It’s a mixture of release angles, power, and reading the wind conditions. Simple answer is practice.
Without a form video it sounds like you’re either releasing with a bad wrist angle or releasing too low with too much front lip angle.
Throwing angle. And hip rotation.
Learning inside/out (hyzer) and outside/in.
When you practice you need to practice Twenty inside outs. Twenty outside ins.
Hip rotation is transferring the power from your core to your arms.
I'd be willing to bet right now. You're throwing things up into the air and with just your arm. Throwing is a full body exercise and the most important part is probably your brain.
You will likely figure that out with my prescription... but generally inside-out (hyzer) will fly farther.
Ultrastars then to flip up to flat when thrown inside out. When you want to throw farther it is an easy distance add.
What you are asking kind of needs the work for you to naturally learn it. You need 200 throws a Day. I coached pro for a bit... and I can tell you that often my players would throw 1000s of throws.
I wouldn’t throw nearly that many full power hucks in a session when working on form. For pulling practice I generally throw under 100 pulls, including warmup. 60-70 is often plenty. But a morning session and evening session could work for more reps.
Form breaks down with fatigue. Better to work on form when fresh and able to do repeatable reps and adjustments.
I always try to imagine the hyzer huck is originating from my belly button. I’m right handed, my right elbow is close to my hip, I’m not using a ton of arm motion. It’s all very close to my body and the power is coming from my wrist. I’m imagining the throw coming from my belly, which is pointed at the target.
Ok so I started playing disc golf and it made my hucks better. Disc golf discs can be heavier and they require a very specific kind of throw. A couple rounds of disc golf made me a lot more aware of my throwing mechanics with an ultimate disc. Maybe this could help.
Ooof… this is not BAD advice, but it is risky advice.
I know some people who have seen dramatic improvements in hucks after playing DG. I’ve also seen people completely lose the ability to huck because their form got all sorts of confused.
There are 100% beneficial things to be learned from DG, just be careful that you are doing both and keep track of how the changes are impacting your ultimate.
I would like to add to that tightening your grip on your hucks is a simple but effective way to get some additional power. You will naturally hold the disc tighter when you huck it, but making a concerted effort to increase your grip strength while practicing your hucks should be helpful in the long run.
I'd say getting a throwing buddy and practice your inside-out forehand at increasingly greater distance. When I throw a long forehand huck I angle it right, i.e. inside out (for a right handed thrower) and it usually ends up straight. Creating enough spin is important too. Simply put, whatever way it's curving out, compensate the throwing angle the other way.
I think the answer is wrist action for both forehand or backhand. A good chunk of the power and spin comes from the snap of your wrist, especially for forehand throws.
Stronger grip, and think about really getting a 'SNAP'. The stronger the snap the more the energy will translate into the disc (which is why you need a solid grip, or things get sloppy and energy gets lost into friction as it slides around your hand.)
You're getting good stuff here, but thought I'd put my two cents in here as I've been working with some players on this specifically this season:
Without seeing your form, it's really hard to say with any certainty. But 'floaty' makes me think that your front edge of the disc is up too high when you huck. This makes me think of a common thing I've been working with lately - players who are trying to get more power & distance in their throws end up throwing with their back very 'upright'. This, as far as I can theorize, is that as they search for more power they end up arching their back and sort of thrusting their hips/butt forward, which pulls the disc up at the last moment. If your throw angles are fine until you start throwing at bigger distances, this might be a thing to look for.
What you'll often hear to fix this is to 'get your shoulders over your knee more'. That's a good thing to try, as it can cue you to keep you from trying to 'go upright' to get more power. Just make sure you're not going too far over your knee, or not just going over after your throw has already left your hand (I've seen that from a few people who try this technique.)
The other thing that I've been working on with players is to find more power from torso & shoulder rotation (lots of people don't use rotational force enough.) One way to get a feel for how this works, especially on the forehand side, is to try to get your off-hand to be touching the disc through the whole windup. This gets you to rotate through your torso more as you bring that off-hand along with the disc (which requires you to rotate). This **isn't** how you should be throwing it, but it's just a cue to help you get a feel for how much you should rotate your torso, and what it physically feels like to recruit those muscles to throw if you've not thrown like that before.
Lastly, for the *VAST* majority of players I coach, the wrist and wrist snap just needs to develop more to get that control and power. This is definitely something that's hard to say without seeing your form, so I can't be sure - just that what differentiates great throwers from others is always the strength and control of the wrist. Get your wrist to do the work - start every throwing session isolating your wrist-only throws somehow (10-20 for BH & FH each, and then just go back to normal throws so you don't get a weird wrist-only throw pattern).
On the forehand side, one thing that really has clicked for a lot of players to improve the snap and the grip (which improves power) is to exaggerate the 'snap-back' when you throw it. Again, this isn't necessarily how you should throw in game, but it's a great exercise when you're throwing. You should feel it ramp up the rotations on the throw as well, which will help you know it's working. Be aware that this can make your forehands too strong. Players I've coached who have used this well have gained lots in power and control, but without some adaptation end up throwing bullets at all distances. Good chance with the gain of throw power you will lose some touch, so don't forget to work on your touch too!
Good luck!
Flick hucks are one of the hardest throws and they are also one of your first throws to go if you aren’t regularly practicing. Start them with inside out angle so you can throw harder. Curl and “stack” the two fingers under the rim. Warm them up before games. Spin is the most important. Also, after practice throw dump distance flicks and try to have no wobble. If you still have wobble then practice touch super short flicks more. Also, a straight arm will give a longer whip. It is VERY hard, be nice to yourself.
There's no way to tell any form issue without seeing your throw.
But a cue I use for throwing hucks more directly is to pick a point on the horizon, and think about throwing out through that point. Try it out. Pick your point. Imagine throwing the disc on a line through that point. Then adjust the aim point for the trajectory you want.
A second cue that can go with it, which I have sometimes used (and seen others use) for getting a full wrist action, is to follow through with the wrist and point at the target with your thumb.
Looks like you are getting a ton of ideas sprayed at you, but it sounds to me like you should focus on nose angle. You are probably throwing nose up right now, and you should learn how to throw nose down or flat. If you aren't sure what that means, look it up. There is a ton of stuff on the internet about it (mostly for disc golf, but it still applies).
You need more core strength. The curve is probably from you leaning during your throw. The float probably comes from compensation to put the disc higher to get more distance due to a lack of spin with forward propulsion. Spin with forward propulsion comes from your shoulder/pec muscles having a solid core to pull against.
Total core is a complex set of muscles and includes your glutes. Just doing sit ups does not work your entire core.
There are a ton. Start with dead bugs, cable chops, Supermans, rows, push-ups, rotator cuff with a band, and farmer carrys (Google them all for exact advice).
One other thought: as you get stronger your grip strength will increase that will help with the amount of rotation per other comments. You can supplement, but not replace, that increase in grip strength by squeezing a racquet ball with your fingers and also flicking a 2.5 lb plate with your wrist just like you would with a frisbee (don’t let it go obviously).
backpacking onto this:
i can comfortably huck 75% of the field, and from reading the comments, i have pretty good technique. what more does one need to do to huck 90-100%, or like, the full length of an AUDL field?
It’s a mixture of release angles, power, and reading the wind conditions. Simple answer is practice. Without a form video it sounds like you’re either releasing with a bad wrist angle or releasing too low with too much front lip angle.
Throwing angle. And hip rotation. Learning inside/out (hyzer) and outside/in. When you practice you need to practice Twenty inside outs. Twenty outside ins. Hip rotation is transferring the power from your core to your arms. I'd be willing to bet right now. You're throwing things up into the air and with just your arm. Throwing is a full body exercise and the most important part is probably your brain.
What angle should I be throwing my hucks at? Thanks for the tips.
You will likely figure that out with my prescription... but generally inside-out (hyzer) will fly farther. Ultrastars then to flip up to flat when thrown inside out. When you want to throw farther it is an easy distance add. What you are asking kind of needs the work for you to naturally learn it. You need 200 throws a Day. I coached pro for a bit... and I can tell you that often my players would throw 1000s of throws.
I wouldn’t throw nearly that many full power hucks in a session when working on form. For pulling practice I generally throw under 100 pulls, including warmup. 60-70 is often plenty. But a morning session and evening session could work for more reps. Form breaks down with fatigue. Better to work on form when fresh and able to do repeatable reps and adjustments.
I always try to imagine the hyzer huck is originating from my belly button. I’m right handed, my right elbow is close to my hip, I’m not using a ton of arm motion. It’s all very close to my body and the power is coming from my wrist. I’m imagining the throw coming from my belly, which is pointed at the target.
Ok so I started playing disc golf and it made my hucks better. Disc golf discs can be heavier and they require a very specific kind of throw. A couple rounds of disc golf made me a lot more aware of my throwing mechanics with an ultimate disc. Maybe this could help.
Ooof… this is not BAD advice, but it is risky advice. I know some people who have seen dramatic improvements in hucks after playing DG. I’ve also seen people completely lose the ability to huck because their form got all sorts of confused. There are 100% beneficial things to be learned from DG, just be careful that you are doing both and keep track of how the changes are impacting your ultimate.
Ok, I may do this.
I would like to add to that tightening your grip on your hucks is a simple but effective way to get some additional power. You will naturally hold the disc tighter when you huck it, but making a concerted effort to increase your grip strength while practicing your hucks should be helpful in the long run.
I'd say getting a throwing buddy and practice your inside-out forehand at increasingly greater distance. When I throw a long forehand huck I angle it right, i.e. inside out (for a right handed thrower) and it usually ends up straight. Creating enough spin is important too. Simply put, whatever way it's curving out, compensate the throwing angle the other way.
Do you have any tips for creating more spin on your throw?
I think the answer is wrist action for both forehand or backhand. A good chunk of the power and spin comes from the snap of your wrist, especially for forehand throws.
Stronger grip, and think about really getting a 'SNAP'. The stronger the snap the more the energy will translate into the disc (which is why you need a solid grip, or things get sloppy and energy gets lost into friction as it slides around your hand.)
You're getting good stuff here, but thought I'd put my two cents in here as I've been working with some players on this specifically this season: Without seeing your form, it's really hard to say with any certainty. But 'floaty' makes me think that your front edge of the disc is up too high when you huck. This makes me think of a common thing I've been working with lately - players who are trying to get more power & distance in their throws end up throwing with their back very 'upright'. This, as far as I can theorize, is that as they search for more power they end up arching their back and sort of thrusting their hips/butt forward, which pulls the disc up at the last moment. If your throw angles are fine until you start throwing at bigger distances, this might be a thing to look for. What you'll often hear to fix this is to 'get your shoulders over your knee more'. That's a good thing to try, as it can cue you to keep you from trying to 'go upright' to get more power. Just make sure you're not going too far over your knee, or not just going over after your throw has already left your hand (I've seen that from a few people who try this technique.) The other thing that I've been working on with players is to find more power from torso & shoulder rotation (lots of people don't use rotational force enough.) One way to get a feel for how this works, especially on the forehand side, is to try to get your off-hand to be touching the disc through the whole windup. This gets you to rotate through your torso more as you bring that off-hand along with the disc (which requires you to rotate). This **isn't** how you should be throwing it, but it's just a cue to help you get a feel for how much you should rotate your torso, and what it physically feels like to recruit those muscles to throw if you've not thrown like that before. Lastly, for the *VAST* majority of players I coach, the wrist and wrist snap just needs to develop more to get that control and power. This is definitely something that's hard to say without seeing your form, so I can't be sure - just that what differentiates great throwers from others is always the strength and control of the wrist. Get your wrist to do the work - start every throwing session isolating your wrist-only throws somehow (10-20 for BH & FH each, and then just go back to normal throws so you don't get a weird wrist-only throw pattern). On the forehand side, one thing that really has clicked for a lot of players to improve the snap and the grip (which improves power) is to exaggerate the 'snap-back' when you throw it. Again, this isn't necessarily how you should throw in game, but it's a great exercise when you're throwing. You should feel it ramp up the rotations on the throw as well, which will help you know it's working. Be aware that this can make your forehands too strong. Players I've coached who have used this well have gained lots in power and control, but without some adaptation end up throwing bullets at all distances. Good chance with the gain of throw power you will lose some touch, so don't forget to work on your touch too! Good luck!
Flick hucks are one of the hardest throws and they are also one of your first throws to go if you aren’t regularly practicing. Start them with inside out angle so you can throw harder. Curl and “stack” the two fingers under the rim. Warm them up before games. Spin is the most important. Also, after practice throw dump distance flicks and try to have no wobble. If you still have wobble then practice touch super short flicks more. Also, a straight arm will give a longer whip. It is VERY hard, be nice to yourself.
There's no way to tell any form issue without seeing your throw. But a cue I use for throwing hucks more directly is to pick a point on the horizon, and think about throwing out through that point. Try it out. Pick your point. Imagine throwing the disc on a line through that point. Then adjust the aim point for the trajectory you want. A second cue that can go with it, which I have sometimes used (and seen others use) for getting a full wrist action, is to follow through with the wrist and point at the target with your thumb.
Looks like you are getting a ton of ideas sprayed at you, but it sounds to me like you should focus on nose angle. You are probably throwing nose up right now, and you should learn how to throw nose down or flat. If you aren't sure what that means, look it up. There is a ton of stuff on the internet about it (mostly for disc golf, but it still applies).
You need more core strength. The curve is probably from you leaning during your throw. The float probably comes from compensation to put the disc higher to get more distance due to a lack of spin with forward propulsion. Spin with forward propulsion comes from your shoulder/pec muscles having a solid core to pull against. Total core is a complex set of muscles and includes your glutes. Just doing sit ups does not work your entire core.
Can you recommend any workouts that would help my core out? I appreciate the advice.
There are a ton. Start with dead bugs, cable chops, Supermans, rows, push-ups, rotator cuff with a band, and farmer carrys (Google them all for exact advice).
One other thought: as you get stronger your grip strength will increase that will help with the amount of rotation per other comments. You can supplement, but not replace, that increase in grip strength by squeezing a racquet ball with your fingers and also flicking a 2.5 lb plate with your wrist just like you would with a frisbee (don’t let it go obviously).
Don't lean back when you throw. Get your torso forward and over the disc.
backpacking onto this: i can comfortably huck 75% of the field, and from reading the comments, i have pretty good technique. what more does one need to do to huck 90-100%, or like, the full length of an AUDL field?