What's wrong with my shot?

[bloodhound]

and dont go and shoot 12 arrows as fast as you can down range one after the other. shoot 6 take your time between arrows  so your not wearing yourself out real fast. youll never find yourself in the woods trying to shoot 12 arrows one after the other at a animal so why would you practice that way. take your time, and practice holding your bow back for longer periods of time before you release.

[coachcw]

Now that you have shot a bunch of arrows , I would check the paper tune in case it settled in a bit . close your eyes while you draw to establish a consistant anchor . dont grip the bow , sight it in and your groups should be fine . then a week before the season have it checked again just to be sure everthing is looking good.

[buckfvr]

Make sure you keep your bow arm up ( follow through ) allowing total execution of the shot......low and left can be a sign of doing the peekaboo thing trying to see your shot.  I tell guys to try and see their shot through their peep...not possible, but helps keep the bow up after the shot. 

Was it set up by a pro shop ?  Center shot and nock point can give the same results.

[throttlejocky20]

Its all ready been said before but dont shoot too much too fast. Its hard to stay syeady if your tired. One thing I always do is rip a regular playing card in half and shoot at that. I use this out to 60 yards then switch to a full card. Aim small miss small! 

[Matt]

Well if you are aiming at the X then you aren't doing too bad.  Remember that when you move your sight that you follow the arrow.  So according to your target move it left and down.  Once you get your 20 down then it's time to move back and check out your center shot.

[Matt]

Here is a great guide to tuning and shooting.

[WAcoyotehunter]

2.5 hours is a LONG time to be shooting.  I would not recommend making any sight changes after a dozen or so arrows...as you wear out your form will change and your groups will change. 

Go shoot a few fresh groups with time in between and see how they look.  If they're consistantly patterning one way- make the change. 

Remember- your first shot is always the most important.

[JLS]

Make sure you keep your bow arm up ( follow through ) allowing total execution of the shot......low and left can be a sign of doing the peekaboo thing trying to see your shot.  I tell guys to try and see their shot through their peep...not possible, but helps keep the bow up after the shot. 

Was it set up by a pro shop ?  Center shot and nock point can give the same results.

Your follow through would be the first thing I would check, especially after shooting for that long.  Honestly a 2.5 hour practice period is probably going to do more to develop bad habits than good.  You'd be much better served by shooting 10 arrows a day, focusing on making each individual shot sequence absolutely perfect.  Concentrate on grip, anchor, breathing, surprise release, and follow through.

I don't shoot year round (although I should), and I usually find my first few days my groups may be off slightly.  As my form settles back in the groups will come to zero.  If not, then I move my sights.

If this is a new bow, your string is still settling in (stretching) so don't worry about tuning for about 2-300 shots.

[WSU]

I found that it helped to shoot fewer shots per session when I was just starting.  Your muscles aren't used to shooting a bow.  In my experience, I developed form problems from shooting once I was very tired.  After you get your muscles in shape you can shoot all day, but it might be worth easing into it.

[Matt]

Like some have said if you are tired your form can suffer and develope bad habist.  But continuous shooting is the only way to build stamina.  If you are getting tired and maybe frustrated that you aren't hitting the X then take the target down and keep shooting a blank bale focusing on your form.  By all means if you want to keep shooting then keep shooting.  When I am getting ready for a tournament I will shoot for 4 hours a session if I can.  And like I said if my arrows aren't punding the X like I want then I work on form and stamina.

Remember that in practice quality over quantity is the key.  That means don't get up there and just fling a dozen arrows as fast as you can at the target.  It takes your muscles at least 30 seconds to recover from each shot.  That being said take some time between each shot and analyse it but don't over think it.  Take a breath then shoot the next arrow.  Somewhere between 60-80 arrows an hour is a good pace for quality practice.