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Someone recently requested an Instructable on how to juggle, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to put up my first instructable.
This is a basic 3-ball cascade, the most basic 3-ball juggling pattern there is. If there is enough interest, I might post further patterns and tricks as people request them. You can also buy all kinds of juggling books which will guide you through these, but those cost money and most of us here are cheapskates. At least, I know I am.
I decided to use animated gifs on this to get the point across clearly and without distraction. All animations in this instructable were created using the Pivot stick-figure animator
Here's what you'll need:
1. 3 objects - preferably bean bags, but anything fairly spherical would work. I would recommend something with minimal bounce or roll, as you'll probably be doing a lot of chasing when you first start. For some good, sturdy, cheap bean bags, check out these.
2. A little space - Don't try to learn this in a phone booth. Chances are that you'll have smallish spherical objects bouncing off of walls at some point in this process, so you should move away from your grandmother's knick-knack shelves before proceeding.
3. Comfortable clothes - likewise, constrictive clothing will make your arm movements less fluid.
4. Some time - I learned to juggle 4 balls between classes at community college. I would hurry to my next class then stand in the hall juggling for 7 minutes before taking my seat.
This is a basic 3-ball cascade, the most basic 3-ball juggling pattern there is. If there is enough interest, I might post further patterns and tricks as people request them. You can also buy all kinds of juggling books which will guide you through these, but those cost money and most of us here are cheapskates. At least, I know I am.
I decided to use animated gifs on this to get the point across clearly and without distraction. All animations in this instructable were created using the Pivot stick-figure animator
Here's what you'll need:
1. 3 objects - preferably bean bags, but anything fairly spherical would work. I would recommend something with minimal bounce or roll, as you'll probably be doing a lot of chasing when you first start. For some good, sturdy, cheap bean bags, check out these.
2. A little space - Don't try to learn this in a phone booth. Chances are that you'll have smallish spherical objects bouncing off of walls at some point in this process, so you should move away from your grandmother's knick-knack shelves before proceeding.
3. Comfortable clothes - likewise, constrictive clothing will make your arm movements less fluid.
4. Some time - I learned to juggle 4 balls between classes at community college. I would hurry to my next class then stand in the hall juggling for 7 minutes before taking my seat.
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Signing UpStep 1The Toss
This is the simplest step from the observational stand point, but it is very important developmentally. You want to practice tossing a single ball back and forth from hand to hand, making sure that your tosses are even.
Ideally, the tosses should fly in such a way that your hands will make small, circular movements as you toss and catch.
Plant your feet about hip width apart so you have plenty of movement potential. This is a good habit to get in, since some juggling tricks require a reasonable amount of bending, so you want to work on staying balanced.
In most cases, your shoulders should be relaxed, and your elbows about waist height, and bent about 90 degrees in the resting position. If your hands are rising above the height of your chest, you're probably putting a little too much effort into it.
As you toss, keep your eyes fixed on a single spot directly in front of you, and relax your focus. Try to keep the ball in your peripheral vision as it moves. This will become increasingly important as you add more balls later.
For the purposes of three balls, each toss should probably not go above your head height (for now).
Keep practicing this until you can go back and forth 30 times without dropping.
Ideally, the tosses should fly in such a way that your hands will make small, circular movements as you toss and catch.
Plant your feet about hip width apart so you have plenty of movement potential. This is a good habit to get in, since some juggling tricks require a reasonable amount of bending, so you want to work on staying balanced.
In most cases, your shoulders should be relaxed, and your elbows about waist height, and bent about 90 degrees in the resting position. If your hands are rising above the height of your chest, you're probably putting a little too much effort into it.
As you toss, keep your eyes fixed on a single spot directly in front of you, and relax your focus. Try to keep the ball in your peripheral vision as it moves. This will become increasingly important as you add more balls later.
For the purposes of three balls, each toss should probably not go above your head height (for now).
Keep practicing this until you can go back and forth 30 times without dropping.
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However recently, I got a set of five juggling balls and I just can't figure out how it works. :( Could someone post an instructable breaking five-ball juggling down into easy steps? Thanks.
http://www.viddler.com/jugglingman/videos/1/
Enjoy juggling! Don't struggle...juggle!
But juggling is an illusion, when done properly.
I was wrong 2 balls are in the air for a millionth of a second, my bad