Effects of Short-Term Novice Archery Training on Reaching Movement Performance and Interlimb Asymmetries

Previous studies showed numerous evidence for the interlimb asymmetries in motor performance during arm reaching movements. Furthermore, these interlimb asymmetries have been shown to associate with spatial patterns of hand selection behavior. Importantly, these interlimb asymmetries can be modified systematically by occlusion of visual feedback, or a long-term sports training. In this study, we asked about the effects of a short-term training on interlimb asymmetries. Eighteen healthy young participants underwent a 12-week novice traditional archery training (TAT). Their unimanual dominant and nondominant arm reaching movement performance was assessed before and after TAT. We found that movement accuracy, movement precision, and movement efficiency in the experimental group have all improved significantly as a result of TAT. These improvements were comparable across both arms, thus the interlimb differences in movement performance were not affected by the short-term TAT and remained similar. These results suggest that while short-term training may contribute positively to reaching performance, it is unlikely to have a significant impact on the differences observed between the dominant and nondominant arms. This unique characteristics of dominant and nondominant arm should be taken into consideration when developing targeted sports and rehabilitation programs for athletes or individuals with acute or chronic motor deficits.