Check the post on my strength training with the HK team, that program DRASTICALLY increases your power.
In fact, the most important thing matters is the technique... and there has been a lot of info in the forum on smashing the 'shuttlecock' harder.... a search would yield enough info on how to proper smash.
Don't forget to relax... relax your grip & relax your arm. The correct muscles should tighten if you relax & just let it happen naturally. The other important factor is technique = proper stroke mechanics. Try throwing a shuttle over the net as far as you can. If you do it properly you should be using your leg muscles, your hips, back & abs (for trunk rotation), shoulder muscles, triceps and forearm muscles (which includes the tendons to the wrist & fingers). It is these muscles that you want to develop both for strength and for power (explosive speed strength). You probably want to do a bit of bicep work to balance out the tricep work. Don't overdo the biceps... powerful biceps are not that important for badminton. If they become too tight it can even be detrimental to your strokes. For your forearm muscles (and finger/wrist tendons) do various types of wrist curls (pronated, supinated, flexion, extension, etc). Also, do some plyometrics or some fast lifting (with light weights) to develop explosive power for all muscles mentioned above.
just trying to wack the hell out of the shuttlecock wont work you need to work on your technique, i find that if you keep your arm tight as in like a this > well except tighter with the elbow being the point and that right before you smash then you get alot more power my "coach" taught me that but it takes time so just practice it and well of course you need to have the power to pull it off but i would say its mostly in the technique. hope that helps a bit.
Smash Master's Coach...The True Smash Master... Well it's true, he's right. Well that's cuz i told him. But yeah tuck in your elbow like chicken before u smash, then release it. That way you'll raise your elbow first before u swing your arm. But there are always ways to improve your smash. 5 points.... 1. Timing 2. Transfer of bodyweight 3. Area of contact 4. Use of shoulder and waist 5. Use of wrist action Timing: Just practice with a feather birdie, and try hitting it in the centre ofthe racket. If u rally for a while and it doesn't get damaged then u've learn to hit it well. Transfer in bodyweight: Just like jump towards the shot, it gives u more power. Area of contact: Very similar to the timing, just aim for the center of the racket. Use of shoulder and waist: Doing that tucking in your elbow will already make good use of your shoulders. Wrist Action: Just add a little wrist into the shot, this will give u more power and a great angle.
Technique. I know many dudes with less muscle mass than the usual power mongers, who smash stronger and faster because they hit the shuttle with the correct technique and body movement. Once this one is correct, your smash should already be quite strong. Then add some weight training, then you will smash even harder.
Not really the sweet spot For some shots, like badminton drives or tennis volleys, the sweet spot (near the center) of the racket is the ideal contact point. However when the racket travels thru an extended arc, the contact point for max power is higher up in the stringbed (further from your grip) some 5 to 8cm (approx 3/4 the way up in the stringbed). The reason for this is because the tip (top) of the racket is travelling quite a bit faster than the sweetspot. So, you actually want to contact the shuttle along the center line of the stringbed (the imaginary line that extends from the shaft to the tip). For maximum shuttle speed on smashes & clears, the faster racket head speed higher in the stringbed becomes more important than hitting the sweetspot. The same holds true for (flat) serves & overheads in tennis. There is an optimum area above the sweetspot that will generate the fastest smashes (or tennis serves). If you hit contact too high in the bed (too close to the frame), the string action there is not ideal... so the faster head speed there is offset by the lack of rebound of the strings close to the frame.
When i was small, my coach also told me to do some sit-up during the strength training. He said that you abs muscle help generate power, it's like the power in martial arts.
Technique. I imagine that most of the guys on this forum are physically stringer than a professional lady badminton player, but I bet the prof. lady's smash is faster than the guys. I know my smash is improving as I practice a new (correct ) overhead stroke. For building up forearm and wrist muscles try a Powerball
i doubt it. have you seen these professional women players? their smash is really slow and they don't even jump smash.
reply I've played against two professional women players, both in the current England singles team, and their smashes are not that strong. I have friends who are ex-Malaysian state men's team players and they have stronger smashes. Of course there are exceptions - Huang Sui and Ra have really strong smashes, Donna Kellogg uses jump smashes, even though she's already the tallest player on the GB team. I agree that a lot of the guys on this forum probably are stronger physically and have maybe stronger smashes than many of the women professionals. Of course, they'd still lose if they ever played against them because the women are way better in all other areas of the game (footwork, netplay, defense, etc.)
Ab power Much of the power comes from body rotation. Be sure to include rotation in your sit-ups or crunches (rather than cruching straight up & down).
reply I have a question for everyone: are your ab muscles bigger on one side? When you look at bodybuilders with their six (or eight, depends on how far down you count) squares on their stomach muscles, they are all even, but on my stomach, the squares on the top right are huge, and the left ones are small. I've always thought this was because of badminton. My brother who plays a lot of sports, but has never played badminton, has a symetrical stomach gate, like a boxer.
Yep. Played a doubles game against Young Sook Lee as part of a coaching course and her smash was faster and more accurate than mine, because she had better a technique. Also a previous coach of mine had this to say about smashes and power shot in general. I've removed his excessive use of profanity 'cos this is a family forum
increase smashing power. Combination of wrist, arms, shoulder, body, hip, legs and swing. Just show you how complex the technique is. Worst than a golf swing. Don't bother to learn it. Just get a coach. Keep on practising and you'll get your power! Nothing substitute a training. I was whack by Cheah Soon Kit before in his hey days. No big deal, just pick up the shuttle and move on. haha. rgds Joe.
