Foam rolling before shooting improves score

The summary today

There is a single study, and its design does not allow an answer. Twelve male archers aged 18-20, with two years of practice, shot under three conditions: without foam rolling, after thirty seconds and after sixty seconds of rolling. The score goes from 79 to 134.5 with thirty seconds and to 117 with sixty, and visual reaction time also improves, from 347 to 271 milliseconds, as do auditory reaction time and one-leg balance, which grows by twelve or thirteen seconds. The three conditions, though, took place on three different days, always in the same order, and the trial without the roller always came first, so it was the least familiar and the only one with no warm-up of any kind. A 70 per cent gain in score, appearing together across four different measures, looks more like the effect of warming up and getting used to the test than that of the roller, and the study has no way of telling them apart: that is why it does not count as evidence in favour.

Also phrased as: "foam roller before shooting"; "self-massage before shooting"; "foam rolling in the warm-up"; "myofascial release before competition"

Evidence

• 2023
  Context Archers Published later

  12 male archers aged 18-20 with two years of practice, three repeated-measures conditions on three different days, 48 hours apart and always in the same order: shooting score 79.2 without foam rolling, 134.5 after 30 seconds of rolling and 117 after 60 seconds (F=76.722, p below 0.001). The control always came first and was the only trial with no warm-up of any kind, and the paper does not say how many arrows were shot or at what distance: the design cannot separate the roller from warming up and getting used to the test, so the study cannot count in favour and stays as context.

  The Effect of Different Myofacial Release Exercise Times Using Foam Roller in Archers on Reaction Balance and Arrow Shooting Performance · Münir Ünlü, Zarife Pancar, Burak Karaca

• 2023
  Context Archers Published later

  In the same study, 30 seconds of rolling give more points than 60 (134.5 against 117, a significant difference in the post hoc comparison): it is the only measure on which duration matters.

  The Effect of Different Myofacial Release Exercise Times Using Foam Roller in Archers on Reaction Balance and Arrow Shooting Performance · Münir Ünlü, Zarife Pancar, Burak Karaca

• 2023
  Context Archers Published later

  Visual reaction time 347 milliseconds without the roller, 271 after 30 seconds and 285 after 60 (F=24.875); auditory 397, 277 and 289 milliseconds (F=22.432); both p below 0.001. Between the two durations the difference is not significant.

  The Effect of Different Myofacial Release Exercise Times Using Foam Roller in Archers on Reaction Balance and Arrow Shooting Performance · Münir Ünlü, Zarife Pancar, Burak Karaca

• 2023
  Context Archers Published later

  One-leg balance (stork test): right leg 30.0 seconds without the roller, 42.8 after 30 seconds and 43.2 after 60 (F=30.579); left 28.3, 41.3 and 41.3 seconds (F=26.510); p below 0.001. The standard deviation shrinks to as little as a third, so the archers also become more alike.

  The Effect of Different Myofacial Release Exercise Times Using Foam Roller in Archers on Reaction Balance and Arrow Shooting Performance · Münir Ünlü, Zarife Pancar, Burak Karaca

Status history

1. 1990 Not studied In the registry's bibliography no study on archers had tried foam rolling before shooting, or measured the score after a session on the roller.
2. 2023 Not studied A single study arrives, twelve male archers aged 18-20 measured under three conditions: after foam rolling the score goes from 79 to 134.5 with thirty seconds and to 117 with sixty, and visual reaction time also improves (from 347 to 271 milliseconds), as do auditory reaction time and one-leg balance. The conditions, though, took place on three different days in a fixed order, with the control always first and with no warm-up at all, so the whole effect may be warming up and familiarity with the test. As designed, the study cannot say whether the roller helps: on this question there is still no usable data.

Related

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• Warming up before shooting: what static stretching, dynamic stretching and foam rolling changeStatic stretching, dynamic stretching or foam rolling before you shoot: what studies on archers measured, how much it moves the score and where the data stop.

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• 39 studiesPhysical training interventions: what has been tested

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