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Spending quality time together as a family is something that does not happen as often as it should. Things like work demands, homework, errands, and chores always seem to get in the way. Even when everyone is together, the distractions of life can make it hard to stay engaged and connected.
Finding a common interest or activity as a family can be more beneficial to creating strong bonds than merely setting aside time to spend together. With everyone involved, it creates opportunities for family discussion, actively engages each family member, and creates a unified “team” feeling.
Archery is an ideal family sport that your little ones, teenagers, adult children, and spouses can all enjoy. When you decide to take up archery as a family, you get that much-needed quality time together with the added benefits of sharpened skills, outdoor exercise, and pure fun.
Discover the many benefits of family archery and how to get your crew involved below.
Why Archery is the Perfect Family Sport
Of all the sports to choose from, archery is the perfect family-friendly option for you and your kids. Here’s why everyone will love it.
Stay Safe
Sports like football, soccer, and basketball can lead to painful injuries and unintended accidents. According to the National Safety Council, archery is three times safer than golf, making it one of the safest sports. With just one injury occurring for every 2,000 archers, you can feel confident that even your littlest ones will be safe and secure.
Enjoy It Year-Round for Life
Another great thing about this family sport is that you can enjoy it at any age and at any time of the year! Unlike seasonal games, you can enjoy archery indoors and outdoors, making it flexible enough for all seasons. Do you have young ones? Kids as young as 4-5 can enjoy archery safely, so everyone’s included!
Gain the Benefits of Exercise
Exercise of any form is beneficial to the body, mind, and spirit – and staying active as a family allows you to support one another’s health. Archery is an excellent low-impact activity that strengthens the chest, shoulders, core, arms, and hands. Without requiring any running, jumping, or physical contact, it still engages the body in a healthy way.
Sharpen Skills Outside of Archery
Do you want your teenager to improve their concentration in school? Could your 10-year-old benefit from the value of self-discipline? Perhaps you could use a refresher in the goal-setting or sportsmanship categories. There are all kinds of skills to be gained from archery that can be applied in everyday life, whether that’s school, extracurriculars, or the office.
Set Your Schedule
Family schedules often conflict, and having one additional weekly practice or game time to add to the list can make matters even more complicated. The beauty of archery is that it can be practiced and enjoyed any time, anywhere. You can set your schedule and pick days and times that work for everyone. If something comes up at work or school, it’s easy to reschedule without the pressure of letting a team down.
Getting Started as a Family
Are you ready to get your newest family sport started? Here’s how to get everyone involved from the beginning.
Start Simple and with Big Targets
When you’re new to the archery world, it’s essential to start slowly so everyone in the family can grasp the concepts and feel confident in their abilities. Get your young ones started with a simple youth compound bow or archery set to familiarize them with the equipment and start practicing. Get them comfortable on their home turf first by setting up big, easy targets in the backyard for shooting practice. Once they’ve mastered that, consider progressing toward an archery workshop or lessons.
Teach the Fundamentals
To be a successful archer, start by learning the fundamentals as a group. Find a comfortable stance, get a good (but loose) grip, identify your anchor point, and stress a smooth release. If you don’t feel comfortable enough to teach these principles of junior archery to your kids, there are plenty of options to help your kids out. For example, The Boy Scouts of America offer archery training and even opportunities to earn archery badges and awards.
Practice Makes Perfect
As with any sport, practice is the key to success and confidence. Find a weekly time for the whole family to practice and try to stick to it. Support one another through the bad shots and celebrate the good ones – you’ll only get better with time. You may even be able to pick up tips and tricks from each other as you each hone your archery skills.
Archery Fun for Everyone
While most sports can’t claim the label, archery is truly a family sport that can be enjoyed by elementary-aged kids up to seniors. With no background or training, you all can master the art of archery as a team slowly but surely.
Bring up the idea of trying out archery together during your next family dinner and get back to that quality family time you’ve all missed.
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