Tall lanky disc golfers, what have you discovered about your form? Any tips?

[hisdudeness47]

Tall lanky disc golfers, apparently we have the long-levered physics advantage, but I also feel that we have more room for error as our entire motion takes more space. It's tough to be compact. What are some things you have done to counter/take advantage of your lankiness, if anything?

Sometimes I wish I was stocky 5'6 so I can learn a compact powerful form and then return to my original build (6'3 180). I'm plateauing a bit right now around 375-400 max (besides the "griplock" bombs I posted about a while ago) and I'm still looking for the sauce. I feel like I can hit 375-400 in spite of my form, not because of it. I'm tall, athletic, and I have thrown a lot of frisbees in my day. I can make a disc move. But I'm still feeling clumsy and inconsistent. I know some would love to hit 400, but I feel disappointed by it. First-world problems? I just know there's more in the tank that I'm not using consistently and its frustrating. I often feel like I have too much moving at once, I'm not compact enough, and I'm not consistently using my long-levered "advantage". I have a theory that tall lanky folk have more room for error because of the space our motion takes up. Maybe I'm just making up an excuse .

Tall lanky disc golfers, what are some things you have discovered about being tall and lanky throwin discs? If anything, is there anything you've done to fix/improve/take advantage of your lanky-limbed Gumby motion?

 

[BruisedOoze]

I think one of the things that became apparent compared to my shorter/stockier friends, is that we can get far more out of slower rotation due to the longer arms. That is we can rotate slower to get equivalent speed at the end of our arms as someone with shorter arms. Being slower eases the timing windows/ learning rhythm without as much penalty I feel.

I think where the problems come in is the lower body and the cliche clumsy giraffe legs. Just like anyone, we need to focus on the ground up portion otherwise the upstairs advantages can't be put into play as much as we want.

 

[foxdawg10]

Tall lanky disc golfers, apparently we have the long-levered physics advantage, but I also feel that we have more room for error as our entire motion takes more space. It's tough to be compact. What are some things you have done to counter/take advantage of your lankiness, if anything?

Sometimes I wish I was stocky 5'6 so I can learn a compact powerful form and then return to my original build (6'3 180). I'm plateauing a bit right now around 375-400 max (besides the "griplock" bombs I posted about a while ago) and I'm still looking for the sauce. I feel like I can hit 375-400 in spite of my form, not because of it. I'm tall, athletic, and I have thrown a lot of frisbees in my day. I can make a disc move. But I'm still feeling clumsy and inconsistent. I know some would love to hit 400, but I feel disappointed by it. First-world problems? I just know there's more in the tank that I'm not using consistently and its frustrating. I often feel like I have too much moving at once, I'm not compact enough, and I'm not consistently using my long-levered "advantage". I have a theory that tall lanky folk have more room for error because of the space our motion takes up. Maybe I'm just making up an excuse .

Tall lanky disc golfers, what are some things you have discovered about being tall and lanky throwin discs? If anything, is there anything you've done to fix/improve/take advantage of your lanky-limbed Gumby motion?

This sounds weird to me. Just learn it as a 6'3" guy. Best suggestion would be to study guys like Calvin or Eagle and try to emulate what they do.

 

[autocrosscrx]

This might be the first time in the history of the universe that someone wished they were shorty and stocky.

 

[seedlings]

This might be the first time in the history of the universe that someone wished they were shorty and stocky.

Finally. I wins something.

 

[hisdudeness47]

This sounds weird to me. Just learn it as a 6'3" guy. Best suggestion would be to study guys like Calvin or Eagle and try to emulate what they do.

I mean yea, its a joke and I can't actually become 5'6 and I wouldn't want to. Essentially I'm just wanting to be more compact and consistent without limbs going god knows where.

 

[Horsman]

6'6" at 200lb

I find that my height is more useful for things other than distance. My athleticism is what drives my distance (450ish consistently) My height helps more when off the fairway and times when I need to stretch out. Thankfully I'm pretty flexible and work on that daily to keep it for this specific advantage. I wish I could tell you there was some trick to being able to throw far when you are tall but really it can just add a bit to an already good athletic base. I dont worry about staying compact or anything. I just throw.

 

[foxdawg10]

I mean yea, its a joke and I can't actually become 5'6 and I wouldn't want to. Essentially I'm just wanting to be more compact and consistent without limbs going god knows where.

It seems that's not a function of height but form.

 

[BillFleming]

6'1", 189 pounds, 62 years old, playing almost 3 years.

I've found that it's not about my height, weight, etc. It's all in the timing. Your timing has to be 'spot on'. If the timing of everything isn't on, then you aren't going to get the distance, consistency, or accuracy. My arm speed is 42 mph. For me, a walk-up is the best I can do. If I try to do a run-up, my timing gets off and the disc rarely goes where I want it to...and I lose accuracy. Find the timing where your movements all match up for consistency. That's your 'sweet spot'. Now go to a field and practice adding speed to the movements....don't try to go 'all out'. Find the tempo that works for you. Ultimately, you may only get "375-400" max....but that max distance will become more accurate and consistent.

My max (with a 7 speed) is 250ish....but, unlike you and others, I'm happy with that. I know I don't have a fast arm speed and might never have one. For now, I'm working on my throws being the most precise they can be. And what I found while doing that, is that my distance is increasing a bit - the other day, I threw my tee shot longer than I've ever gotten before and it was on the line that I planned - even my playing partner was surprised.

 

[ray1970]

I would love to have some of that tall lankiness to add to my game.

Fortunately for me the Garret Gurthie's, Drew Gibson's, and even the Emerson Kieth's of the world give me hope that I don't really need it.

 

[autocrosscrx]

I'm 5'7" and small framed. My arms are a bit long for my height and my legs are a bit short for my height.

By no means do a feel like I'm capped at 300, but I feel like I have to do a lot of things right to get a disc out to or past 300. And if I don't, the disc goes nowhere. It feels like I have a lot of stuff to do with my upper body and it is hard to fit it in with my tiny gait.

Then I play with these tall dudes or see these tall dudes out there clomping along like zombies flailing their arms everywhere yanking shots high and right and then having them stall out and fade back just past my shots. It is tough to not get frustrated by that.

 

[Brychanus]

I have a weird but relevant question. Do tall & lanky types have more trouble finding & feeling the weight shift?

For context, intruder alert from a 6'1'' but "stout" bodytype. 245lbs. I have relatively short limbs relative to my torso length and width. I have a weightlifting background & running is not my strong suit. I speculate I'm more on the "slow twitch" end of the spectrum based on past activities.

I'm curious about this for tall & lanky types b/c in my case, I realized that having a lot of torso bulk might have contributed to me really feeling the weightshift quickly after I got form feedback. It also made me super mindful of fixing lower body mechanics due to past injuries. It's really unforgiving to send my ungainly upper body careening in the wrong direction.

Physically, it made sense to me that I'd have to get my legs & mass working together pristinely to hit big distance b/c my levers aren't the longest. But does having a leaner, longer body type mean it's easier to discover and compensate w/ levers and harder to detect & correct weightshift issues?

This might be one of those questions that's impossible to answer because we can't get direct experience from one another's perspective, but this is part of the fun of forums like this!

 

[ray1970]

My arms are a bit long for my height and my legs are a bit short for my height.

Great. Now all I can see is an orangutan throwing discs.

<insert goofy smiley face here>

 

[Waddball]

But does having a leaner, longer body type mean it's easier to discover and compensate w/ levers and harder to detect & correct weightshift issues?

This might be one of those questions that's impossible to answer because we can't get direct experience from one another's perspective, but this is part of the fun of forums like this!

I suspect that in a very loose and general way you're right about the lever and balance characteristics. But there are too many other variables involved for it to be all that determinative. Raw athleticism, not just in the usual sense of speed and agility, but also body awareness and control, factors in heavily. And that of course varies across all body types.

Personally, I'm 6'5" and ~230. Not particularly lanky, but proportional. I'm 53, and an average athlete at best. I still struggle with balance and staying in my frame. Once in a while I can rip out a mostly effortless throw that seems to take advantage of the longer levers (a little past 400', which I think is okay for a guy my age with only a bit over a year at this sport). But my good throws always make me wish I was a bit more coordinated and consistent, something I'd likely be if I was shorter. Tradeoffs.

 

[madbrad]

I have found that I don't often use the length of my arms fully.

Because of my clumsy giraffe legs it is hard for me to stay in balance when I try to stretch out, so my throws are usually compact

 

[hendryxdisc]

Totally agree with the flexibility comment, it's by far the biggest asset of being tall. I am 6'6 and about 260 here with a positive ape index, I find that I really need to focus on a keeping slow starting speed with my feet on drives to maximize the size advantage. Otherwise my hips and upper body don't get much separation if I start too quick, also makes it so that I am not able to "unwind" my arm on the reach back trying to rush to catch up to my feet. To combat the plodding feeling of starting slower I focus on starting light on my toes and keeping my weight between my feet more, less side to side body lean thru my whole throw. I tend to be comfortably in the 415-430 range for golf lines and can push 450+ on more open distance shots.