The X Factor
By: Steve Flores

Close your eyes and imagine this. As you wipe the sweat from your forehead, you struggle to find your trophy as it moves through the heavy cover just up the hill. You raise your bino’s to get a better look. Unfortunately, you cannot find him. Your hands are uneasy with fatigue. Concentration has shifted from your prey, to the pain in your sternum. You desperately want to press on, but your body has something else in mind. Your lungs are on fire now, combusting with every breath. The boots on your feet are reminiscent of concrete, not leather. As you wrestle to regain your composure, you notice that the bow you are hauling feel’s more like a train rail; instead of a feathery death stick.

Your quarry is moving again. Unbelievably, he is naive to your presence. You scan ahead and locate the perfect ambush position. If you can reach it in time, your trophy will be within easy grasp. If only you can reach it. Sadly though, all you can do is drop to your knees and watch through your salt filled eyes as your treasure simply walks away. Every fiber in your body screams “Go After Him!”, but you can’t. You are physically whipped. Your hunt is finished.

This could very well have been the hunt of your lifetime. You might have spent the past year collecting pop cans from the side of the road, or maybe eating bologna sandwiches everyday, only to save up enough loose change to compensate the outfitter. On the other hand, this hunt could have taken place just outside your back door, with no monetary consequence whatsoever.

Either way, your physical condition, not your equipment, was more than likely the deciding factor in whether or not you tagged your trophy--cash or no cash. I agree, sometimes it might be the outfitter, maybe your gear, or just simply bad luck that stands between you and that one chance. But how often does the hunter become the X factor when shot opportunities, or a “successful” hunt are in question?

I take into account that a person can be a successful hunter given any number of physical circumstances. I know several folks who fill their tag every year, while at the same time remaining “physically” out of shape. However, I like to contemplate the possibilities and the individual potential to raise the bar as a hunter, even if just slightly. I imagine sometimes we forget about the most important piece of equipment we bring into the woods--ourselves.

I do not claim to be, or show any resemblance to, a world class athlete. Nevertheless, something happened to me years ago that changed the way I look at being prepared for a hunt. If you are like me, you may find it easy, and relatively fun, preparing for any type of hunting adventure. Time spent perfecting shooting skills, hanging stands, and gathering essential gear, is a significant part of the process that a number of us dearly love.

But what about the hunter? How physically prepared are we? At this point you may be thinking my real name is Tony Little. “You can do it!” I mean really, who wants to get on a treadmill or hit the weight room unless we are professional athletes or our lives depended on it?

I believe our lives do depend on it, but that is a different subject for a different time. Maybe you are asking yourself “Can being in shape really make me a more efficient bow hunter, or hunter period, for that matter”? I believe the answer is yes. This is why.

Months before our wedding, my wife and I decided it would be nice to show up in the best shape of our lives. We devoted ourselves to regular cardio and weight training sessions, along with a strict diet regimen. After a few short months, I began to witness a profound difference in myself, not to mention my wife looked pretty great too. I felt as if I was in high school again. Going through my day to day activities feeling like a spring chicken was terrific, but when hunting season rolled around, I realized I was on a different plane than season’s past.

This may sound crazy, but by the time opening day had arrived, I had actually gotten used to those cardio sessions. I was addicted to them. I was in a state of euphoria every time I stepped off the treadmill or put down the weights. The chemical reactions happening in my body after those workouts were like a drug to me. I couldn’t stop, even though hunting season had begun.

To fix my dilemma, I set the alarm a little earlier than normal to get in a quick 20 min cardio sessions before heading to the timber. I know I sound like a mad man, but tolerate my insanity for just a bit.

After completing my run, I would shower and head for the woods. It was during my trips to the stand that I first noticed a significant difference. My cardio for that day was more than likely going to be the toughest challenge that I faced, physically. Any climb up an extreme WV mountain would only pale in comparison. I found that I could go further, faster; while expending less energy to get there. Another eye-opener was that upon reaching my stand, I wasn’t dog-tired, nor was I dripping with game spooking sweat. Consequently, I was full of vigor.

Normally, after settling into my stand I would doze off to sleep, or just sit there slumped over, trying to recover from the long haul up the wooded skyscraper I had just traversed. Most times however, after a brief interval, I would begin to tremble with cold from the buckets of perspiration still resting on my body.

On this occasion though, I sat energized. With little sweat on my brow, I anxiously awaiting the sun to come up and start the morning hunt. My body felt alive. And as ridiculous as this may sound, my mind felt even further alive. It was running on all cylinders. I was utterly in tune with myself, and more importantly, my surroundings.

An additional transformation occurred when I was close to game, preparing for the shot. Even though my heart was pounding from the effects of adrenaline, it seemed to be more controlled; and my breathing was somewhat further relaxed. I don’t know how to explain it, although I do have my own assumptions. At any rate, I liked this alteration that was occurring within me.

The rush that I experience during close encounters with game is something that I have no desire to free myself of. On the other hand, I would like to control it to some degree, if at all feasible. Cardiovascular training seems to prepare my body for the tremendous shot of “crazy juice” I acquire when a buck wanders near my stand. It doesn’t eliminate it, and I would not want it to. It just seems to manage it somewhat, which gives me a slight edge. When it comes to bow hunting, I will take a minor advantage over no advantage, any day of the week.

So how significant is weight training in all of this? The answer comes by way of improved muscle strength, and enhanced muscle control. Shooting a bow, unlike shooting a rifle, requires many muscles to work in harmony; while at the same time, resisting the tension from the draw weight. These same muscles must also perform under a variety of unpredictable circumstances.

Cold, stiff muscles may be summoned to carry out the shot after sitting dormant for hours in a chilly November tree stand. Sometimes, those exact muscles are also required to hold the draw weight much longer than anticipated. I realize with today’s high let-off bows, and buttery smooth cam systems, this isn’t much of a challenge; especially during those warm summer days on the 3-D course or practicing in the back yard.

In my experience though, cold frigid temperatures mixed with motionless hours on stand, tossed together with the inescapable adrenaline surge; have a way of making seconds feel more like minutes and pounds feel more like tons. During the moment of truth, weak and lethargic muscles may begin to shake from exhaustion, or perhaps a dose of buck fever. A steady aim may be compromised. I stand a better chance of controlling the former rather than the latter, so that is where I focus my efforts.

As a result of “hitting the weights”, I have noticed a profound change in my ability to hold the pin steady under field conditions. I go along with the notion that weight training is not necessary to maintain a steady aim. It’s not even a prerequisite for becoming a successful bow hunter. On the other hand, I do take into account that the ability to comfortably raise my maximum draw weight, while still maintaining a steady hold during “the moment“, is a valuable asset to have. Weight training seems to augment my ability to achieve this.

I understand that this isn’t earth shattering news by any measure. Nonetheless, for myself, it has become one thing...motivation. It is a cause for subjecting myself to such strenuous behavior. Crazily busting my lungs and tearing down muscle fibers preparing for that one moment, makes perfect sense to me.

Conversely, I have learned that my labors, no matter how great or small, will not cause me to be “less efficient” as a bow hunter. I will only become better. To what degree I develop my physical ability is totally up to me to decide. No matter the effort, I come out ahead in this contest with myself.

Bow hunting, to me, has many complexities. In my opinion, there is no black and white; only a multitude of things to consider each time I come to anchor. Consequently, that is what makes this sport so intriguing to me. I can’t get enough of it. Personally, I will seize any advantage I can get my hands on that might assist me in becoming an improved bow hunter. Weight training, along with a steady dose of cardiovascular conditioning, raises my own bar. I feel more capable as a bow hunter having done it.

Consider this scenario. What if you could comfortably draw an additional 5 lbs of draw weight, or even 10? How would that change certain circumstances for you in the field? Increased kinetic energy, faster arrow speeds, and a decrease in the ever so critical “range estimation”, are altogether obvious rewards in my mind. And who would argue that those are not real world benefits when it comes time to launch a carbon missile downrange. Again, I seek the upper hand in this marvelous sport, no matter where it may lie.

Let us assume, as a result of better physical conditioning, you could hold back your current set up for an additional 10-20 seconds before fatigue set in. What consequence would that have on “timing the draw” for that once in a lifetime shot? Possessing the ability to draw a little early can only help your cause. I wonder how many trophies are still roaming the timber because someone had to “let down” before the shot materialized. It has surely happened to me. In certain instances, I would have killed for an additional 5 seconds of “hold time“. If only my muscles would have shared my same desire.

In spite of all of this, I do not wear a big S under my favorite camo jacket. I only attempt to be the best that I can be. As ethical hunters, shouldn’t we all? You should know that this is not an attempt to persuade you to do things my way. This is what works for me.

Do it your own way. Use the method that best suits you and meets your personal goals as a hunter. Then, put as much effort into it as you are humanly capable of. You never know what might be revealed when the sweat starts dripping and the muscle fibers commence to tearing.

Close your eyes, and envision the day when you can doggedly pursue your trophy with little or no regard to the terrain that stands between you and him. And in that moment, when you haul back your bow string, you can’t help but smirk with confidence because you know that you are ready. Can you imagine that? I certainly can. Because someday, my physical condition might possibly be the X-factor that determines whether or not that trophy hits the dirt. Be it in my own back yard, or hundreds of miles away--cash or no cash.

 

Authors note: If you decide that it’s your time to get into better shape, please see your family Doctor beforehand.