Head movement

T

tuffstuff07

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Has anyone ever tried to eliminate head movement that you didn't feel you had?

When I record myself shoot I notice that I have quite a bit when I'm going through practice strokes and a small amount while shooting. Any suggestions?

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tuffstuff07 said:
Has anyone ever tried to eliminate head movement that you didn't feel you had?

When I record myself shoot I notice that I have quite a bit when I'm going through practice strokes and a small amount while shooting. Any suggestions?

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Yes. Stay still and learn to trust your stroke. Especially when "doing a little extra". Sounds simple, but it is difficult. That's just at home, then you put it under pressure and you're learning all over again. Recording yourself is very humbling/ frustrating. Good luck.

Check your balance. Feel your feet, make sure you could stand there hypothetically forever.
 
tuffstuff07 said:
Has anyone ever tried to eliminate head movement that you didn't feel you had?

When I record myself shoot I notice that I have quite a bit when I'm going through practice strokes and a small amount while shooting. Any suggestions?

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Yes; and while it may seem like an off-the-wall reference, I would suggest you apply some Google-Fu and research the methodology and philosophy of what we learned on the USMC Rifle Range as: "Snapping in".

While in relation to firing a weapon with deadly accuracy, the take-away of the training is to learn the muscle-memory, breath control, sight-alignment, and how to create a total "Dead-weight Stillness" with our body - and how to create a still and stable firing platform for your weapon - while aiming and squeezing off rounds - much like what we as pool shooters want to do with our bodies when over a ball with our bridge-hand in place.

Here's a brief article for you USMC Snapping-In from which you can orient yourself to the basic concept and determine if further research and integration into your skill-set with you cue is warranted in your case. Personally, I know for a fact the dead-stillness that I feel when over a shot, is a by-product of my time under the guidance of Primary Marksmanship Instructors while in the Corps.

To me, it's just swapping a rifle for a cue - of course, developing a dead straight stroke is another matter altogether, and would be the equivalent of Trigger Control - but, in the end, it all equates to a very "Zen" state of total stillness of mind and body (including your head).

If you decide to research what Snapping-In is all about and how it is trained, I am sure you can find the training outlined in detail on the web; then, just integrate the components and training as it relates to you and your goals with your body and your cue.

Good luck, and I hope this might be of use to you. - Gentleman James
 
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By bear bells
they’re used by hikers in the woods to make noise when they move to keep the bears away
You can attach them to your collar and get feedback when you’re shooting
 
Much of the head movement issue when stroking the cue can be related to a lack of clearance in your stance. Clearance is defined as a stroke that begins far enough away from your body so that you do not compensate for the fact that the cue is moving too close to your body during the stroke that you unconsciously move your body ( sometimes including your head) .

The same folks who lack clearance in their strokes often "steer" the cue away from the shot line - also usually done unconsciously. When video reviewing your stoke - it is important to view not just the movement of the cue to the cue ball- you also need to view the position of the cue stick relative to your body; at the point where you get into your stance and begin your warm up strokes- this will reveal whether or not you are achieving sufficient "clearance" during your final cue stroke.

For right handers, I think that you will see that the front part of the right foot is not positioned far enough in line with the cue stick when clearance is not being achieved. You may have to move your right foot a bit further to the left upon set- up for any shot.

As you review your videos- you may note that your cue grip hand is just too close too your body and just will not allow you to stroke straight without hitting your body; with either the cue or your grip hand as you stroke, so we compensate by moving our grip hand to the right or our body and sometimes also the head to the left as we complete the stroke.

Improper alignment to the shot can also cause us to unconsciously move our bodies and our head as we stroke - again, this is a compensation move that we may be making without realizing it. If you see the cue stick being "steered" as you complete certain strokes- it is a sign of mis- alignment that is occurring as you enter your stance.

A straight stroke only works well if the perceived shot line is correct, if the shooter aligns to the shot line correctly upon entering their stance, if the stance itself allows for enough clearance for the grip hand to move the cue through the shot line without fear of bodily interference.

BTW- lack of stroke clearance is usually more noticeable where we are bent over the short rails for a shot and the cue ball is closer to the center of the table - many folks tend to jam up that grip hand too close to the body on those shots. Watch the back end of your stroke on your video.

Hope this helps!
 
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This is something easy to try. Stroke a couple balls with your head about 10 inches higher than normal. Hold the back of the swing a couple of seconds. Then stroke. Shoot a couple of balls this way and see if it loosens up your stroke. If it works, gradually move a little closer to your normal position until you find a comfort level without the head movement.
 
I look at the cueball. This zeroes the shot expectation to the cue ball line. You do have to make sure you're properly aligned - no big adjustment zone or luxury.
 
Lots of great advice in this thanks.

I worked with Mark Wilson a couple years ago now and have noticed clearance and stance looks good as per another instructor. But I notice when I go to move from cue ball to object ball my head moves.

I was thinking about trying to get my head lower to see if that helps but will try some of the other suggestions in this thread also.

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tuffstuff07 said:
Lots of great advice in this thanks.

I worked with Mark Wilson a couple years ago now and have noticed clearance and stance looks good as per another instructor. But I notice when I go to move from cue ball to object ball my head moves.

I was thinking about trying to get my head lower to see if that helps but will try some of the other suggestions in this thread also.

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i would think head higher is better
so the angle of looking of looking "up" at object ball would be "lower"
jmho
 
bbb said:
i would think head higher is better
so the angle of looking of looking "up" at object ball would be "lower"
jmho
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I'm from the school that by the time you're pulling the trigger, the adjustment phase of the shot should be over. IOW having to see the whole shot will involve your stance and shot mechanics to an unnecessary and probably distortive degree.
 
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