Sweet, I started with short but after seeing styles like AO2 or his crew, I fell in love with the long game and the flow
I started balisong a bit, mostly though to get better I practice kendama. Belgeri looks really cool though so I think I will check that out.
well I wrestle and do lacrosse... which helps with endurance... I also hike quite a bit.... which gives me peace of mind... but I guess those all help one another in a weird way
I used to play travel softball but not anymore, unfortunately had a career ending shoulder injury (left side so i can still sesh the dama). But that was defiantly huge for me going into kendama already having pretty good eye hand coordination (which only improved as i progressed in dama). As one door closed another one opened, glad i was able to find another passion so quickly.
I have a ton of hobbies, but the things that have helped me most in kendama has been studying physics and being a magician for 11 years. Being a mostly self taught magician, I had to learn "how to learn", and because of that, I can more easily point out the errors that arise when I'm grinding on a new trick in real time. There's a saying we have in magic, and it applies everywhere. We don't believe in "practice makes perfect", we like "perfect practice makes perfect". Physics (cuz I'm a huge nerd) allow me to analyze exactly what is supposed to happen within the contents of a trick, and an analytical mindset when learning has been the most helpful for me.
Little diffrent than others but for me its rollerblading. I actually came to kendama through skating. Kendama was real big in the skate world around 2006. I had driven out to woodward West for the AIL world finals and tons of skaters had kendama around their neck. After that I was hooked. While the physical aspect of skating doesn't transfer the focus and thrill does. When landing a new trick it feels great whether it's grinding in skates or jamming a kendama. I can't skate everywhere. But anywhere I can't skate I can have my kendama.
Fingerboarding is what I do when I don't feel like playing Kendama. It helps a lot for your hand-eye coordination !
Rubik's Cubes. While solving Rubik's Cubes and similar puzzles don't necessarily help improve my hand-eye coordination or reflexes, it actually relieves some tension and strain on my fingers and wrists. Holding a tama grip or a Sara grip for long periods of time (especially if I were grinding a line that required either) certainly cramps up my fingers. My fingers lock up very easily, and the muscles in my hands cramp up quickly. It's just something that happens to me very often ever since I was 7 years old. It's very uncomfortable. But the various movements that my wrists and fingers make when solving Rubik's Cubes definitely gets rid of the discomfort in my fingers and wrists after jamming Kendama. It's like stretching before or after dancing or playing sports. So relieving. Kudos to other cubers out there!
I never thought about this. Very cool. I have a couple cubes (just a 3x3 and 2x2) that I need to spend some time with and actually learn how to solve (without cheating). I'm stuck at remembering the last two (basic, beginner) patterns.