent Beginner Compounds

What Should You Buy If You're New To Compounds???

Let's say you're new to archery (or new to compound shooting) and you don't know what you should buy.

The answer is that you want to buy a good beginner compound, something that is:

• Reasonably priced.
• Good value for money.
• Offers you a range of draw weights / draw distances.
• Easy to change the weight/draw settings without a bow press.

The answer is that there are two compound bows on the market which fulfill these requirements:

• The Bear Cruzer (and variants of it)
• The Diamond Infinite Edge (and variants of it)

Both of these bows from competing manufacturers offer everything a beginner compound shooter is looking for, and if they take good care of it then it will serve them well. There is only one downside, each of these bows top out at approx. 310 fps for arrow speed. Which is still plenty fast, but you're not going to breaking any speed records compared to more expensive compounds offering fps speeds of 330 to 380.

In contrast most traditional recurves top out at about 200 fps, and people still hunt with them. So having a fast compound is not a necessity.

It is more important that you learn how to shoot properly and accurately, and buying the wrong bow which doesn't suit the user would be a step in the wrong direction.

Got an archery question about compound bows? Just ask! Email cardiotrek@gmail.com.

See Also

• Archery Lesson Plan + How many lessons should you get?
• Lesson Plan for Horseback Archery
• Lesson Plan for Olympic Archery