Juggling 5 Ball Trick – How to Start
To learn how to juggle 5 balls, it is assumed that you can already juggle a very good 3-ball cascade pattern and do quite a few tricks. It is not essential that you have learned how to juggle 4 balls, as odd numbers of balls are done differently than even numbers, but there are several 4 ball tricks that can help you learn how to juggle 5 balls.
5 ball juggling is not easy and will take a lot of time, practice and a lot of falls, but persevere and it will be worth it! Note that I use the terms “favorite hand” and “weaker hand” instead of mentioning “left” and “right” hands. This makes it easier for left-handed people, especially to understand these tricks!
What does this pattern look like?
The real 5-ball cascade is the same pattern as the 3-ball cascade, only higher and much faster! This may sound simple enough, but keep in mind that in the cascade, the balls pass through the same center point, and so if your timing or accuracy is slightly off, then the balls are more likely to collide!
find other tips
When researching how to juggle 5 balls, everyone seems to have their own opinions about which tricks and techniques are the best. The advice I offer here is one possible way to learn how to juggle 5 balls, but feel free to try other people’s advice too! Find your nearest Juggling Club or Convention to meet other jugglers who can cheer you on and help you.
do not give up
3-ball cascade and 4-ball juggling may have only taken you a few days or weeks to master, but 5-ball juggling will take much longer, so be prepared! It took this author a few years of practice before he became solid.
Learn 3 and 4 ball tricks
Try to learn all the tricks in this article, as there are some good 3 and 4 ball juggling patterns that will help you master 5 ball juggling, but they are still great tricks to add to your repertoire!
How high should I throw?
This is a trade-off, as you’ll know from juggling 3 balls, the lower you can throw, the more accurate the pattern you’ll have, but the less time you’ll have to make each throw, and vice versa. Some people suggest that you should throw as high as you can reach when on your toes. The choice is yours!
How to hold 3 balls in one hand
When it comes to juggling numbers (for example, 5 or more balls), it’s best to buy some balls that are a little smaller than normal or a lot softer, because you can’t change the size of the hands that hold them . ! You’ll find that 5-ball jugglers have their own favorite type of juggling ball and favorite method of holding 3 balls, so experiment a bit until you find a method that works for you! The poufs take up little space and have the added advantage that they do not roll when they hit the ground.
Practice these 3 and 4 ball tricks first!
There are several 3 and 4 ball tricks that I recommend practicing, which will help you learn how to juggle 5 balls. Of course, there is nothing better than picking up 5 balls and trying, but these tricks are useful to help you increase your juggling speed, height, accuracy and improve your time, which are essential skills to improve your 5 ball juggling, so Please try these tricks!
3 ball tricks
In any 5-ball practice session, it’s probably best to pick a couple of these tricks and maybe a 4-ball trick and a lot of 5-ball practice, rather than just concentrating on one trick. This can keep you from getting frustrated and will also help you expand your 3-ball and 4-ball juggling routines!
- Cascade of 3 balls (high): Practice throwing each ball 5 balls high and get the height consistent with each throw.
- Hands to knees: Juggle a 3-ball cascade, but lower your hand below your knees before throwing the ball high.
- 3 ball shower: One hand throws high to the other hand, which passes to the first. In essence, one hand does all the throwing and the other hand does all the catching. The balls travel in one direction (sort of a triangle). To start, just use two balls. Have them both in your favorite hand and throw them high and fast (one after the other). As soon as a ball lands in your weaker hand, pass it horizontally to your dominant hand. When you feel ready to try three, remember that this will take a lot of practice to make it look smooth. Remember to throw high and accurately as you don’t have time to chase balls! Try to do a tall shower pattern and keep the pattern smooth and precise, and practice this in both directions!
- Flash of 3 balls: While cascading, throw all 3 balls high, then continue. This trick will help you get used to the speed and height of the 5-ball cascade!
- Flash with applause: Flash 3 balls (see above), and as soon as you’ve released the third ball, clap once. Now try again, but this time clap your hands twice before continuing the waterfall. These 2 claps would represent balls 4 and 5 thrown in a cascade pattern, so it’s a very useful trick. Try to do this trick continuously.
- Juggling the baby: Start with 2 balls in your favorite hand and one ball in your weaker hand. Throw 2 balls from your favorite hand in a rain pattern, then throw the ball from your other hand directly into your favorite hand. Now throw the 2 balls in the rain pattern to your favorite hand and throw the single ball directly to your weaker hand. This trick is called holding the baby, because that’s how you would juggle a real baby (the baby is the only ball that would be carefully passed using the arm as a cradle, in a straight line from one hand to the other!) PLEASE DON’T JUGGLE A REAL BABY!
4 ball tricks
Learn some or all of these tricks, then try juggling 5 balls. Learning these tricks will help make it easier!
- Half Shower: If you are able to do a 3-ball shower (see above) then this trick should be simple enough once you get comfortable with 4-ball juggling. You can start by juggling this pattern synchronously (throwing a ball from each hand at the same time). Choose which way you want the balls to enter, and at the same time throw a high ball to one hand and a low ball to the other hand. When both balls peak (which should be about the same time, takes a bit of work), then toss the next two balls in exactly the same way (the hand that tossed a high ball, tosses another high ball, etc. .). Go ahead and practice this trick in both directions!
- Snake: Start with two balls in each hand. Throw one ball from your favorite hand, then two balls from your weaker hand in quick succession. Then roll two of your favorite hand in succession. (ie throw the one still in your hand, catch the first one on the left, throw it, catch and hold the second one on the left) Then two to the left, two to the right, two to the left, etc. It’s confusing at first, but the pattern looks great!
5 Ball Tips and Things to Practice
- Improve your accuracy: Throw all 5 balls and let them fall again. Look where they have landed. They should have roughly landed in a group of 2 close to each other and 3 balls close to each other.
- Improve your time: Try to throw all 5 balls into the air and let them fall to the ground. Listen to the sound these 5 balls make as they hit the ground and try to get a nice even beat for the drops. This will mean that your pattern is evenly spaced.
- 5 ball flash: It’s 5 pitches followed by 5 catches. The 3 balls from your favorite hand should end up in your weaker hand and the 2 balls from your weaker hand should end up in your favorite hand. You may find that it is your third or fourth throw that always fails the same way every time, and therefore this trick gives you the opportunity to focus on improving that particular throw.
- Stand near a wall: What really helped me was when I practiced against a wall. Since the balls touched the wall a bit, your pattern was easier to make.
- Try 6 captures, then 7: “After you learn how to flash five balls you should try throwing an extra ball afterwards, I did some research and learned that in the old schools of juggling they taught to take one step at a time and it helped me a lot, for example don’t just flash , but flash an extra ball so that you eventually develop the quintuplets rhythm faster” (advice from Jashufet Harold)
- 1 ball of different color: Try to use 4 balls of the same color and one ball of a different color. If you have, say, four black balls and one red ball, and you make sure to throw the red ball last, then you’ll be able to keep track of how many catches you’re making, because every time you throw the red ball, know what you’ve made! “5 more catches”!
- If the pattern becomes too wide: This tends to happen when you don’t have enough time to bring your hands in toward the center of your body for the next throw. Try throwing a little higher to give yourself more time to return your hand to its proper throwing position.
- If the pattern becomes too narrow: This may be because the pattern is too high. Try to lower the pattern a bit and spread the pattern out slowly (if you do it too fast you may find the balls collide!)
- I can handle “10” pitches and then I can’t go any further! Try some 5-ball flashes (5 pitches and 5 catches). Aim for accuracy and improve time. Now try to get 10 clean throws, catches and saves. If you can keep the first 10 throws and catches clean, then there’s no reason why you can’t continue with a little practice. It may help to stop trying to count the balls, as this may be taking up too much of your thinking!
- The pattern seems too fast! One way to make 5-ball juggling seem slower is to try showing off a 7-ball cascade! After a few tries and realizing that you have to be even faster and more precise, your 5-ball pattern will seem much slower than before. Trust me, this really works!
- My arms hurt a lot when I practice: In order to build some stamina, you could possibly try some weight training at your local gym, try juggling 3 or 4 of the heavy DX balls, or just keep practicing but take regular breaks (your arms will eventually wear out). will get used to this trick, but it will take time to build up the stamina!)
You only need 3 repetitions of 5 balls to be classified as a 5 ball juggler (15 catches), so keep practicing!
