Crushing the can is the secret technique that’s missing from the secret technique

[azplaya25]

After messing around with Blake's drills for a few months, I'm convinced that all he missed is teaching the can crush to initiate the hammer pound. These drills work great if you focus on crushing the can rather than initiating everything with your upper body. Here's Blake's original drill with some added commentary:

Drill 5: Repeat the sidearm hammer 2-3 times until you really feel it. Upon completing it change to a backhand grip. Starting with the disc in front of your stomach and your wrist slightly curled around the disc. Your elbow should be out from your body and not tight to your body. Crush the can and feel how your arm naturally wants to Pound the hammer backhand like you are smashing a nail that is out beyond the right side of your body.

You can really feel this if you hold something heavy like a golf club or a bat. Just try holding a bat or club, thumb on the back of the handle, relaxing your arm and upper body, and just crush the can and see what happens. You should experience an "effortless" hammer pounding motion. When I say effortless, I mean it's just happens without you trying to make it happen. It's kind of like sneezing. Would you describe sneezing as effortless? Your body is definitely exerting a lot of effort in a sneeze, but it's more a reaction to something rather than something you can just do on command. Once I stopped trying to pound the hammer, and started allowing the hammer pound happen as a result of me crushing the can with a closed shoulder, I finally experienced an effortless disc golf swing.

 

[Luckj]

Where is the original technique located? I've not seen it before.

 

[seedlings]

Where is the original technique located? I've not seen it before.

This is not exactly what he's talking about, but close. Go to the post Tue May 18, 2010 11:43 am because it doesn't properly link.

https://www.dgcoursereview.com/dgr/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17748&start=60

Edit: probably this
https://www.dgcoursereview.com/dgr/forums/viewtopic.php?t=11614

 

[azplaya25]

Where is the original technique located? I've not seen it before.

https://www.dgcoursereview.com/dgr/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=19220

 

[seedlings]

https://www.dgcoursereview.com/dgr/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=19220

Would you be willing to redo a demo video since the old links are bad?

 

[azplaya25]

Would you be willing to redo a demo video since the old links are bad?

Just search for spyderpride on YouTube, he uploaded all of the links.

Honestly, I really like this drill by navel where you stack two flat putters on top of each other. Get a feel for holding a hammer with your thumb on the back of the handle, then hold two flat putters and play around with your grip until you feel that same leverage. They hammer head should be out in free space with the disc.

New drill!

I didn't know where to post this so it ended up here. It may have a place in the disc pivot and snap thread? Maybe somewhere together with BlakeT's drills? I'm not sure.

This is a drill that has helped me a lot. It's one of the most helpful tools I know (as of now) for timing, snap and hitting the lines. And the best part is that it's really simple.
It might just work for me and nobody else, who knows? It's still a work in progress so there is surely room for improvement.


Enough rambling, here it is:

1. Grab a disc in your throwing hand with your usual grip. (Flat putters work best for this drill.)

2. Add onother disc on top with the top facing down. Grip the edge with your thumb. The discs should now be perfectly lined up.

3. Swing through slow and smooth until the upper disc moves forward towards the target. Imagine the upper disc being the handle of a hammer.

How and why does it work?

1. The added weight of another disc makes the swing and movements more fluid and smooth.

2. It's easy to feel the hit when the top disc moves. Does the top disc move/pivot straight towards the target, or would it rip out early or late? Does the hit feel "heavy" to you? Can you make the disc pivot feel "snappier" with better timing (not by adding speed or power)?

That's it! It feels like a sort of hammer drill for me. It's not going to fix your whole swing from the ground up. That's not what it's meant to do. It's a tool for finding the hit and release point and adding more smooth power to the snap. The movement could be part of a pre throwing routine, before putting or befor an approach shot.

 

[azplaya25]

Guess if I had to sum it up I'd say.. if you hold a sledgehammer like he's holding it here, then crush the can, you'll pound through the door just like he is, without doing anything with your arm. That's been a major breakthrough from me in the quest the not strong arm and generate power with my lower body

 

[Nick Pacific]

Great stuff. I always think of crushing the can when I'm practicing because it really forces you to do one of, if not the most important part of the throw, and that is to brace strong with that front foot, pressing into the ground, and to prevent your upper body from coming forward too soon into the movement.

 

[azplaya25]

Bumping this because it's helped me so much, especially when thinking about the attached images. If you think about getting into this doorframe position by just crushing the sh*t out of a can, you'll shift from behind and rip the doorframe off when you crush it.

The swing is so much more simple than I ever realized. The more I focus on just crushing the can, the better my results. If I think about trying to swing, or reaching back, or anything else, it all goes sideways.

 

[Waddball]

Bumping this because it's helped me so much, especially when thinking about the attached images. If you think about getting into this doorframe position by just crushing the sh*t out of a can, you'll shift from behind and rip the doorframe off when you crush it.

The swing is so much more simple than I ever realized. The more I focus on just crushing the can, the better my results. If I think about trying to swing, or reaching back, or anything else, it all goes sideways.

Great stuff. I remember two years ago I was frenetically perusing these forums and trying basically every idea. And I made some progress, but as I've slowed down on that first crazy phase, just a few ideas have really stuck with me.

The most fundamental for me is SW's door frame, and yanking it down (or really, getting set up to yank it down). My mental model is less about crushing the can, though I totally agree with you and will try shifting (ha) my focus to that.

The other single big thing for me is SW's bow and arrow (which strikes me as an alternate way to think about the door frame). For so long I was stuck on the whole "slow is smooth, smooth is far" trope, but I think that can be misleading. The release should be smooth, sure, but explosive (not slow; that's all the buildup).

Not that I've solved everything or have any authority. But I know that when I do those fundamental, simple things, good things happen. And when, as you say, I think more about swing plane, etc. and don't have that forcible bracing, things go wrong.

 

[Sheep]

For so long I was stuck on the whole "slow is smooth, smooth is far" trope, but I think that can be misleading. The release should be smooth, sure, but explosive (not slow; that's all the buildup).

You're not wrong here.
But yes and no.

It's a thing to stick in your head to get you to stop trying to drive the kinetic chain the whole way.

When you actively try and slow down to smooth up, your kinetic chain cleans up. A good kinetic chain is far more explosive when you're letting it build on its own vs trying to drive through every step.

I literally have to yell at guys I give lessons to about slowing down. They get so excited throwing far.
And then it goes downhill really quick.
"SLOW DOWN"

Suddenly their drive goes from 50 short to 50 long. and they get so confused. It's really really hard for our brains to understand using leverage and kinetics to drive power. Cause Grrr, rawr, muscle!
Doesn't matter how masculine or feminin you are either. It's just the brain que. You think more, so you try and give more, but always in the wrong place.

 

[Sheep]

After messing around with Blake's drills for a few months, I'm convinced that all he missed is teaching the can crush to initiate the hammer pound. These drills work great if you focus on crushing the can rather than initiating everything with your upper body. Here's Blake's original drill with some added commentary:

Drill 5: Repeat the sidearm hammer 2-3 times until you really feel it. Upon completing it change to a backhand grip. Starting with the disc in front of your stomach and your wrist slightly curled around the disc. Your elbow should be out from your body and not tight to your body. Crush the can and feel how your arm naturally wants to Pound the hammer backhand like you are smashing a nail that is out beyond the right side of your body.

You can really feel this if you hold something heavy like a golf club or a bat. Just try holding a bat or club, thumb on the back of the handle, relaxing your arm and upper body, and just crush the can and see what happens. You should experience an "effortless" hammer pounding motion. When I say effortless, I mean it's just happens without you trying to make it happen. It's kind of like sneezing. Would you describe sneezing as effortless? Your body is definitely exerting a lot of effort in a sneeze, but it's more a reaction to something rather than something you can just do on command. Once I stopped trying to pound the hammer, and started allowing the hammer pound happen as a result of me crushing the can with a closed shoulder, I finally experienced an effortless disc golf swing.

I'm going to weigh in mostly on the Threat Title than the quote here.

Crush the can is important, especially for players who have not learned to drive with the plant. Crushing the can will engage your hips and get your weight transfer complete.

A lot of people see simon, drew and others appear to plant flat footed, they do not. They just do not exaggerate the can crush, their form is relying on the brace in a more advanced way.

Paige Pierce, there is a video out there someplace, and that was one of her biggest things about distance, Crushing the can to crush the hips. And when you watch PP throw, man does she throw violent, but its her body thats violent. She uses all of that frame to try and drive her arm.

If you're struggling with bracing, or feel you need more hips.
Get that toe in, and that heel out and up, crush into the brace. Let the brace drive your hips and your swing.

 

[Hampejo]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CmAveytvQ8h/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

JT crushing the can.