Anyone have tips for 4 ball juggling
work on your weak hand more so that you can do 2 in one hand for a good amount of throws (or time) relative to your good hand.
do all 3 main variations: inside-out, columns, outside-in.
once you can do 2 in one hand with both hands confidently, it doesn't take long to be able to do both at the same time and then you're doing 4 !
when you start doing 4, some people find it easier to learn synchronous before asynchronous, some find it easier the other way around
Can you close your eyes & imagine yourself juggling the pattern in slow motion without having to do any Inception level special effects?[1] If yes then you don't need any tips you just need to get practicing.
If you don't get the pattern then Kelhoon's route through getting 2 in each hand solid is how I learnt (I personally preferred asynchronous). Some people struggle with the fact that the balls shouldn't cross. The traditional piece of advice is to open a door, stand facing the edge of it & juggle with one hand either side so that they can't cross. This is nonsense & I don't believe anyone genuinely learns this way. Having a slab of wood in between your hands is a recipe for bruised knuckles & if you're the sort of juggler with reflexes that lurch you forward to catch a throw you will end up with a broken nose. Instead, just tape a bit of string to the ceiling & let that be your centre line.
[1] Interestingly though, I'm rubbish at this. I read an article a while ago about an NBA basketball player, I can't remember his name but he was famous for not training as hard as any of his team mates but was still able compete at the top level. The story told how while being chauffeured to the the game he would sit in complete silence imagining himself making his plays, then he'd just get on the court & do it. I wondered whether this could help my juggling so spent some time trying to practice without practicing.
I can imagine basic cascades & fountains with up to 7 balls ok & I can imagine complex 3 ball patterns just fine. But even simple 4 ball siteswaps like 534 I really struggle with. I can juggle 534 just fine but when I try to imagine it without the aid of miming or actually juggling I have balls disappearing after throwing them & reappearing when needed. I think I can imagine 3 balls very well because most of the time 2 balls are in or very near to your hands so 2/3rds of the pattern is covered by proprioception (that & I've put hundreds of hours of practice in over the years). When the number of objects increases I find it very hard to keep an object in my consciousness after I've made a throw.
Aha! It was Allen Iverson.
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