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A PRACTICAL APPROACH TO HAMMER THROWING
AND THE ESSENTIALS OF THE TECHNIQUE
Mike Morley MNASC T.Eng
National Event Coach Hammer
For the purpose of this article it is written as for a right-handed thrower, and Samozvetsov's 1971 circle reference has been used. e.g. 0/360/12 o'clock is the rear of the circle, 180/6 o'clock the front of the circle, therefore 9 o'clock is 90 degrees.
Coaches and throwers all know how to throw a hammer, but it is important to understand the rhythm, various 'hammer positions' and what the feet, particularly the left, should be doing at these 'hammer positions'. e.g. By setting the feet correctly in the circle the thrower can ensure that they have the longest possible path for the left foot to travel. At the end of the day there is only one technique to throwing the hammer but there are many styles.
Please see the diagram for illustration.
1. General Principles
The world's top throwers work against their left side, they rotate around their left side, and through their left side. To do this they have to obviously control their left axis. Another important part in enabling this left side control is to get the left heel turned in quickly after the right foot has landed. The 80 metre plus throwers are the ones that catch the hammer the earliest, AND turn their left heel in the quickest. They have the longest ratios of double support by being able to achieve this action.
Without going into the finer points about the path of the hammer, it should seen as almost circular, with most pressure at the low point on each turn. (This point does not move significantly to the throwers left until the delivery phase). As the hammer reaches the low point the advanced throwers counter the increased hammer speed by moving the body toward the direction of the throw. In order to set the weight properly onto the left heel when the right foot lifts off, it is necessary to displace the body weight against the pull of the hammer, whilst at the same time remaining relaxed.
Swings and Rhythm - Downward Acceleration
Establishing a rhythm is crucial to the success of the throw. The best place to set this up is obviously in the swings, as it creates a rhythm for the throw. It is in the swings where the rhythm of the separation and subsequent realignment of the shoulders and hips begins. Push the hammer down on the swings and let it come up under its own steam. Maintain the left axis right from square one, do not pull the left shoulder away. Many throwers think about their low point, when in fact they should be concerned with their high point. 'Accelerate the hammer from the high point all the way down to the low point' this goes for both swings and turns. Remember; relax as the hammer goes uphill, long radius on the left, tension as the work is applied downhill.
2. Swings and Entry
Establish a Balanced position & Maintain the Left Axis
The entry should start in the swings when the hammer is at 220 degrees. The high point is 170 degrees and the low point is therefore opposite which is 350 degrees. On the entry the plane of the hammer changes and it is must be pushed out long and to the right for maximum radius. In the swings, accelerate the hammer from 220 degrees to 0 degrees as the work phase.
For a toe turn entry, to get the hammer to its low point and the subsequent entry, keep the weight predominantly on the right foot (left foot working on the ball of the foot, heel free of the ground) until the hammer reaches the low point, by this time the left heel will have started to turn in, use the right hip pushing into the left. (Pressure should be felt in the left hip).
That is the right knee is pushed forward first, closely followed by the right hip and right shoulder, do not take the left shoulder or the left hip away. (Work on ankle flexibility to allow this action to be performed.) This action of transferring pressure into and onto the support leg and establishing an axis of rotation must be maintained throughout the throw.
Don’t forget that it is the final turn that needs to be the fastest not the first or second!!
Drills
You must try to get the rhythm of the whole throw from the start, breaking it down for too long obviously results in a longer learning process. If the entry is correct then it is likely that three or four turns can be completed, and the athlete will be in a position to deliver the hammer. Don’t forget that any little fault at the entry will be increasingly magnified as the turns progress. This is why a number of throwers swing until they feel the correct rhythm, until they become a whole unit, all of it in tune, governed by the feel of the hammer.
Coaches should be very aware that the purpose of drills is to assist the learning of hammer throwing and not to become a world beater at drills. The drills mentioned below all too often show through as disruptions to the athletes execution of the throw; therefore:
1) Teaching one or two turn throws for any length of time, because of the bad body positions required to achieve the release, you are actually practising something that you will never utilise!!. Swing until the feel is achieved, then enter. Initially of course this will mean many swings, but the tension and relaxation phases in the rhythm of the swings must be acquired and felt.
2) Teaching one turn, then stopping whilst another two swings take place, and then repeating, sometimes even shuffling the feet back to the parallel! causes a neural response that is accepted and learnt by the brain. You have now successfully conditioned the athlete to stop in mid flow! And reset their positioning. When the athlete then tries to do the full turns, just as the right foot goes down they pull back because this is the response they have learnt. What the drill is actually teaching is that the hammer radius is to be shortened and pulled in on the right side, and the low point moves across to the left.
3) Teach complete 360 degree single turns without the hammer or with a stick. Quite often the left foot will rotate beyond 180 degrees and the athlete will fall off the side of the foot coming/falling down onto the right side. Once the hammer is used this ‘learnt movement’ (drill) is amplified into no left side, falling onto the right, no hammer acceleration and almost certainly overturning and the low point moving to the throwers left. Remember the hammer throw is a dynamic event. I would advise not landing the right foot beyond about 225 degrees (4.30) with static type drills, whilst always ensuring a long relaxed left side.
4) Teach heavy hammer throwing to soon and to often, to the detriment of the athletes learning of the correct technique.
Plate turns
Throwing drills with plate weights. Use a rotating snatch. The 'plate' turns consist of holding weight plates of varying weight on extended arms whilst turning. The athlete should aim to have the right foot down and 20 degrees later the left heel should be turned in. Various plate weights up to 20kg can be used. Multiple turns.
Hammers
Various weights and lengths dependant on training priorities, i.e. under and over co-efficient. Short wire hammers, winds and release.
3. The Turns
Points of Emphasis - Maintain System
Remember the left side control, the rhythm of tension and relaxation, don't pull the left shoulder away. You must aim to have your turns as demonstrated on the drawing. The right foot down earlier on each turn. Work the hammer down to the low point and then transfer back into the left side. After that it is back to the relaxation phase and a long radius. Your biggest increase in acceleration of the hammer only takes place when the left heel is on the ground; therefore a late left heel means a reduction in acceleration.
Don't forget the harder the right foot comes down the more likely it is to lift off too quickly and therefore shorten the double support phase.
On observation of the top throwers, immediately the right foot lands, the left leg (knee) pushes away from the right thus forming a gate. This is achieved by keeping pressure on the right foot and unwinding the torso against it. Use of the left side greatly assists this action as pressure is from the toe of the left foot through the left knee and pushing hard to the left.
The thrower is then quick to get onto the left heel, but not before the left heel has been brought inside'. The pressure is then applied through the left knee, again pressing to the left. This movement allows the transition from the heel to the ball to be a much shorter movement and in turn less circle space is used. It also allows work to begin on the hammer at a very early stage, allowing a working on the tension through to about 60 degrees. Plant your right foot down and unwind over the top of it. Again good ankle strength and flexion required.
Igor Nikulin described the initial part of this action 'as almost identical to the action of chopping down a tree'.
This then is the understanding of the 'Charlie Chaplin' position, particularly when the right foot lands on each turn. Top throwers achieve the 'gate' or 'Charlie Chaplin' position through their double support period. The advantage of this position is that it creates a very stable lower body, over which the upper body can work and therefore accelerate the hammer.
As the right foot touches down the athlete needs to be focusing on or over their right elbow, their head must be stable in the centre or slightly to the right. If you lower the head you cannot work the left heel. Another very relevant point is that the bottom of the hands should work in line with the navel at zero degrees, never go below this level or the whole system will become unstable.
Maintain the Left Axis
Control of the left axis is of paramount importance. Don't try to accelerate the hammer uphill, as the left side will pull away, and the radius will be lost. You must remember that the rhythm involves tension on the downward phase, relaxation on the upward phase. These criteria should be one of the dominant subjects in the approach/teaching of hammer throwing. The hammer is an extension to the arms, linked through the shoulders and all the way down to the lower back.
4. The Release
The last turn is complicated, as the athlete is usually already anticipating the throw. If the head goes down they will go round the left side, not against it. Taking the final turn, the right foot is down as the hammer is at 220 degrees, (most of the pressure will be on the right leg) and the left heel is turned in by 240 degrees. Work the hammer down to the low point. The athlete must then try and leave the upper body relaxed whilst turning on both toes. The hammer will move across the thrower to a point in line with the left heel, were it will be hit with a very active lift from the legs through the left side with the foot flat down. This is achieved by a sequence of right hip knee toe turning in and lifting against the turning left side. As the hammer head reaches a point off the left ankle (the left foot should now be facing 90 degrees or 9 o'clock) the left heel slams down and the right hip continues to drive in and both legs lift.
5. Summary
The hammer is a dynamic sequence of movements, not a series of static drills which magically come together when momentum is put into the hammer head. Relate your drills as closely to the real world as possible.
Establishing the rhythm for the entire throw is set up in the swings. Think about the high point, rather than the low point. Push the hammer from the high point all the way down to the low point, this doesn’t mean aggressively, just catch the hammer early and feel the rhythm of the swings. The downward acceleration of the rhythm involves tension, whereas you should be in a relaxed phase on the upward part of the swing.
Control the left shoulder in the swings, don’t take it away, set up the left axis and turn around it.
Land the right foot earlier on each turn, and get the left heel turned in and down as quickly as possible (figure 1), unwind over this stable base.
In the turns accelerate the hammer from the high point to the low point. (See note.)
Understand the difference between technique and style and don’t confuse them.
Remember, the hammer is a speed – strength event, requiring good all round conditioning, core strength and stability, with good mobility. The powerful sports car has replaced the heavy horse, honest.
Note. For the more accomplished athlete the hammer acceleration actually starts in the single support phase. This occurs as the left leg bends just after the high point. Remembering that this is a simple approach, the learning athlete needs to be more concerned with getting the right foot back down early with reasonable hip and shoulder separation and minimal loss of radius.
Mike Morley MNASC. T.Eng P.A.S. National Event Coach Hammer 29.11.99
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