OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Hi! I am having trouble with my forehand loop, and perhaps part of my problem is in my technique (certainly) but also the varying styles I see out there, and my inability to find one that I am comfortable with.

I am a modern defender with inverted on both sides, so I tend to be back from the table when I loop. I feel as though my loop lacks power and feels "stuck" . I know this is a vague term.

My son learned table tennis with Gao Jun in CA. and she taught him a bent arm, small jump style of looping. I also see the Chinese straight arm style of looping and everything else in between. I guess I need to get out of my own head right now, but any suggestions you may have for me would be great. Again, very vague, but I appreciate it.

I am looking at this for instruction at the moment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZBKZS7ZLCs

One area that is a mystery to me is the finish position. She suggests to finish in front of your body with the paddle head height, but when she is in motion she clearly finishes to the left side of her head.

Thanks for any assistance!

If you're looking for help fixing your technique, then you need to post a video of yourself executing the technique, preferably doing drills or in a match.

Otherwise, the only advice anyone can give you is to look for forehand looping tutorials and mimic what they do. The one you posted works as well as any other. Here's another one:

Thank you so much for the video. I will work on getting a video of me hitting. I appreciate it.

I think I may have identified a problem based upon another comment I read here- I think I am taking the ball too early. Can someone tell me where the ball should be when I hit it? I am hitting it well now and it "feels" as though the ball is even with my right hip when I make contact. I was making contact much further in front of me before that. Am I on the right track?

Thanks,

Bob

Yes. The ball should not be way out in front of you at contact on a fh loop. This is true at any distance from the table. If that has helped your power then you probably solved your own problem. Larry Hodges has blogged about this fairly often calling it 'easy power.' You can search his blog tabletenniscoaching.com for easy power and probably find a good explanation.

I think it's better to a) not to overthink it and b) not to rely on forum wisdom too much, as far as stroke mechanics are concerned.

I suspect it's probably better to get a lesson from a coach, someone who can see what you are doing in person. A lot of us, especially analytical types, tend to think that 'if only I could break it down into elements, my FH stroke would be perfect'. I'm afraid 'centipede principle' might apply here - once you start thinking how you move your feet, you can't do it anymore.

May be it's better to figure out things by trying, especially if you have someone watching you and saying 'do this, don't do that!'.

_________________
USATT: 1776| League: 1964

Here's another one with a different emphasis.



The lessons from this video is not to pause at the end of the backswing, but to incorporate the backswing into the stroke. This means not starting the backswing too early (which would be especially true if you're way back behind the table). Trunk rotation leads the arm. When you do this you take advantage of this "whip effect" and the stroke uses trunk rotation and whip effect for power rather than arm muscles. Easier said than done, but it does pay off.

Iskandar