How Smart Is Your Right Foot?

It holds true for me as well, but the simple way to counteract it is not to start at the top of the "6", but at the centre of the spiral and work outwards - that way, your foot and hand are both going clockwise, causing no problems.

Chris

yep......same here.....I don't like the fact I can't control my body...

Well that was total bullshit. I didn't have to try it 50 times - I gave up after 17.

I can outsmart my foot. it took me 2 tries.

I can do it if I do it Crisis way.....but it still doesn't help the fact that I cant the other way......

i can outsmart my foot, but then again, i have been told im am weird anyways..its just a matter of self control

I have no problem

(it's the same as having your hands revolve in opposite directions, I never have a problem with that either, though it often takes concentration to get started)

Y'know, it's hard enough to do the circle with your foot even without moving your hand. I'd say I had the same semblance of a clockwise circle both with and without my hand drawing 6's at the same time. Which isn't saying much.

--Quentin

With my right foot/right hand I did it successfully the first time, starting at the "top" of the '6', no problemo. With a little more difficulty I can even do counterclockwise and a *backwards* six with my right foot.

But I can't do it either way with my left foot/left hand.

I was born a leftie but my parents forced me to use my right hand to write; now I'm mostly right-handed but also sort of semi-ambidextrous. Maybe that's a factor?

It's also a good workout for the inner thighs!

--intjudo

It's a bit like the old "pat your head while rubbing the stomach" trick. Takes a bit of concentration to get it going correctly. But not impossible.

I'm having a hard time believing everyone who says they can outsmart their foot. Because I'm totally unable to make the 6 without my foot jerking in the opposite direction.

Well I can pat my head and rub my tummy at the same time but I definitely can't outsmart my foot.

The weird thing is, the trick doesn't work with my left foot. Bizarre.

I'm not getting this. I didn't have any trouble the first time even though I definitely started at the top of the 6 and my right foot going clockwise. I wasn't even concentrating that much. However, I can do it again and again with no problem.

Maybe i just have a messed up brain. Either that or all of you are crazy.

I can outsmart my foot, too. But I was also born a leftie. My dad is a leftie and didn't know that they were making me write with my right hand at school. So now I am also a rightie and semi-ambidextrous. It's a weird thing to live this way...I'm right brained, too, which also means I am quite a weirdo.
lalalala

I'm only a weirdo because of being right handed and right brained...that's what I meant. Figure I better put that before I get flamed.

After a few intermediate steps, I did it. Here's how:

First, I made a clockwise RECTANGLE with my right foot. It's 4 separate movements.

Then I made a rectangular-style "6" with my right hand.

Then I did both at the same time, synchronizing the movements.

After a couple of times, I found I was able to turn the rectangle with my right foot into a circle, and then turn the rectangular 6 into a rounded 6. Voila.

I'm a leftie, and the trick doesn't work with me. Tried right hand/foot, then tried left hand/foot. Didn't try to reverse them, not going to.

:-S oo.. i must be doing it wrong, i got it on the first try

What a load. I did it the first time. You just have to be able to move one limb clockwise while the other goes counterclockwise. 😛

I first heard about this about three or four years ago. I had no problem doing it then, and I have no problem doing it now. The same goes for that "rubbing your belly and patting your head" thing Smerk mentioned. I suppose the really interesting thing would be to figure out why some people have trouble and some people don't. It doesn't seem to be just a matter of being right- or left-handed.

I noticed my foot trying to counteract clockwisivity (hey, got to coin a word today!) as I drew the six, but it was itself easily thwarted. But then again, I am very dextrous.

I can outsmart it pretty easily, but then again I'm a heavy metal drummer so I'm pretty well trained at separating my limbs' movements.

Wow the moment I tried it and then noticed that my foot had changed directions, I had to laugh out loud. Stupid foot!

I also am a leftie, and was able to outsmart my foot on 2nd try by really focusing. Or better put, make my consciousness shift attention back and forth, overseeing what my hand is doing, and then to my foot, and then to my hand, kind of like the 'rectangle' idea mentioned by elguapo.

This stuff is probably more mind-expanding than drugs! Fear the master of the rotating foot trick!

:lol:

I like Bah had no trouble doing this without the effect occuring. Then again, I can do the pat your head and rub your stomach one pretty easily too, and switch rapidly.

It's probably exploiting the trend for a lot of people to favour one side of their brain than the other, and so they have trouble differentiating the movement paths involved in hand and leg motion.

Bull shit. I sjckdivvck all day and this is so easy.

I'm glad some people can do it. I'm having a real hard time with it, and I can rub my belly and pat my head at the same time. At least it's apparently possible... it's kind of irritating to think you can't do it.

Err...I started my foot going for a good minute before making the six. I did have a little blip-pause when I started to make the six, but I did keep going clockwise with my foot. When I tried it again, and I had just been moving my foot for a few seconds before doing the 6...My foot did change directions.

Wrong!
It is easy for me to do.
By the way I play drums, so it is not difficult for me to move arms and legs independently.

It's not a problem with me, I got it on my first try and continued to be able to do it. None of my co-workers can do it though.

haha that was so easy to counteract. it took me 2 tries.

That was easy, but I was born ambidextrous, so I don't know if that helps or not.

What I could do:
-right foot circle, right hand "6"
-left foot circle, right hand "6"
-right foot circle, left hand "6"
-left foot circle, left hand "6"

This is a thought: how many of the people who can do this are regular two-handed typists on the Net? The chances are that the neural pathways needed for this kind of thing build up in people who can use both hands or multi-task body functions in other ways.

It would be fascinating to see if non-geeks, er, people who don't use the computer a lot can do this with the same rate of success.

This is not like the pat your head, rub your stomach thing as many people have suggested. The reason it's so difficult is the fact that your right hand and right foot both use the left half of your brain (both your left hand & foot use the right half). This causes problems when you are trying to make them do two entirely opposite motions (ie..foot turning clockwise, hand turning counterclockwise).

I think the pattern seems to be that people who have hobbies or jobs where their feet and their hands are doing different things have no trouble with this.

My foot doesn't even have a tendancy to change directions when I start my hand. Then again, I have done 8 years of marching band, which is very much a seperation of hands (playing music) and feet (marching). Also, I've done dance with flag, so that too my hands were doing flag work, while my feet were moving me around or doing cool dance steps.

I found this really easy, also patting your head while rubbing your stomach is easy too. And I don't do any drumming, and i am not ambidextrous. Maybe I should start drumming or writing with my left.

I saw this on Discovery channel and I thought it was BS because I have no trouble doing it both clockwise and counterclockwise.

And I had no clue that patting your head while rubbing your stomach was that kind of trick, I thought it was just people acting like retards.

What's next, you can't chew gum and walk at the same time?

Garbage.

I could outsmart my foot by writing "6" with my hand on a table, but not in the air. Odd.

(Inflammatory opening remark added to be cool like the other Tourette's people.)

this effect is due to the fact that in 95% of right handed individuals and about 75% of left handed individuals, mathamatical computations are controlled by the left hemisphere of the brain, the same hemisphere that (generally) controls the right side of your body. why your foot changes directions is not known to me, but that's the general idea.

Too easy.

I don't see any rule that says you can't start from the inside of the six and write it clockwise.

One of course now someone will try and change the rules mid game because they got beat.

I can do it with my right foot and hand, no problem. It was so easy, I was wondering if the whole thing was a fake. But then I tried the left side, and my foot started going side-to-side when I made the 6.

It's a matter of right-brain/left-brain connection... we had to do this in one of my classes two years ago

I used to be able to do it really well, now it takes me three or four tries... I can move my hands in opposite directions with no effort at all, but it's kinda difficult for me to do this one

this was easy. my foot did not change direction. i even started at the top of the 6.

Seriously, if I hadn't been reading all your comments saying that your foot actually did something you didn't want it to do, I wouldn't believe it! I tried this and nothing happened for me... I mean, my foot kept going around and around as I drew the 6 a dozen times (starting at the top as you're "supposed" to). Weird. Maybe I'm a freak of nature? I wonder what it means about my brain... hmmm...

My teacher presented this challenge to my class. She said it was impossible. But, she was wrong. I CAN do this. It has to do with having very good coordination. Though, nobody else in my class, or anywhere i have tried this, can do it.

I can do it.

Every once in a while I have a hard time. But the majority time I can.

Who thinks of this stuff?

You know, the numebr of people responding that they can do it strikes a chord with me . . . I could never do the "Pat head/Rub Belly" thing for years until I started doing fine manipulation like painting miniatures, drawing and typing; Maybe it is a skill that can develop with increasing fine motor skills?

I think no one ever can actually do it the FIRST TIME, but once you're aware of it.....

I had no problem from the very first try and I am not a very coordinated person (trip over my own feet, etc.) I'm going to test the people at work today.

I did it just fine over and over, no problem!