Fitness Friday Tip of the Week

SGT Koontz


 All too often we hear the term “practice makes perfect”. Makes sense, right? Practice your skill, hobby, or sport over and over again, and eventually you will get much better at it. Let’s take an Olympic weight lifter for example. Practice the Snatch 10,000 times in a lifetime, they’re bound to become a better and stronger mover, and maybe even a World Record holder one day. Now, let’s imagine this Olympic weightlifter trained from an early age (7), and always let the weight pull her forward into her toes during the first pull, or take-off from the ground. This small, unnoticeable weight shift forward puts micro-strain on the back (from being forward), excess loading in the knees and ankles, overcorrecting second pull that puts a little more strain on the cervical spine and supporting structures, and eventually lead to over pulling the bar to get either the body forward or the bar back to find center balance. The coach may have never noticed the movement deficiency or neglected to fix it altogether. The lifter may have never felt anything to begin with, and just always assumed it’s a correct lift. Years later and thousands of practice reps later, the micro-traumas accrued over time have now led chronic back pain and reoccurring back injuries, chronic patellar tendonitis, posterior/anterior-chain muscle imbalances, chronic wrist inflammation and bursitis, reoccurring shoulder injuries that have been surgically repaired a time or two… I think you get the picture by now. The term “practice makes perfect” in itself needs BETTER practice, not MORE. In our example, correcting movement deficiencies early and practicing with good technical movement, would not only prevent numerous future injuries, but also set the athlete up for better results and higher expectations. Trust me, I sing in the car every day, and I am not quitting my day-job any time soon (lol). Let’s start changing the way we think/act. Practice your skill at the highest level of execution, and you will undoubtedly set yourself up for success. “PERFECT practice makes perfect”.

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