Exercises To Improve Performance

[Quarry Man]

If we want to fish tournaments to the best of our ability, we spend hours organizing tackle, respooling reels, cleaning reels, planning etc. Does anyone workout specifically to improve their fishing?

 

I am a Physical Therapy student, so exercise mechanics and physiology are right up my alley. I practice the perfect casting technique to the best of my ability.

 

Here are my thoughts: the better shape you are in, the better you can fish. Faster reaction time = faster hooks = more fish in the well.

 

 

my thoughts are along the lines of endurance and short burst exercises focusing around the forearms, back upper legs hips and core.

 

Food for thought, a good excuse to work out during quarantine.

[NHBull]

Being fit is a huge advantage, but as I have aged flexibility and core strength tops the list.  There are a lot of repetitive movement aches these days.....wrist, shoulders, low back, knees.....heck, everything hurts, never mind?

[Quarry Man]

28 minutes ago, NHBull said:

Being fit is a huge advantage, but as I have aged flexibility and core strength tops the list.  There are a lot of repetitive movement aches these days.....wrist, shoulders, low back, knees.....heck, everything hurts, never mind?

coming off a torn ACL, MCL, and LCL (big oof), and a history of back issues as old as I am, I think its gonna be important to keep up with all this stuff as I get older. Fishing all day, stuff starts to ache no matter how old you are.

[Beeno]

I’m sure being in great shape will help anyone’s fishing game however Gregg Hackney doesn’t look in the best shape to me and he can sure catch em.

[WRB]

Putting injury or illness aside back pain is a direct result of a weak core, can't effectively fish with back pain. Core conditioning should be part of a daily stretching exercise.

Running a bass boat trolling motor standing on the front platform requires good leg strength and balance. Leg strength can be maintained by running or walking a few miles every other day. Rowing machine works nearly everything a bass angler needs for conditioning. Balance require excercise practice to improve muscle memory.

Hand eye coordination and reflex reaction isn't something you can improve beyond your genetic make up. You can improve muscle memory with practice and develop casting skills to benefit your fishing.

Tom

[jbsoonerfan]

I think me and Jacob Powroznik are on the same workout routine.

[Sam]

Quarry, I would love to agree with you that not being physically fit to bass fish can hold you back, but in my bass club we have a guy who must tip the scales over 300 pounds and he will wax everyone's fanny every tournament. He is a fantastic bass fiserman.

 

And then my old friend, who was overweight and died of a heart attack, could out fish anyone on any day on any body of water.

 

Another friend and great bass fisherman who was sponsored by a number of companies threw the Zoom moccasin blue finesse worm on the Chickahominy River and he and his friend, who was also overweight, won so many tournaments they were asked not to fish local tournaments anymore. My friend died of lung cancer as he was a big smoker. The other guy is still with us.

 

I understand that there are "sports specific" exercises that can be done to improve your performance and they are started in high school, through college, and into the pros. 

 

It would be interesting to note what exercises you could suggest to help us avoid rotator cuff injuries and protecting our knees and ankles as we move around the boat or along the bank, improve reaction time, and be able to concentrate for a longer period of time.

 

Interesting post and I don't believe we have ever had a physical therapist provide any information to us on the Forum. Thanks for the post.

[roadwarrior]

Drink more beer!

 

[WRB]

For the weekend bass angler who may fish local 1 day tournaments conditioning is optional. Multi day tournaments or fishing big lakes with wind and choppy white caps all get tiring. Age is a big factor, harder to stay fit if you don't start a routine at a younger age.

Tom 

[Teal]

On 4/18/2020 at 2:55 PM, Quarry Man said:

If we want to fish tournaments to the best of our ability, we spend hours organizing tackle, respooling reels, cleaning reels, planning etc. Does anyone workout specifically to improve their fishing?

 

I am a Physical Therapy student, so exercise mechanics and physiology are right up my alley. I practice the perfect casting technique to the best of my ability.

 

Here are my thoughts: the better shape you are in, the better you can fish. Faster reaction time = faster hooks = more fish in the well.

 

 

my thoughts are along the lines of endurance and short burst exercises focusing around the forearms, back upper legs hips and core.

 

Food for thought, a good excuse to work out during quarantine.

All good points, im almost 38, and I'm already beginning  to feel the aches and pains of transitioning in to my 40s.  I dont fish everyday any more.  Heck in my 20s I would fish everyday and if I didnt have to work I'd fish all day.  It didnt bother me then, but now I feel it In my joints and in my stamina in general.  I find myself sitting or leaning more.  These days I value a comfortable pair of tennis shoes or boots alot more. I dont know if theres a regimen for fishermen but im almost positive that fishermen that take care of them selves a little better will have a better quality of life in general.  

 

Now since you are studying this, maybe it would be a good idea to reach out to some of the top anglers (of different ages and see what their thoughts are)  it would make for an interesting read.  

[TnRiver46]

Paddling upstream against 30,000 cfs a few miles is my workout. 

[Quarry Man]

yeah I didn't even think about kayaks or row boats. Would definitely help to be in shape.

 

 

while physical fitness certainly isn't as important as skill level, any aspect that helps a tournament angler is an advantage.

[jbsoonerfan]

I was in great shape in high school and played a year of college baseball and was still in pretty good shape in my early 20's. At 25 I got married, had a kid, started my career, life, etc. and over time the pounds added up. I turned 40 in December and I am currently 6'1 and 220 lbs which technically puts me over weight. I haven't done any sort of workout in 15 years or so. Recently I fished 28 out of 31 days and I ran the trolling motor all day, sometimes 6 hours, sometimes 10 hours. No butt seat, no seat, nothing, just me standing and fishing all day. I fished by myself about 23 of those days, so unloading, loading, etc. was all done by me. There were days that I was pretty tired at the end of the day but I was back at it the next day. I am in no way bragging on myself, but I think we are kidding ourselves if we think it takes anyone with great physical ability to be able to get out and fish day in and day out. Aside from just the overall "healthy" aspect of being in great shape, I don't really see an advantage as it relates to putting fish in the live well (or on the Score Tracker) 

[BassNJake]

I think as an athlete you learn how to handle performing while fatigued.

This is learned thru many years of practice and applied in competition.

As you fatigue your technique can get a little sloppy, your concentration not as good and that is when you pay less attention, miss strikes, use half arsed hooksets, try horsing the fish to the boat .. ... ... ....

 

It's always been my belief that having better cardio/endurance will give you an advantage

 

Ask any pitcher and they'll tell you they can throw 9 innings

The ones with the best cardio will be better at it more consistently.

Now, you'll have exceptions in all sports some guys are just superstars (David Wells for example)

[RichF]

Younger guys like Wheeler cast way more and can make the transition from their driver seat to trolling motor way quicker than guys like Grigsby, Klein, and Biffle.  If you don't think that makes a difference with regards to your performance on the water, you're kidding yourself.  Especially within the MLF/every fish counts format. 

[Quarry Man]

3 hours ago, RichF said:

Younger guys like Wheeler cast way more and can make the transition from their driver seat to trolling motor way quicker than guys like Grigsby, Klein, and Biffle.  If you don't think that makes a difference with regards to your performance on the water, you're kidding yourself.  Especially within the MLF/every fish counts format. 

just being able to move around the boat quickly and effectively is huge

4 hours ago, BassNJake said:

I think as an athlete you learn how to handle performing while fatigued.

This is learned thru many years of practice and applied in competition.

As you fatigue your technique can get a little sloppy, your concentration not as good and that is when you pay less attention, miss strikes, use half arsed hooksets, try horsing the fish to the boat .. ... ... ....

 

It's always been my belief that having better cardio/endurance will give you an advantage

 

Ask any pitcher and they'll tell you they can throw 9 innings

The ones with the best cardio will be better at it more consistently.

Now, you'll have exceptions in all sports some guys are just superstars (David Wells for example)

mental endurance and fortitude is key. doing the same thing a thousand time all day long in the heat under intense pressure adds up. being dialed the whole time is important.

[EWREX]

i can suggest a nice forearm fatigue workout ?