new here

[Trainer]

Hi im new here, so please feel free to move this as needed.

 

About me.

 

I'm a use of force instructor by trade and I am currently re writing training manuals.

 

I have a question relating to science vs fiction WRT muscle memory vs the amount of reps required to learn a new skill and it relationship to the central nervous systyem and the subconscious mind.

 

Much as been written in the police world about how many reps it takes to learn a skill. Id like to get some actual science on this rather than just speculation. The current theroy is between 3000 to 5000 reps before the skill is in the "muscle"

 

Any thoughts would be welcome, but please im looking for the studies to back the statements.

 

Thanks

[Psycho]

Well the whole idea of "muscle memory" is just a fallacy, muscles don't have memory, all that has occurred for the training is that when a certain set of events such as a movement occurs your reaction has been altered to the one you have trained for automatically by your brain.

 

It is exactly the same process that occurs when you are touch typing if I sit here and try and think where the keys are on the board I really can't do it, I can't even tell you the order of the second row however, as I am typing this message I don't need to look at the keyboard, I can even close my eyes and know when I have made a mistake without seeing it.

 

The same concept occurs with martial arts but on a larger scale and most would proclaim at its most effective the same level of accuracy, I don't know of any studies that show this or if certain actions of styles of actions would take longer to acquire but it is all just a function of the brain.

 

In some cases these innate responses are already built into the body such as to blink if something come towards your eyes, or for babies to suckle on there mothers tit to get milk.

[iNow]

Psycho, it's possible that you're conveying a different point than I'm reading, but muscle memory is very real.

 

The more you perform a response with your muscles, the more neural connections are formed transmitting that signal, and the stronger the connections. As you continue performing that action, the nerves essentially reshape in such a way that it becomes quicker and easier with each successive attempt. Eventually, the energy and conscious thought required to perform the action is diminished significantly.

 

I like the analogy of erosion. You have a hill, and it rains on the hill. The first time it rains, the water spreads out and trickles down nearly randomly. However, some small channels begin to form. The next time it rains, the water more quickly goes into those channels... it focusses... and the channels become a little deeper and wider, but there is still water flowing down other parts of the hill almost randomly. After a few rains, the channels are quite well defined, and each successive rain will proceed to the bottom of the hill through those previously formed channels.

 

So it is with nervous impulses. The more we do it, the denser the neural web and the more efficient the response.

 

Is it possible you just dislike the term "muscle memory," as it's a misnomer and the effect is not adequately being described?

[Psycho]

Psycho, it's possible that you're conveying a different point than I'm reading, but muscle memory is very real.

 

The more you perform a response with your muscles, the more neural connections are formed transmitting that signal, and the stronger the connections. As you continue performing that action, the nerves essentially reshape in such a way that it becomes quicker and easier with each successive attempt. Eventually, the energy and conscious thought required to perform the action is diminished significantly.

 

So it is with nervous impulses. The more we do it, the denser the neural web and the more efficient the response.

 

Is it possible you just dislike the term "muscle memory," as it's a misnomer and the effect is not adequately being described?

It isn't really memory, it is just the body becoming more efficient by adding extra structures too an area that is more in use.

[iNow]

So it's semantics. Okay.

[antimatter]

To the OP:

 

I think this should help:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_memory

 

I don't think there's an exact number of times you have to do something; it most likely varies with each person.