I found that if I come to anchor and release I shoot better groups at 20yds. If I get to anchor and hold it for a few seconds the results are not as good, not bad, just not as good. But I have heard things like "snap-shooting" and stuff that doesn't sound like it is a positive thing. Am I developing bad habits?

Could you be over bowed? I dont think snap shooting is so bad. If it works for you and you hit a consistant anchor your ahead of the game. MIKE

I don't think I am over bowed because I can comfortably hold the weight. It just seems that when I slowly draw I seem to pull straight back and view the shot better. My release seems to be more consistant too.

The longer you hold your draw the more things have a tendency to move.  I have the same thing.  The problem I have though is I have done that for so long that my draw started getting shorter and shorter and before I knew it I was not comming to full draw and not hitting anchor at all.  As long as you come to full draw and hit your anchor EVERY TIME then you are fine.  Shoot the way that is most comfotable.  One thing to remember though dont sacrafice good form just because you shoot better with bad form, form should always come first.

Personally, I think that the reason a lot of people feel they shoot better with a touch and go release is due to not maintaining back tension in a static position. What I mean is with a dynamic, non stop release some people keep the load on the back muscles. I think many people settle into a static anchor and stop pulling and just hold. Then, at release the force is no longer a push-pull motion but instead goes in the wrong direction (forwards, sideways, etc).

If you want to work on improving a more deliberate release try to focus on squeezing the shoulder blades as you pull through the shot. The drawing elbow at release should come backwards slightly as you drop the string. If it doesn't you're not utilizing the back muscles throughout the shot.


Chris

Without pictures it's hard to say. Str8Shooter has a lot of it in his post. Many shoot better if they hit anchor and then release as they pull through it. So long as you hit a consistant anchor point and maintain good alignment this isn't a bad thing.

Could be you're moving your bow arm. Which should not move until you see the fletch in the target. When I go through this... the bow arm and lack of follow through is usually the culprit.

Snag1
As long as you come to full anchor, it dosn't matter how long you hold it, your fine....