How to curb shivering movements while cueing?

[denja]

Shivers

Yes, I understand, I was just having a joke.

The shivers sound like a nervous problem however, definitely needs to be addressed before any standard of match play is carried out..Maybe just play with no care in the world with its just a game attitude, which of course it is...

I agree (no care in the world) striking a balance between "no care in the world" and the will to win is very hard, self doubt is a very hard thing to control so the basics are so important so you have a good foundation to your cue control under stress. I dont know how I would cope if there was £75.000 at stake !!!!!!!!! like the pros, now thats the time you would get the shivers. hard to imagine!!!.

[Terry Davidson]

x3d:

When someone says 'feathering' it means this...when you drop your bridge hand to the table with the cue behind the white in the address position, you start moving the cue back and forth a few times. This is called 'feathering' and most coaches (including myself) recommend a MAXIMUM of 3 back and forth movements (feathers) and then stopping the cue at the cueball in the address position once again (this is called the 'front pause') and then your final SLOW backswing with loose grip, the 'rear pause' at the end of the backswing if a player has one and then deliver the cue, driving the back of the grip hand into the chest.

Feathering is defined as the 'semi-practice' strokes a player will do before his final backswing. Your 6 or more is far too many.

Terry

[nrage]

Sad to say, I am those people whose hands would shiver a little while I'm holding them still.

That's unfortunate. I have a friend with this. When I asked him if he knew why, he told me that his doctor explained it as a result of slow reaction times and/or bad fine motor control. That is to say, when you hold your hand out and try to keep it stable/still you're actually performing a rapid sequence of adjustments, correcting the position rapidly. When you do this fast enough your hand remains stable/still to the naked eye. When you're a bit slow the hand moves before you compensate, or moves too much due to poor control. This repeats as you move back and forth and resolves itself into a shaking motion to the naked eye. It's a common occurrence in older people whose reaction times and manual dexterity have worsened.

Something to try is holding your hand out and seeing what effect trying to relax it completely while still holding it up does, I know I find it easier to hold my own hand still if I use less muscle tension.

I used to play fairly regularly with a guy who has Parkinson's disease. He is at the stage now that when he stands "still" he is actually shaking a fair amount. The amazing thing is that when he gets down on a shot he is as still as most anyone else. He does have to be able to get down "normally" and place his bridge and elbow firmly but still I have no idea how he manages this as I didn't think Parkinson's was something you could consciously "control" but he does it somehow. If course he has good and bad days and I suspect on the bad days he is managing to control the shaking less.

[x3dnd3x]

x3d:

When someone says 'feathering' it means this...when you drop your bridge hand to the table with the cue behind the white in the address position, you start moving the cue back and forth a few times. This is called 'feathering' and most coaches (including myself) recommend a MAXIMUM of 3 back and forth movements (feathers) and then stopping the cue at the cueball in the address position once again (this is called the 'front pause') and then your final SLOW backswing with loose grip, the 'rear pause' at the end of the backswing if a player has one and then deliver the cue, driving the back of the grip hand into the chest.

Feathering is defined as the 'semi-practice' strokes a player will do before his final backswing. Your 6 or more is far too many.

Terry

Thanks for your advice Terry but to clear some complications, I don't have a coach. I self learn and just play at the snooker clubs by myself. The coach is my friend's and whenever he go for his lessons, I would just tag along and see what the coach teaches him and try out myself.

I'll try out what you just recommended. I'm currently having a hard time trying to adjust my body stance and elbow position. I can't position myself like your dp. My elbow would be slightly out a little when I'm cueing. Regarding about the feathers thing, I'll try to get use to 3 instead of my usual 6. I would like to say my shivering might be caused by bad stance or positioning? I'll try my best to take a video of my stance and elbow position if possible.

[Acrowot]

If you are shivering too much, then put on some warmer clothes .... lol.

[x3dnd3x]

If you are shivering too much, then put on some warmer clothes .... lol.

Its not because of the temperature. Haha. I only shiver a little when I pause on the backswing.

[Manu147]

Just to reiterate what steve davis talks about in feathering, the no of feathers is irrelevant, as long as it doesnt hinder the player in anyway, snooker is a game played by individuals, so the player in feathering is just preparing himself mentally and physically to play the shot, some players feels ready to strike quicker than others, look at a crosssection of top pros, some are more contrived like anthony hamilton, some more shorter (natural if you like), either way they have developed a system that is consistent to them, i dont think a player should worry about conciously counting his feathers(this can only detract from playing the shot), so go with watever suits you, dont fall into the trap of what can happen to some players, becoming a slave to the dos and donts of the game, play the game and enjoy the ride.

[Acrowot]

Well said Manu147, that makes more sense than a lot of the other suggestions. Why feather at all? There are lots of players that do not bother with feathering.

[Manu147]

Well said Manu147, that makes more sense than a lot of the other suggestions. Why feather at all? There are lots of players that do not bother with feathering.

Very true,everybody can find their own balance.

[vmax4steve]

Try beta blockers or a little Tetrahydrocannibinol m8

[CoachGavin]

Joking aside do you suffer from general anxiety cos if you hands shake or tremor this could mean you do and its nothing to do with your technique?

[x3dnd3x]

Joking aside do you suffer from general anxiety cos if you hands shake or tremor this could mean you do and its nothing to do with your technique?

From what I remember, I don't suffer from that. I think it should be more of my technique?

[agromann]

Unless you have a muscular or physical issue, assume that any shiverung is induced by positioning of body, grip, cue, bridge etc...
One thing that Terry was driving towards a bit in an earlier post (page 1 here) was trying to lock in your position for a straight delivery, which in turn locks the cue in a bit to avoid extraneous movements. (E.g.: Your right shoulder (lefty) pushed down and close to the line with the left elbow as high up as possible and still comfortable)
To avoid “shivering” or movement, the factors people mentioned above are things like tension, grip, and position as well as feathering. If you adjust the position of your arms as indicated by Terry, you should be able to lock the cue between bridge, chin and back hand and likely have it slide along your body a bit, which will at least reduce some of the involuntary sideways and up and down movements that are caused by incorrect position, balance, grip. (This will not prevent cue movement at the delivery if you clutch the cue, tense your arm up, jump up of the shot or bring torsion into the delivery.)
One would hope though that some twitches and involuntary movements can be reduced by this.
Notes:
Do not use the chin to push down hard, just imagine the cue sliding smoothly along the same spot with the same amount of pressure.
Terry does not do a back pause but I know from previous posts that he is not averse to it , so feel free to try. I think you should assume that everything before the actual final delivery is “foreplay” to warm your mind and body to the task. The final delivery, if with front or back pause, should be the culmination of the practice or “foreplay “, like a fine-tuned result of the preparation, positioning of the body, feathering and thinking that went into the part before.
If you initiate your move forward on the final delivery and it is straight on the first cm or so, you will likely be straight at the end as long as you strike through the ball.
Feathering: If you do more than 3 I will point out that
- you may lose concentration between the looking at white and object ball
- you may start doubting the target spot on the object ball
- you may get tired during the shot or later in the game (Try and stay down for a shot for 20 feathers and tell me how comfortable you are)
- you may aggravate the shivering
- you may bore your opponent to death
If you can’t do it in 3 feathers, get up, reassess and get back down.
Practices:
- Try and do some strokes and focus on the 3 (or 4 if you feel the cue along your side/chest) contact points and see where the cue tip strikes the white (Use a black marker to make a 10mm spot on the white and play a plain ball or slightly down stroke and see if you hit the spot in the middle – the chalk will show on the black marker spot)
- Try some 3-finger shots to loosen the grip
- Do some cue practices through a key-ring or something to see how much you actually move on the final delivery (thanks Peter!)
- Try and borrow a 360 PurCue and practice with a coach or senior player

[caesar]

What weight is your cue btw? I had exactly the same problem over the years when I tried to include a pause.
Things I know helped:

A heavier cue. 17ounce cues are great for most players, but if you suffer with shakes or lack of follow through a 18.5 will help. The weight acts as a counter balance to reduce the shakes.
Shortening the backswing will reduce hyperextension of the arm and reduce strain, hence releaving shakes a bit.

[x3dnd3x]

What weight is your cue btw? I had exactly the same problem over the years when I tried to include a pause.
Things I know helped:

A heavier cue. 17ounce cues are great for most players, but if you suffer with shakes or lack of follow through a 18.5 will help. The weight acts as a counter balance to reduce the shakes.
Shortening the backswing will reduce hyperextension of the arm and reduce strain, hence releaving shakes a bit.

Mine's 17.5.

I'm gonna try agromann and Terry's advice tomorrow as I'll be playing with a friend.