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Throw height and rate by Steven Ragatz

I began attending the national conventions with the one at Purchase and have witnessed the great spectacle of hundreds of jugglers in the same room working all at once. What I find amazing is that I rarely see anyone warm-up before working. The idea of stretching and warming up the muscles before exercise is not a foreign concept to most people, but for some reason, most jugglers do not feel it necessary. Take advice from the voice of experience - be good to your body and warm-up before juggling.

I know the temptations that lie when one gets to the gym. The lure of the equipment bag is strong. I used to warm-up by juggling. I would do easy tricks for a short while and then start working on my current juggling projects. When I advanced to four clubs, I started to become aware of my left wrist. A faint itch right at the base of the palm became apparent. I didn't have any troubles until I started working with rings extensively. At the point that I was beginning to get eight rings, my wrist would become so inflamed that it would hurt until the next practice. By this time I was performing regularly and hated to see all of my ring routines be taken from my act, but my wrist would not tolerate any more strain. While performing a summer at Disney World, my wrist finally gave out. I could not even juggle three rings and clubs were becoming difficult. My five club routine was axed to a four club routine and finally down to three. Non-toss juggling was my only strong point in the act. Devil-stick, boxes and unicycles didn't require the flipping action which caused the pain.

I had my wrist looked at by a sports physician. Not to anyone's surprise, I had given myself a good case of tendonitis. In his words, "The best thing to do is to quit doing what hurts." After six months of rest and cortisone injections in my wrist, I began performing again. This time I started easy and warmed up by stretching and doing easy exercises. Not just to the wrist, but over the entire body. My non-juggling juggling warm-up now takes almost twenty minutes. This is not an unnecessarily long warm-up for a two hour practice session. I started doing ice shows and the act was going much better. I had to ice my wrist for fifteen minutes after my practice and after every show, but at least I was able to do four clubs again. Now after two years of "good practice", I am almost back to my original stature.

The elements of my warm-up routine are as follows:

1. Gentle stretching of the entire body. Start at the head and neck and work down the shoulders, chest, lower back legs etc. By starting at the top and working down the body, one is less likely to forget a body part. The stretches are soft and not forced. No bouncing. The key to juggling is to be relaxed. Breathing is incorporated into the stretches appropriately.

2. Aerobic exercises. I pick my favorite exercises. Anything will do if it gets the heart pumping. (Avoid sex, it trashes the arms.)

3. Relaxation exercises. This is the big one that help me so much. Much of the tension that I felt in my wrist was due to tension originating from other parts of my body. I STRONGLY recommend Feldencrest exercises for all athletics. By doing relaxing movements before juggling, pockets of tension that are carried by the body can be released.

After I started to work on this warm-up program, I began to become aware of my tension. Lower back tension and middle back tension are my two hot spots. I now can recognize when I should stop working and relax those areas. Because of this awareness, I can monitor my state before I get on stage. This has proven to be a great help.

I realize that not everyone out there intends to perform or even practice every day, but this is an issue that should not be ignored. Even for the beginning three ball juggler the tool used for the juggling is the body. If that tool is not properly prepared for work, it won't work.

I have experienced a vast improvement in my performance and in my juggling. This improvement is not due to juggling practice at all, but due to my improved attitude and respect for my body. I once asked Albert Lucas what the most important juggling advice he could give. He said "Listen to your body." At that point I started listening.