Is correct stroke analagous to "throwing"?

Discussion in 'Techniques / Training' started by noobuskahn, Apr 23, 2009.

  1. noobuskahn

    noobuskahn Regular Member

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    Sup guys, I've been having trouble getting down correct stroke form. People on my school team are desperately trying to help me, but no one seems to be able to get me to do it right. They all tell me I am not rotating my body correctly, and not following through with my shoulder. They tell me to focus on transferring my weight from my back leg to front, and from the right side of my body to the left. And finally, they all compare proper stroke to throwing a baseball. Is this all the correct way of looking at it? I am pretty in-touch with my body, and for some reason getting proper stroke down seems so much harder than it should be. I even practice in the mirror, but it still feels/looks weird. I am told that I should be completely relaxed as well when swinging, which really makes no sense to me because in order to generate power you have to use muscles somewhere. I know that most people compare it to snapping a whip, which seems different than throwing a baseball, but maybe I am just plain wrong. :crying:

    Any thoughts/suggestions?
     
  2. keith.roche

    keith.roche Regular Member

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    action of snapping a whip is WRONG. Its all about the proper swing and the ability to hit the shuttle with the OPEN face of the racket. When swing the racket, it must start from the back and when it reaches above your head, your arms must be fully stretched and then the racket must follow through to your left underarm.
    And thats the same action for everything, even for dropping. Once you get the action correct, you will see that shuttles travel much longer with the same ease.
     
  3. noobuskahn

    noobuskahn Regular Member

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    I'll work on hitting it open faced then. I think I do tend to slice more than I'd like. Thanks!
     
  4. TheBear

    TheBear Regular Member

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    "Throwing" is a good way of thinking of it. Without doubt your best bet is to spend an hour with a decent coach, since this is a fundamental part of the game, and worth getting right.
     
  5. thrice3990

    thrice3990 Regular Member

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    I've also been having trouble correcting my stroke. I've also been told that the correct way to do the stroke is similar to throwing a ball or even a shuttlecock. But I still notice that my body rotation and timing of hitting the bird squarely is off. I've also been told that if ur a right hander, when u follow through ur right leg must come foward, (but of course it is hard to do since ur arm + racket will move a lot faster than ur hips can rotate to get ur racket leg foward), but dun worry a lot of players still slice their smashes =] so ur not the only one.
     
  6. keith.roche

    keith.roche Regular Member

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    Please note that " throwing of ball" is referred to OVERHEAD swing, not the usual sideways.
    "Slicing" a smash takes off lots of energy, so anyone playing at a higher level would not do that. Many of us do it to make STEEP drops to the nets from the rear courts.

    I always found "bringing the racquet foot forward" while swinging to be tough. But if you are standing at the centre, and you see the shuttle cleared to the back, reach the shuttle at the rear court IN TIME ( by this i mean not early, not late .... relax and reach ) and do the swing as done in "shadow runs" , this can solve the issue of "raquet foot forward" It just comes automatically if you do shadow runs.
     
  7. azn32boi

    azn32boi Regular Member

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    **ABOUT THE RACQUET FOOTING COMING FORWARD**

    Having the racquet foot come forward shouldn't be too much of a problem if you're using your hips right.

    ---"Feet planted to the ground" hits
    When you use proper technique, your weight should be pressed on your back foot (which should be your racquet foot) and your shoulders should face the side. When you go for a hit, you transfer your weight to your left, then -almost at the same time- you rotate your hips which your shoulders will follow. After that, the movement should follow with your arm, giving it momentum, a better swing at the shuttle. (The swing of the arm is very detailed, wont get into that unless requested)

    --- "In the air; rotation of the hip; racquet foot going forward" hit
    All your weight is on your back foot, and shoulders are facing to the side. You do a slight jump with all the weight on your back foot. This is where the weight "transfers" (can't really say it does because you're in the air). You turn your hips by using your non racquet foot (which should be in the front). By doing this, you're pulling your front leg back and your racquet foot goes forward. Your hip will then turn and your shoulders will follow, then you swing. This allows quicker movement, a better push when you land, a bit of a height advantage.
     
    #7 azn32boi, Apr 26, 2009
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2009
  8. thrice3990

    thrice3990 Regular Member

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    I also remember reading about the "sound" that ur racket makes when it cuts through the air. I heard from my captain that when you get the stroke down to where u can hit squarely, whenever you overhead swing, you get a different sound compared to someone who slices all their overhead swings. When should i hear that sound? is it right after from the wrist extension position to the pronation? cause i feel like i hear the sound dispersed throughout my entire stroke.
     
  9. darkwingduck

    darkwingduck Regular Member

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    when hit squarely it will sound: weet!!!

    when sliced it will sound: swoosh!
     
    #9 darkwingduck, Apr 30, 2009
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2009
  10. thrice3990

    thrice3990 Regular Member

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    uhhhhh ???? lol....
     
  11. junky882003

    junky882003 New Member

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    I believe the "secret" to hitting is the impact point... so the correct stroke is actually what will get you to impart your energy to the impact point.
     
  12. Big L4

    Big L4 Regular Member

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    If you ask me (you didn't ask but who cares), i think there are several steps or factors needed to having a perfect hitting technique. Here are a few:

    -Impact point on the sweet spot of the racket
    -explosive action
    -Timing
    -Good kinetic energy transfer from hip to torso to shoulder to elbow to wrist and, if you can, to fingers. (note: you can remove any of those variables if you have extra power though you can't remove all of them. I can sometimes hit full clears with only elbow and wrist.)
    -Square hit (hit shuttle at 90 degrees angle of racket face)
    -Hit at the highest point (IMPORTANT: never fully extend arm, ALWAYS keep an angle below 180 degrees at the elbow cavity or else you risk injuring yourself.)
    -Arm pronation
    -Correct grip
    -Follow through (the longer the racket accelerates the shuttle, the faster it will be and so the more powerful your shot will be. That is one of the reason there is a follow through, to have longer shuttle/racket contact so the shuttle may get the maximum amount of impulsion/momentum.
    -Suppleness (hitting with a stiff body (arm included) is tiring. You feel strong and powerful but you're just wasting energy. Stiff = less power = less speed = more injuries =more frustration).

    *Don't forget to include other variables:
    -how fast is the coming shuttle going
    -what distance did it actually cover (you power to make the shuttle go high and additionnal power to make it go far. Thinking likewise, it takes more power to execute a good clear than a good smash.)

    ETC.
     
  13. bchaiyow

    bchaiyow Regular Member

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    Ok, we'lls tart from the basics - grip and clear
    Ensure you are using forehand grip (please see http://www.badmintonbible.com/articles/grips-guide/)

    (1) Make sure the bird is slightly in front of you and your turn your body sideway ie perpendicular to the net. Left foot (non-racket foot) should be forward.
    (2) with your left hand (non-racket arm), point right at the bird - this is good for aiming purposes, and it starts your body rotation.
    (3) Remember, you want to hit the bird as high up as possible.
    (4) The swing - think of it this way. You are holding a short axe, the branch above your head is just within reach. You're are about to to chop it with the blade, but just before you hit the branch, you turn your axe so the flat part of the axe smacks the branch - pronation. So with the racket, you'll need to do the same. As you swing your racket, the face of the racket is actually not facing the bird, not until just before you hit it.
    (5) Your left hand should end upat your tummy area...this stops your body's forward momentum, hence transferring the kinetic energy to your racket (power). I maybe wrong with the physics terms :)
    (6) As you hit, kick your right foot forward, this helps you move forward back to your base.

    Have fun.
     

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