Form Update/Help - Want to break 400ft EOY

[McbethsHat]

Hello Everyone!

https://youtu.be/faAJRykHqcM

Above is a link to a video I recorded about a week ago. I posted here about 6 months ago now and my distance has gone from 280 (consistent) to about 340 (consistent) with the tips I received! I've had about 2 throws break 375 so far, but my goal is 400ft by end of year.

Also, I have been having a nose up issue as well lately. I know that has been killing my distance gains.

I know I still have a lot left in me as my form still needs a ton of work. Guys like Emerson Keith give us short guys hope lol. I am looking forward to hearing the feedback.

Side note: What's your opinion on sling shot disc golf? Is his teachings good?

 

[Brychanus]

Hello Everyone!

https://youtu.be/faAJRykHqcM

Above is a link to a video I recorded about a week ago...

Side note: What's your opinion on sling shot disc golf? Is his teachings good?

Welcome! Vid is private!

I'll bite on sling shot disc golf, and would like to see others' responses.

I think Coach T has an enthusiastic coaching style and a home-grown form that has ostensibly given him impressive distance. But some of what he does mechanically is visually different than what top pros do (e.g., especially the hips lacking a good load & rock into the plant, arm rotating backwards into the pocket, and throwing shoulder opening). I'm still a little surprised he gets a claimed 500'-550', but it's also with a huge full-speed runup. James Conrad does that too but I think most people would say he does not have the most efficient mechanics. Coach T has a lot of people that are on his pay-train and perceive it to be the new, exciting, "athletic" way to learn to throw. They have a private, insular Discord server and occasionally give people outside of their community a lot of grief.

Meanwhile, I've seen Coach T need to use arm compression sleeves, and some of his mechanics look like exactly the same ones that have injured me before (knees, pec, shoulder, and elbow to varying degrees of severity). Seabas22/sidewinder22 has publicly confronted some of the mechanics he teaches, and Coach T's response amounts to "agree to disagree", and he overtly says in his vids that he's "sharing opinions and not facts." Well, "facts" are hard without a fully developed DG science, but at least people here engage with external sources and debate.

And it's worth saying that many people on this forum have learned to throw very far without much of an x-step at all and low risk of injury, suggesting that the mechanics are more efficient and safer. There's so much cross-referencing to other primary sources here that I'm more inclined to believe that the "throw it like it's heavy" mechanics are safer, more efficient, and more true to top-level pro form. People here have done a good job mapping those mechanics to the DG backhand.

I care a lot about getting this "right" because 80% of disc golfers get hurt, and teaching bad mechanics is a liability/responsibility. I also want to throw farther and am patient enough to learn the "best practices". I still think that this is the place to find them.

I'm interested in what others would say (and paging SW22 in particular as usual!).

 

[McbethsHat]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faAJRykHqcM

Sorry about that. Video is fixed above.

 

[Brychanus]

I think we can all make surprising gains with some work.

You aren't getting your weight to lead the swing. I might recommend starting with more work on crushing the can/getting weight forward into the plant ahead of the swing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwy1HNMfhbk&t=122s&ab_channel=seabas22

 

[McbethsHat]

Thank you!

I have noticed this as well. That is why I asked about CoachT/Sling shot Disc golf. I recently watched a video of his about staying on the balls of the toes and weight on that back leg until the "crush the can" motion. I will give seabass video a watch real quick.

 

[Brychanus]

Thank you!

I have noticed this as well. That is why I asked about CoachT/Sling shot Disc golf. I recently watched a video of his about staying on the balls of the toes and weight on that back leg until the "crush the can" motion. I will give seabass video a watch real quick.

Nice- and totally, I don't mean to cast a blanket opinion- just suggesting that some healthy skepticism while learning a super complicated move is advised!

 

[sidewinder22]

You are too crouched and leaning back on the rear leg which restricts your ability to turn further back and lead with your hips/weight. Watch how your shoulder rises up during the forward swing. Most pros shoulder drops lower into the forward swing like the Bow and Arrow, Door Frame Drills, Reciprocating Dingle Arm, Battering Ram.

I agree with about half of what coach T says, you do want to be loose and experiment and get the rear arm in. I disagree with how he uses his lead arm and legs/hips. I think he is a much better athlete than he gives himself credit for(seen him doing some AI killer crossovers, he moves way faster than I can) and has very strong and flexible wrists from his basketball background which is where he generates a lot of his power and IMO more strain on his arm. IMO his throw could be a lot more efficient if he learned to use his whole body better and limit the amount of wrist movement. IIRC he said his standstill throw only goes about 250' and he's about 5'10".

FWIW I'm 43, 5'7" and can throw 400' standstill.

 

[McbethsHat]

Thank you for your response. Now how do I go about fixing it? Would the drill above help out with the problem and or is there other videos/graphics that can help address my issue?

Also, I am not too sure if I understand how these drills help my form. How do I transition drills to actual throws on the course?

 

[Brychanus]

All of the drills are helpful. When it comes to shifting the weight back and forth and clearing the rear hip without leaning back, Battering Ram finally got through to me. If you crouch/lean too much you get your weight stuck and/or can't get good leverage on the Ram swing.

 

[seedlings]

I am not too sure if I understand how these drills help my form.

You and I are impatient. We're probably also fast learners in many areas. All I can say is do the drills, throw in the field staying mindful of drills. Throw on the course with ONE point in mind per throw. Rinse. Repeat. This is not a fast-learned movement IMHO.

 

[Brychanus]

Also, I am not too sure if I understand how these drills help my form. How do I transition drills to actual throws on the course?

For me, doing one-two drills at a time and massaging them into the throw in the same session until it's solid.

The drills teach you mechanics - how to get leverage on the ground, loosen up & let your weight/body throw, get you into postures that are more powerful using the muscles & sequences that would help you throw a heavy object farther. They train your body how to move that way by isolating key components. Think of them like "making up for lost time" for those of us who weren't playing DG for thousands of hours since childhood but want to throw safer & bomb. It's like running a car - technically, a car can "run" without key parts, but it runs a hell of a lot better and longer if everything is proper and nice and tight.

In my experience some of them clicked much faster than others, and some became more useful to me again once my swing had developed to a certain point.

I too have been a fast learner in other contexts and am still stunned at how complicated the DG BH is. I think a lot of the learning rate probably varies by prior sports experience, age, etc. And people learn in different ways.

You can & should experiment along the way. I have had a 2-3 steps forward, 1 step backward process with my legs in particular recently, so I find little tricks to get the key idea/motion into my form.

It's slow work, but these guys got me up to 330'-345' with neutral midrange discs on my best pulls since just late October 2021 (even with my crappy leg mechanics), so I've learned patience and to enjoy the ride.

 

[McbethsHat]

Hello!

I am posting an update to this thread. I have been trying to stay a little more upright and not so crouched in my throw. Is this better?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7zW0EqQ0zM

I know I am still not shifting my weight at all. I am updating this thread because I really want to start getting serious about my form. I will be hitting the field today for some field work. What should I be working on?

 

[sidewinder22]

Yeah looking better.

You have some weird head tilt restricting your shoulder from turning further back underneath your chin/head.

 

[McbethsHat]

I did not realize my head was so much more tilted than others.

I struggle with head position a lot. Is it something I consciously need to be thinking about and trying to fix or is the root of the problem in my shoulders or legs? Side note: I did my first "Drill" today aka the one leg drill while holding a hammer. Don't really know if I did it right or not but wow did I feel something I definitely don't feel in my throw. I struggled a bit actually being able to keep my balance with the hammer swinging. Is that normal?

 

[sidewinder22]

Probably tilting head over like that because you aren't balanced on rear leg upright inside your posture.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWasFdvnGio#t=6m5s

 

[McbethsHat]

I messed around with that drill and I see what you mean but how would I "Pull" the disc and throw it without the disc hitting my chest while trying to stay inside my feet. Do I need to hinge more or push out the shoulder to create room for disc? IDK if that makes sense or not lol

 

[sidewinder22]

It's really a backswing drill. The disc should blast thru the wall coming out of the power pocket.

 

[McbethsHat]

Got it... I will play around with these drills today and hit the field tomorrow. Hopefully will post an update soon with some improvements lol.

 

[McbethsHat]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJvM72-iV-c

Obviously going to be different because I don't have a disc in my hand but I didn't have time to hit the field today so this is all I could do lol. I am probably going about 50% slower than my actual run up. Does this look better? It sure felt a lot different than what I am used too. Tomorrow I can hit some proper field work. Excited to see how it feels with an actual throw.

 

[sidewinder22]

Your rear arm is going way too rotational around behind your back and then going around you forward, instead of helping to shift/brace. Grab a stick with left hand and ride the bull.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxnhM5amro0#t=1m14s