Comment by fph

14 hours ago

I don't recommend tennis balls for a beginner: they bounce everywhere, and you'll spend most of your time chasing the balls rather than juggling. Cheap juggling balls are around 10$.

Learning to juggle way back lasts century, I learned to juggle using lacrosse balls. Very bouncy and and a little on the heavy side. Standing over a bed helps if you are using bouncy things (they still can cause havoc in a bedroom when they bounce off each other though).

One of the IJA (International Jugglers' Association) videos that most impressed me is : IJA Tricks of the Month by Zaila Avant-garde | Juggling Basketballs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sH2E1m8Fseg). Not only does she manage the juggling but her parents let her do it indoors with all sorts of stuff around.

  • I actually learned contact juggling with a lacrosse ball, since its uniform color and texture make it hard to see the rotation of the ball. That way, you get the similar visual effect to a more expensive acrylic, but without the risk of chipping if you drop it while you’re still learning.

Part of the motivation is to make sure you catch them and they don’t bounce away. Negative externalities aren’t always a bad thing.