The bow shoulder works better in neutral rotation with the forearm supinated

The summary today

The claim still rests on a Japanese study from 1976. With X-rays at full draw, in the four experienced archers the radius and ulna stayed parallel, that is with the forearm supinated and the shoulder in neutral rotation, while in the six complete beginners the two bones appeared crossed and the shoulder rotated outwards; in the same work the shoulder produced about a fifth more abduction force in neutral rotation, on some of the subjects, without saying how many and without statistics. Half a century later, eighteen Bulgarian archers give weak confirmation: according to the author, when the bow shoulder rotates outwards at the release the arrows move away from the centre, but no test backs this up. In between there is a measurement on fifteen Polish national squad archers with the shoulder in strong external rotation during the shot, which however does not say which shoulder it measures, has no statistics and appears in a journal with questionable editorial standards. It is an indication with a mechanical logic, not a well-measured result.

Also phrased as: "rotating the bow elbow"; "bow elbow vertical"; "pushing through the bones"; "supinated forearm"; "bow shoulder rotation"

Evidence

• 1976
  For Archers Published later

  4 experienced university archers against 6 complete beginners, X-rays at full draw: in the experienced archers the radius and ulna are parallel, that is forearm supinated and shoulder in neutral rotation, in the beginners crossed. In some subjects, number not stated, the shoulder's abduction force is about 20 per cent higher in neutral rotation than in external rotation. Descriptive only, no statistics.

  A STUDY OF THE PROCESS OF IMPROVEMENT IN ARCHERY · Koichiro Hayashi, Kenichi Tabuchi, Takeshi Yabuki, Kiichi Sekine, Shintaro Tachibana, Kozo Nakamura

• 2021
  Context Archers Published later

  15 Polish national squad archers against 15 complete beginners, motion analysis: in the archers the shoulder goes from about 45 degrees of internal rotation to about 100 of external rotation during the shot and drops to 90 as the bow is lowered; those who had never shot produce an adduction moment at the shoulder about twice as large (0.051 against 0.027 Nm/kg). It does not say which shoulder it measures, and the flexion turning into extension suggests the drawing arm; no statistical test, a journal with questionable editorial standards.

  Torque Power and Angle Movement of the Shoulder Joint in Archery Questionable venue · Andrzej Kępczyński, Michalina Błażkiewicz

• 2025
  For Archers Published later

  18 high-level Bulgarian archers, 6 arrows at 18 m with inertial sensors: a mean score between 7.5 and 8.5 on each of the six arrows and, across the whole group, between 0 and 2 arrows off the target on each; according to the author, external rotation of the left shoulder at the shot pushes the arrows away from the centre. No correlation is reported although the abstract announces one, in a regional journal.

  Study on the stability and positioning of the shoulders on the points and accuracy in archery · Iv. Ivanov

Status history

1. 1976 Reported A Japanese group compares four university archers with more than three years of practice and six young men who had never shot. The X-rays at full draw show the radius and ulna parallel in the experienced archers, that is the forearm supinated and the shoulder in neutral rotation, and the two bones crossed in the beginners with the shoulder rotated outwards. In the same work the shoulder's abduction force is about a fifth higher in neutral rotation than in external rotation, but on some of the subjects, without saying how many and without statistics. One descriptive study, on ten people: reported.
2. 2021 Reported Fifteen Polish national squad archers, compared with fifteen people who had never held a bow, give the first dynamic picture of the shoulder during the shot: as the bow is raised and drawn the shoulder goes from about 45 degrees of internal rotation to about 100 of external rotation, stays there during the shot and comes back only partly when the bow is lowered. If it were the bow shoulder it would point the opposite way to the claim, but the study does not say which shoulder it measures, and the flexion that turns into extension suggests the drawing arm instead. It reports no statistical test and appears in a journal with questionable editorial standards, which does not decide a status: reported, as before.
3. 2025 Reported Eighteen high-level Bulgarian archers, six arrows at 18 metres with inertial sensors on the shoulders: according to the author, when the bow shoulder rotates outwards at the moment of release the arrows move away from the centre, while those who keep it still through to the shot land closer. External rotation of the left shoulder is also the most variable parameter of all, with standard deviations of up to 53 degrees. It is the first modern measurement in the direction of the claim, but it is an observation with no statistical test, in a regional journal, and it speaks of steadiness of rotation more than of neutral rotation: the status stays reported.

Related

Related articles

• The bow shoulder: how it rotates, why it rises and how hard it worksHow to hold the bow shoulder at full draw, why it tends to rise, and what X-rays, electromyography and position-sense tests have measured in archers.

Research lines

• 54 studiesMovement variability and individual technique since 1971
• 63 studiesThe archer's physical profile: strength, endurance and size

Other claims in this domain

• CorroboratedBetween one and a half and two tenths of a second pass between the clicker sounding and the arrow leaving7 studies · 94 archers measuredStatus since 1990
• ReportedA camera diagonally behind the archer measures the vertical sway of the aim well, but not the horizontal1 study · 3 archers measuredStatus since 2010
• ReportedA continuous final pull through the clicker leads to better shots9 studies · 56 archers measuredStatus since 1993
• ReportedA sound or light cue about the angle of the bow arm tightens beginners' groups2 studies · 1 archers measuredStatus since 2012
• ReportedA thumb grip on the string is less tiring than a finger grip3 studies · 9 archers measuredStatus since 1990

See all claims on technique and biomechanics