throwing discs behind the back

Disc Throwing Tips for Behind the Back & Under the Leg

Backhand throws behind the back and under the leg are standard creative releases that sometimes give handlers trouble. Here are some tips and tricks for making the throw come off with good spin and flight trajectory.

Body as Flick

You don’t really flick your wrist to make discs spin. The wrist does get flicked but it is not a conscious, physical flicking of the wrist that makes it happen. The wrist flick that makes discs spin is a byproduct of a quickly moving arm stopping while the wrist and disc keep moving. I like to say that you don’t flick your wrist, the wrist is flucked.

If the wrist is loose or the arm speed is great enough, a stopping of the arm due to running into the body or running into the end of the body’s ability to stretch towards the target, the wrist will flick and the disc will flick with it.

On both the behind the back and under the leg throws, keep your wrist loose and crack your arm into the body or into the knee pit. The disc will pop out with heavy Zs (lots of spin).

Clearing the Back

Sometimes it’s hard to get the arm and disc all the way around the body to make the throw. This is not as great a problem if you stay loose and use the body as flick, but it still can be trouble.

Stepping to the right, or towards the throwing hand can help to clear the back. This can be done with either the right or left leg. Stepping out with the right leg will leave the body in a more forward facing direction and stepping to the right with the left leg will pull the left hip forward and to the right which will turn the body slightly clockwise of the target.

One of these movements will feel more comfortable than the other. It is my experience that stepping forward and right with the left foot is preferred by a majority of female throwers. I think it clears the hips a bit better.

Leaning Back on Under the Leg

There is a funky position for the under the leg throw, I call it a recumbent squat. Leaning back a bit with the hips dropping down, this recumbent squatting position helps to keep the wing of the disc up.

If the chest leans forward and down, the wing of the disc goes with it. This is the most common problem with throwing under the leg.

Keep the Disc Loose and Droopy

Holding the disc loosely, letting it droop throughout the swing of the throw is a great tip to help keep these throws turning into rollers.

Let the centrifugal force of the swing and the cracking of the arm into the body pull and lift the disc up to horizontal. This loose and droopy swing will help the spin of the disc as well.

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