Blind bail training

Blind bail is just another way of developing muscle memory or rebuilding the neural pathways in the brain, a lot of what you do in archery is by feel (muscle memory). After some experience as an archer you can feel a poor shot and know it wont hit the mark before it gets there this is muscle memory at work, this same process can be harnessed to build or rebuild your shot cycle.

With your eyes closed one of your senses is not available to you so your sense of feel will become more acute and easier to concentrate on

Method

Using a large target bail that can be shot at around shoulder height with out missing the bail, stand around 5 to 10 feet from the bail, setup for the shot as normal to shoot at the centre of the bail.

Go through the entire shot cycle with your eyes closed, if your Targeted training program has you working on a part of your shot cycle like breathing. Otherwise if working on your anchor through to release and follow through, just shut your eyes at the anchor and keep them shut as you practice the point you are working on remember you are only working on one point at a time this is Targeted Training.

With your eyes closed take notice of how your body feels as you work through the shot, feel the muscles contracting and expanding take notice of the feel of the shot as this is how you will program changes into your mind (muscle memory).

Remember muscle memory is programmed through repartition so be prepared to work at  any change in your shot cycle.

Start each practice session with stretching and warming up exercises and if possible blind bail to reinforce the point you are working on in your Targeted training program.