teaching yourself to use the opposite hand

[sdcopp 1]

so for a little variety, and some dumb luck in a recent purchase, I'm thinking about trying to teach myself to play lefty, as I have played my whole life righty.

Before anyone starts going off about dominant hand issues, I don't really care, and mostly because I don't have a truly dominant hand; lefty for writing, eating, fine motor skills, etc. righty for typing, throwing, catching, gross motor skills etc.

Just interested in any pointers on translating

[thejackal 46]

just have fun with it. a 5yr old kid didnt need tips to learn how to hold a stick and play around with a ball. with time you'll get somewhat good.

[chk hrd 164]

why would you want to switch? Depending on how long you have played it could prove to be very difficult. Your body builds a muscle memory and balance from all of the reputition, trying to change that "natural" feel will feel very unnatural and could ruin your game. For fun one practice my son's team (Bantaam AA) and the coaches all switched the handing of thier sticks. It looked like they had never played before. There were only a few that could even do anything. It is harder than you think to switch.

[Jarick 5]

I would think the time would be better spent working on other skills, but I guess I'd start simple with puck handling back and forth.

[EBondo 233]

It is very hard to switch, you have to develop a completely new technique. I tried doing it, wasn't working out, however, there are times where I'll take a faceoff left-handed (defensive zone, left side). As a righty, I'm surprised I have won every faceoff left handed.

[sdcopp 1]

as far as why I want to try it, it's something novel and new, and I try to teach myself how to do things with both hands. My writing from my right hand is barely legible, but I can do it clearly enough to jot quick notes. I taught myself to paint with both hands, which is dependant on what type of peice I am doing.

As far as working on other skills, I think being well balanced is the best thing you can do for yourself. How many people have a hard time stopping only one way? How many people have a truly dominant side that becomes a bit of a crutch for them? How many good players have you seen that aren't well balanced?

[Jarick 5]

There's a difference between being a proficient skater in all directions and being able to shoot both hands though. And unless you're using a perfectly straight blade on the ice, you wouldn't benefit from being able to switch hands on the fly.

[sdcopp 1]

my point however was that people become proficient in using one side, and don't have great full range of motion by relying on just the single side. I had a shoulder injury when I was younger and compensate a bit by keeping it tight and really feel like going out and playing with my opposite hand to re-establish the full range of motion without thinking about it is better than hitting a gym to do so since it's not a strength issue it's a motor memory issue.

For playing at any higher level, I agree that you go with what you know best. As I stated in my first post, I don't want to get into a dominant side argument, just get some tips from the more ambidextrous members here.

Too many people get too serious playing this game and become real dicks, why not go back to having fun with it and really enjoying it? It was hard for all of us at some point, why not bring a little variety and challenge back to it? At some point I'd like to start coaching travel teams, why shouldn't I be able to show a kid hands on how to place a shot from either side?

When I get the agents calling to sign me to a lucrative hockey contract, I'll worry about strengthening the core aspects of my game to the highest level and forget about having fun with stuff like this.

[Dat 0]

Pay attention to which fingers are gripping harder. eg My top hand uses more of the pinkie side and my bottom hand uses more of the thumb and index finger side of my hand.

[D-MaN88 0]

Granted it didn't work out, but I always tried to learn how to shoot righty in case I was ever in a big game and broke my stick and got one on the fly from someone on the bench that happened to be a righty.

As I said above though it didn't work out. I'm proud shooting LH and I guess that will be something that will never change. ;)

[ktang 34]

I think that practicing using the opposite hand will help with the backhand on your natural side, too. I played with a guy with a killer backhand one-timer; he had switched from RH to LH when he was young.

[thejackal 46]

if u have the time and effort to practice on your opposite side, it can only help. i learned how to play tennis left-handed this winter and it's given me a better feel for the game overall.

[LegoDoom 0]

...righty for typing, throwing, catching, gross motor skills etc.

I would think this would be tough to play sports well.

[sdcopp 1]

other than Baseball or Softball (which hasn't been since HS gym class) it's not as bad as one would think. Football and Basketball don't require using the hands in tandem the way Baseball or Softball does. This also explains why I never had the knack for either of those sports

[indaslot 0]

An athletic therapist once told my son to practice shooting from the left to help with muscle imbalances. Makes sense , I guess, though he never tried it.

[qmechanic 17]

I'm not ambidextrous, but I started out as a righty and then the assistant coaches on my team forced me to become a lefty. They thought I stick handled and passed better as a lefty.

I found it really frustrating at first to switch. I would even have dreams about playing hockey and suddenly become confused whether I was holding my stick with my left hand or my right hand on top. I think it took me about two months to adjust. One thing I noticed was that I had to pay a lot of attention to my stickhandling when I had the unfamiliar hand on top. So I think switching sides will help you develop good habits.

I don't think there's any special training involved. Just practice.

[dix0r 0]

it's definitely weird. i felt like i couldn't even skate... like my body was twisting unnaturally. i was lucky when i could get the puck off the ice.

i only played a few games that way, so it never really got much better.

[chk hrd 164]

by your post it doesn't seem like you can do it with either hand...

[GretzisGod 0]

Nope, that is what my wife and girlfriends are for. :P

[chk hrd 164]

yeah, you're married to Palmela Handerson and your girlfriend is Rosie Palms and her twin sister...

[GretzisGod 0]

That was original, superstar.

[JR Boucicaut 3801]

20% warning