Learning to juggle is a real challenge, but it can also become a rewarding activity. Studies have indeed shown that people who learn to juggle develop more brainpower! Although this hobby may seem difficult at first, things get a lot easier when you master the basics and practice them regularly.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: catching the helping hand
Step 1. Choose suitable balls
Balls filled with rice are particularly suitable for beginners. Take balls that don't bounce too much and roll when they fall, it will keep you from running around. Those that are filled with rice can be bought cheaply or made by hand. Tennis balls filled with sand or a few coins and surrounded by a plastic ball will also work. They will not bounce back and will adhere well.
While you are there, also choose a suitable place to practice. At first, the balls will go all over the place, so you better not be too close to granny's precious oil lamp or grandpa's ceramic cow collection
Step 2. Play by throwing a ball in the air to get the feel of the juggling
Pass it from one hand to the other as well. Throw the ball with one hand and retrieve it with the other, trying to throw it at eye level while keeping your elbows at your hips.
Step 3. Pass yourself with a good drop in your hand
This will teach you to juggle smoothly. Just lower your hand before throwing the ball. This movement should be light, it will not work if you descend too low. Do this by passing the ball from one hand to the other, without the ball passing above your eye level.
Imitate the movements of the jugglers. When you juggle in the air, your hands should make circular movements. You are almost there
Step 4. Take a ball in each hand
Throw ball A and wait until it is at the top of its curve before throwing B. Practice until you are comfortable with this movement.
Throwing at the top is the key. It is by launching at this point that you will save the most time. This becomes especially important when playing with 3, 4, 5… balls
Part 2 of 2: juggle three or more balls
Step 1. Juggle three balls
Try to make three passes in a row. Start off smooth, just watching how the three balls spin in the air in a spinning motion. Learning to juggle with three balls is mainly about visualizing the trajectory of the balls and the crossing zones. Most of the time, one ball will be in the air while the other two will be one in each hand.
- To begin with, hold two balls in your right hand and one in your left hand (and vice versa if you are left-handed).
- Start sending one of the two right-handed balls (again, do the opposite if you are left-handed).
- Throw a ball towards your left hand and when ball 1 is at its top, throw ball 2 (the one in your left hand) towards your right hand by passing it under the one in the air.
- When Ball 2 is at its highest point (at this point you must also catch Ball 1 in your left hand), throw Ball 3 under Ball 2.
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Finally, when ball 2 is in your right hand, only grab ball 3 and stop there. That's all there is to it! Repeat.
If you can't seem to find the trick, practice with very light scarves. This way you will have more time to understand how it all works
Step 2. Work inside out
Now that you're comfortable with the simple three-ball juggling, practice working backwards. Throw the balls over the ones in the air and no longer under them.
You can also juggle normally and decide to send one of the three balls systematically over it. In this way, one third of the balls will be sent over and two thirds from below. If it's always the same hand that throws over, you juggle in "slow shower" and if each throw is done over the top, you juggle in "inverted three ball cascade". When you master this, you can juggle crossing your hands or in a column (one ball in the middle, two on the sides) and mix techniques
Step 3. Go to 4 or 5 balls
Try juggling two balls in one hand, then two in the left hand and two in the right at the same time. For some, juggling with four balls is easier than with three!
Juggling with five balls is like juggling with three balls, but moving your hands much faster and throwing the balls higher. Keep practicing, mastering it takes time
Advice
- Relax, breathe calmly, and don't get frustrated. It can take days before you know how to juggle three balls.
- Juggle objects of the same weight. It will be much, much easier.
- Start gently by repeating the steps of the three-ball juggling. Then try to do these steps without interruption. Don't worry if you can't. Take a little break before going back to it.
- Juggling inside prevents the balls from going off or interfering with the wind, but don't break anything!
- Start juggling with your strong hand.
- It can help to focus on how you throw the ball more than how to catch it. Well thrown, a ball will fall naturally in the other hand.
- A bed or couch can be used to catch fallen balls.
- As you learn tricks or variations, try to feel the way the balls fly through the air (this is unique to each juggler and each trick). When you feel a figure well, bring out the proper aspect of the figure, it will improve the visual rendering.
- Learn each trick with both hands. Find figures that suit you, it will be easier.
- Juggle facing a wall so the balls don't go too far.
- When juggling, put on some upbeat music to help you find the beat.
- Juggling relies a lot on the gaze. For example, if you have a hard time sending a ball to your other hand with precision or sending it high enough, imagine that the ball has to pass over an imaginary box running from your elbows up to 30 cm in height. over your head. If you can't help but walk forward, imagine being blocked by a dam of bedbugs right in front of your feet.
- Start with handkerchiefs or scarves. Be careful, however, that with this method, you will have the impression that juggling is very easy and may have trouble going fast enough when you try with balls.
- If you keep dropping balls, pause and refocus. Take a deep breath and let go of stray thoughts. Practice in a quiet place.
Warnings
- Juggling is hard and sometimes a little depressing, boring, tiring, repetitive, frustrating or all of a sudden. This is unfortunately the lot of any discipline that takes time to be mastered.
- Do not juggle heavy objects.
- Do not try to play with burning axes. Only professionals know how to do it.
- Juggling is a physical exercise, try to warm up before each session.