milow369
05-22-2009, 03:24 AM
Sorry in advance for the book - I'll put the most pertinent stuff up top. Not sure everyone will find this useful or interesting but for those who do, I am trying to make it as clear as possible. I am open to criticism, further instruction, whatever, so feel free to comment.
I made a serious breakthrough on my drive/throw. I attribute it to a small change in my posture before, during, and after my throw. This might help those out who are currently doing what I was doing so I'll share it. I also wonder if any of the big arms out there focus specifically on this aspect going into the box (starting with and maintaining an "tall" posture through their throw and follow through) I would also like to hear of similar breakthroughs that you have made with your own drive/throw.
Jumping to the punch line for those who don't want to read a book:
I have found that standing upright, or tall, going into my pre-shot routine, throw, and into my followthrough greatly improves both my distance and accuracy of my drives. I would say my distance was in the 325' range now I can hit 350'-390' and more. I am hitting more lines now than I ever have.
This tall approach gets me more on the balls of my feet for one. It gets my shoulders up/square and my back straight. It allows me to have a more horizontal pull of the disc (or allows me to start my pull flat and come slightly down to my line) as opposed to starting lower and having a slight upward pull to the same line. (Note: I am not talking about throwing a big anhyzer or big hyzer)
This tall approach makes my entire right side, especially my outer right arm, tri/bicep shoulder and pec feel like a cocked lever loaded, strong, and ready to fire. I feel as if I can get a lot more rpms on the disc because I am pulling the outer edge of a flat disc and that pull extends up my arm and originates in my right shoulder/side. I feel a sense of leverage that I didn't feel before down my shoulder/back/right leg/and down to the outside of my right foot. I find now that my turn is eased and my follow through ends up naturally "windmill-like'. My height of release is now higher than it used to be and I can use the weight of the disc to get momentum during the throw instead of having to lift the weight of the disc in addition to the throw. Going into the hit I am a little taller so I can now better shift my weight slightly down/forward to exaggerate the snap. I find that my disc now comes off on the line I want, steady, and it comes off hot! It feels like Christmas in May and it's all because I am standing 1-2" taller - amazing!
This talks about my routine before and after this adjustment:
My Previous Routine - Relaxed (abbreviated):
I would clear my head, walk up to the box, check out the teepad, look at my line, check my grip and think about my footing, think about what angle I wanted the disc to come out of my hand, check the wind, maybe do a quick mock snap or two of the disc on the angle that I want to achieve. This all happens in the course of 8 to 10 seconds or something.
I get set at the back of the box, relax, breathe out. I feel a low center of gravity, loose in the knees, feeling powerful in the legs. I start my run up with as smooth a tempo as possible, the disc goes back, I remind myself to keep it armpit height, I pull, snap hard, and follow through. I got to the point where I was achieving a 300-350' drive but it was often erratic, with somewhat inconsistent lines and results.
I realized that my "relaxed" stance was comfortable and loose-feeling but it was actually somewhat slumped/lazy (too relaxed). It felt very powerful in the hamstrings and legs but it put me on my heels and actually hindered my movement and my turn. It caused me to start my throw from a lower position and felt like I was throwing uphill to get to my line. It seemed to somewhat constrict my followthrough. It was common for me to pull the disc and find the trees on the right as I spun out somewhat uncontrollably, or I would release too soon and would lose it to the left. Sometimes I would get one down the middle at a decent distance but sometimes they just lacked punch.
My Routine Now - Tall (abbreviated):
Now, I do the same routine as above but when I "relax" I actually stand up straight, shoulders up, chest out, right arm/grip sttrong, feeling more on the balls of my feet. Almost as if someone was checking my height and I was trying to eek out an extra inch up against the wall. Don't confuse what I'm talking about with getting stiff in the arms and chest - that's not good, not what you're looking for. It's more like setting a new, upright reference height for myself and keeping that reference through the entire throw including the followthrough. I still feel comfortable and relaxed, it just feels more controlled. It's more like my arm is stiff because it is flexed along with my bicep, tricep, arm and it all goes down to my grip which is solid. I feel more in control, not less.
If anything, I would say that this tweak actually puts me in a position to get a smoother run up, turn and a much better, more natural "windmill" followthrough.
Misc:
Again, sorry for the book
I have to give credit to Dan Beato. His video on youtube is great (Search Dan Beato, driving technique). He provides a great example of a technically-corrrect form and how to work up to the hit. Now that I think about it my throw has been evolving for the last 5 months since watching that video, it happened without me really knowing about it. I was scoring great one hole, crappy the other. I was throwing with proper technique then reverting back to my sloppy technique, proper, sloppy, etc., etc., . Finally I figured it out and started throwing from a taller stance. A bunch of stuff just clicked.
This has also helped my midrange game, along with watching the Climo midrange grip video.
If you're stalled out around 300 or less and are frustrated with pushing and pulling discs, try what I'm talking about and see if it works for you.
I made a serious breakthrough on my drive/throw. I attribute it to a small change in my posture before, during, and after my throw. This might help those out who are currently doing what I was doing so I'll share it. I also wonder if any of the big arms out there focus specifically on this aspect going into the box (starting with and maintaining an "tall" posture through their throw and follow through) I would also like to hear of similar breakthroughs that you have made with your own drive/throw.
Jumping to the punch line for those who don't want to read a book:
I have found that standing upright, or tall, going into my pre-shot routine, throw, and into my followthrough greatly improves both my distance and accuracy of my drives. I would say my distance was in the 325' range now I can hit 350'-390' and more. I am hitting more lines now than I ever have.
This tall approach gets me more on the balls of my feet for one. It gets my shoulders up/square and my back straight. It allows me to have a more horizontal pull of the disc (or allows me to start my pull flat and come slightly down to my line) as opposed to starting lower and having a slight upward pull to the same line. (Note: I am not talking about throwing a big anhyzer or big hyzer)
This tall approach makes my entire right side, especially my outer right arm, tri/bicep shoulder and pec feel like a cocked lever loaded, strong, and ready to fire. I feel as if I can get a lot more rpms on the disc because I am pulling the outer edge of a flat disc and that pull extends up my arm and originates in my right shoulder/side. I feel a sense of leverage that I didn't feel before down my shoulder/back/right leg/and down to the outside of my right foot. I find now that my turn is eased and my follow through ends up naturally "windmill-like'. My height of release is now higher than it used to be and I can use the weight of the disc to get momentum during the throw instead of having to lift the weight of the disc in addition to the throw. Going into the hit I am a little taller so I can now better shift my weight slightly down/forward to exaggerate the snap. I find that my disc now comes off on the line I want, steady, and it comes off hot! It feels like Christmas in May and it's all because I am standing 1-2" taller - amazing!
This talks about my routine before and after this adjustment:
My Previous Routine - Relaxed (abbreviated):
I would clear my head, walk up to the box, check out the teepad, look at my line, check my grip and think about my footing, think about what angle I wanted the disc to come out of my hand, check the wind, maybe do a quick mock snap or two of the disc on the angle that I want to achieve. This all happens in the course of 8 to 10 seconds or something.
I get set at the back of the box, relax, breathe out. I feel a low center of gravity, loose in the knees, feeling powerful in the legs. I start my run up with as smooth a tempo as possible, the disc goes back, I remind myself to keep it armpit height, I pull, snap hard, and follow through. I got to the point where I was achieving a 300-350' drive but it was often erratic, with somewhat inconsistent lines and results.
I realized that my "relaxed" stance was comfortable and loose-feeling but it was actually somewhat slumped/lazy (too relaxed). It felt very powerful in the hamstrings and legs but it put me on my heels and actually hindered my movement and my turn. It caused me to start my throw from a lower position and felt like I was throwing uphill to get to my line. It seemed to somewhat constrict my followthrough. It was common for me to pull the disc and find the trees on the right as I spun out somewhat uncontrollably, or I would release too soon and would lose it to the left. Sometimes I would get one down the middle at a decent distance but sometimes they just lacked punch.
My Routine Now - Tall (abbreviated):
Now, I do the same routine as above but when I "relax" I actually stand up straight, shoulders up, chest out, right arm/grip sttrong, feeling more on the balls of my feet. Almost as if someone was checking my height and I was trying to eek out an extra inch up against the wall. Don't confuse what I'm talking about with getting stiff in the arms and chest - that's not good, not what you're looking for. It's more like setting a new, upright reference height for myself and keeping that reference through the entire throw including the followthrough. I still feel comfortable and relaxed, it just feels more controlled. It's more like my arm is stiff because it is flexed along with my bicep, tricep, arm and it all goes down to my grip which is solid. I feel more in control, not less.
If anything, I would say that this tweak actually puts me in a position to get a smoother run up, turn and a much better, more natural "windmill" followthrough.
Misc:
Again, sorry for the book
I have to give credit to Dan Beato. His video on youtube is great (Search Dan Beato, driving technique). He provides a great example of a technically-corrrect form and how to work up to the hit. Now that I think about it my throw has been evolving for the last 5 months since watching that video, it happened without me really knowing about it. I was scoring great one hole, crappy the other. I was throwing with proper technique then reverting back to my sloppy technique, proper, sloppy, etc., etc., . Finally I figured it out and started throwing from a taller stance. A bunch of stuff just clicked.
This has also helped my midrange game, along with watching the Climo midrange grip video.
If you're stalled out around 300 or less and are frustrated with pushing and pulling discs, try what I'm talking about and see if it works for you.