 So you want to know how to hold the shot, we got two major things that make a huge difference. Where's the hand and where's the arm and we're going to talk about it in this video so check it out. Everybody it's Eric Johnson for Airtate Throws Nation and in today's video we're going to talk about how to hold the shot. Now seems like a basic video there's been videos out there but one of the things we want to look at is a couple of things. We want to look at the connection of how we're holding the shot and this is going to trump everything. This is going to trump what we call the chain reaction. If we don't hold and position the hand and arm properly in the shot it really doesn't matter what you're going to do because you're not going to be able to deliver the shot right. So one of the first things that we're trying to do is we always talk about we want to get that shot kind of up here on the knuckles we want to get the thumb and we want to get the fingers behind. Now this gets into rim weight a lot of people like small shots because they feel like they can put their hand around it. You really don't want a small shot. You want a shot that allows you to get your fingers behind the ball so that we can get this flick. So in today's video what we're going to do is talk predominantly about the glide shot put position in the arm carry. It's a super important thing. Now the arm carry in the rotational shot is going to be kind of up here. Now I know I just said we're going to talk predominantly about the glide but what we're trying to do is we're going to find that comfort spot where that shot's going to be up here and you're going to notice the crease of my elbow is going to be down but in the glide shot we're pulling the shot typically under the chin and we're going to see the elbow coming out right so we're down here. So one of the key things that we want to look at is that when we're in a full throw and you're going to see me and I'm starting at the back of the ring one of the things we talk about is creating alignment. So we want to practice you're going to see most elite shot putters and you're going to see what we call as they set alignment. So one of our favorite is Valerie Adams David Storrell looking at classic gliders like Warner Gunther. So you're going to see how they get the shot they get up here and they create and they find that spot and they're bringing the shot down and you're going to see this hand position here and then what they're going to do is bring it under. You're going to see that the elbow is away and again where's the crease of the elbow where we're in this position. So the deal is why we don't want to see our arm like this or like this. Sometimes you see kids doing this or you'll see gliders right where you'll see your gliders holding the shot like this. So you're going to notice when I try to come out of this position and I'm here and my elbows here that's going to cause the shot to come out. Okay so one of the things you want to be focused on again is you're going to see how we've got this shot sitting in here and how we have the fingers sitting like this. Now you're going to notice that the ball is going to be sitting here. Sometimes the pinkie the pinkie is sitting a little bit to help some stabilization but you're more elite guys they're going to get that finger closer so that they can get more of this type of thing and so you're going to be able to put more force. That flick is worth an extra foot to maybe as much as three feet. The second thing we talked about is once we get that right we want to be able to understand that where it's going to go in the neck. This is going to be somewhat thrower centric right. Some guys are going to like it a little lower. If you look at the glide legend Ulf Temmerman he was down here. You're going to notice where the elbow is though. So now what you're going to notice is when I hit that and you're seeing where the elbow position is so if I'm gliding and I bring that shot down and you see me here and you're going to see where that elbow is at. Now I'm in this position because as I hit the glide and this opens now I'm going to be in this position to pull in that nice linear strike position. So basically what we wanted to help you guys understand is that there's a lot of little nuanced details to holding the shot. It really is the first thing and what do kids want to do. They want to get in right away and why does that shot come out because if you learn the rules of the shot put the elbow has to be up. It can't come off the neck. You can't throw it. Well that's going to be because of how you position the elbow and how you're holding in your hand and this connection is what's going to be key. So this is why you'll see your rotational throwers. The big muscular guys they're going to see you're going to see this and you're going to see that that arm is level and in the glide you're going to see this kind of thing and you're going to see that elbow kind of here and they're carrying it more in this position so when they line up and they're going to move into the strike you're going to be able to get behind this point and push the shot through. How you hold and how you grip have a huge impact if you don't get these two things right. How the hand position is going to work and how the angle of the arm and where the arm is going to sit it's going to completely make learning technique next to impossible because you're always going to be feeling the weight of the shot pulling away it's always going to change how you move it's going to change your balance it's never going to allow you to strike the shot clean and if you're doing that then you're always going to compensate right because if your arm's out of position then what you're going to wind up doing if your arm drops well then you're going to be trying to position your body to get yourself into a putting motion which is clearly not going to help you develop a good technical pattern. So again this is this is something we talk about in the throwing chain reaction it's a real simple thing we teach a four part sequence how we're going to get everything set up and so we get everything in position and we've seen a lot of that so the elbow stays down and away and in the rotation it's up here because we have two different angles of release we're really looking at about 36 to 40 degrees in the rotational shot and we're really looking at 42 degrees in that range in the glide we want to be out much it's a higher angle of release so you're going to be seeing because it's a linear delivery and out and the rotation is about speed and a longer path to generate speed and power so those are the two things but you've got to get this hand position right you've got to get this elbow position right because if you don't it's going to be a disaster okay guys so hopefully start there hopefully you can go try that tip keep those things in mind if you like this video be sure to give us a thumbs up subscribe comment below and be sure to check out the throwing chain reaction system in the link below thanks so much for watching we'll see you on the next video