News:

English-language friendly kendama forum open for everyone worldwide. Welcome!

Main Menu

Dodgy Non Dominant Claw Hand!

Started by Chunky Nutwhip, 12 August, 2016, 15:29:31

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Chunky Nutwhip

The few times I've tried to film myself recently I've noticed my left hand has a life of it's own.  It seems to take on a stiff claw like form and quite frankly looks a bit mental!  It's obviously a product of concentration but it's so far outside my conscious awareness I'm having a hard time not doing it!

Anyone got any similar concentration quirks?  Do you think this will ease off as I get better and relax more, or do I need to get it in check now before my wacky mad-hand tries to take over the world?

:P

BKA

Unlike jugglers, we clickers tend to be quite solidly one-handed in our play. That's why we sometimes (evilly?) put in "weak hand" tricks into competitions.

It depends where you want to go. Of course everyone's weaker hand will have its own idiosyncrasies, and if that bothers you, then yes, start training it into behaving itself!
An interesting exercise can be to try to mirror your good hand(/arm)'s movements. Stick a kendama in each hand and try to repeat each move your good hand makes, immediately with your weak hand. Thinking about the precise movements you make with your good hand can maybe help badhand™ to "think" about what it's doing wrong.

Chunky Nutwhip

I like the idea!  I think even just holding something in my other hand would probably bring more awareness to it to start with!  And building up your weaker hand is never a bad idea.  I'll try this!

KenSan

Hey @Chunky Nutwhip I think the strange left hand afflicts nearly all kendama players and also strange facial expressions too.

This may have been posted before but is covered here briefly.

3rd place @ BKO 2016 Adv. Division. :-)

Chunky Nutwhip

Haaaaaa! Brilliant  :D Mine is definitely the arthritis one!

shalafi

Quote from: KenSan on 12 August, 2016, 16:40:12
Hey @Chunky Nutwhip I think the strange left hand afflicts nearly all kendama players and also strange facial expressions too.

This may have been posted before but is covered here briefly.


That was hilarious!
Spanish Kendama Champion 2010, 2012, 2014-16
Depth Perception is Overrated.

KenSan

@shalafi They have a few other kendama videos which are just as funny. Click on their channel.
3rd place @ BKO 2016 Adv. Division. :-)

PikWik

yeah, that video is great #classic  ;D

for me, i was mindful of this when i first started playing. my non-dominant hand will go crazy during super tech stuff that im not comfortable with. it is a conscious decision though. the more relaxed i try to be when playing, the less my non-dom hand goes barmy.

so yes, IMO, this is something that you should work on in the beginning of learning how to play. for me, its focusing on being comfortable and relaxed. i try to not let the tricks get "over my head" and stay consistent. i dont count those fluke landings and really try to think about every step of the trick and how to make it smoother.

thats my advice anyway. but, i still catch myself "T-Rexing" from time to time



shalafi

Spanish Kendama Champion 2010, 2012, 2014-16
Depth Perception is Overrated.

Chunky Nutwhip

Ok, so past few days I've really tried to tackle this.  I tried holding something in my left hand and it definitely made me more 'aware' of the other hand but sometimes my balance felt a little off.  I've come to the conclusion that being relaxed has everything to do with it.  I've tried to stop rushing so much, ie. hammering trick attempts one after the other with no thinking time in between.  I think this led to me being less panicky when I get to the part of the trick I'm struggling with, and as a result my madhand has improved.

In fact slowing down a lot seems to have helped in more ways than one.  It seems obvious to me now, but if I was just rushing attempt after attempt as I was eager to land a trick I was more than likely building muscle memory for the mistakes.  I'm not saying I now have a sit down and a brew in between every shot but sometimes just taking a breath and even having a decent guess as to what went wrong improved my chances.  It's the simple stuff eh!

Perfect practise makes perfect!

BKA


donald grant

It's a common complaint!  Personally it's not so much a claw, more like a rigid flipper :)  It only strikes now and again, usually on new/ difficult balance tricks.

It tends to go away once I get better at a trick: one good way I've found which might help is to try to relax the playing hand more.  The more relaxed the dominant hand is, the less flipperiness there seems to be....

Otherwise, two-handed tricks are always fun :)

johndmc

Yeah I'm certainly a floppy Rex claw hand kinda player lol
Dont practice what you can do, practice what you can't! :)