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Is there a time when practice is bad? (Read 1032 times)
joe_meadmaker
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Is there a time when practice is bad?
Mar 29th, 2023 at 2:38pm
 
Some may have an idea what this is about.  But here's the scenario.  And I don't even need to use a hypothetical because it just happened in real life.

I went out on my lunch break to do a 100-Round.  Nothing for a video, just a practice session.  Tennis balls at 13 meters.  For the first bucket of 20 balls I had 8 on target (not keeping track of dianas).  The second 20 had 12 on target.  The majority coming from the second set of 10.  The third bucket of 20 fell off completely.  Only 4 on target.  I was pulling everything to the left.  This continued into the fourth bucket.  Everything was just off.  I started to get things righted by the last 5 balls (4 of 5 on target), but my release just felt like there was no control.

I opted to quit instead of slinging the last 20.  Was that a mistake?  As mentioned, my release timing was completely off.  When the projectile is (for the most part) going where you want, you can basically feel a bad miss.  Even if you weren't able to see it, you could feel the throw was off.  This is the feedback I wasn't adjusting to (or wasn't getting).  A ball that missed the target by almost 2 meters to the left still felt like a good release.  I decided this kind of practice was probably more likely to reinforce bad habits than result in any improvement, so I stopped.

So back to the question on topic.  If you're practicing and doing badly, and not able to make adjustments to correct the problem, is it better to just end the session rather than keep throwing terribly?  Save a few bruises and come back to fight another day.
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Lacumo
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #1 - Mar 29th, 2023 at 5:04pm
 
My experiences with this phenomenon weren't in slinging.   They were in steel dart shooting and different shooting sports competitions, but the experiences were very similar to what you described.   I found that when I had a practice session or an informal competition session that just went bad on me and showed no signs of getting any better despite my efforts, it was best if I just packed it in for the day and came back to try again another day.   I resisted that conclusion for years, but in the end I decided to stop beating a dead horse when a session went (seemingly irrevocably) bad on me.   In retrospect, I never regretted that practice and it never served me badly.
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I used to think this was going to be simple.
 
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joe_meadmaker
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #2 - Mar 29th, 2023 at 6:59pm
 
That's a good point to mention.  My question certainly doesn't apply to slinging alone.
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Blindsquirrel
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #3 - Mar 29th, 2023 at 7:27pm
 
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« Last Edit: Jan 2nd, 2024 at 2:30am by Blindsquirrel »  
 
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Sarosh
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #4 - Mar 30th, 2023 at 3:31am
 
those annoying times might be needed to get better. try to focus more when you miss more and try to bring back control. if the mind is not there taking a 2-5 minute break meditating might bring it back.
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #5 - Mar 30th, 2023 at 5:39am
 
This used to happen to me all the time and lasted days. Honestly, I'm not sure if practicing more made it better or worse. But I do feel like it's important to concentrate on improving your throw, otherwise you may not be able to know what you're doing wrong.
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Rat Man
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #6 - Mar 30th, 2023 at 1:22pm
 
Sometimes it's simply a bad day and you're just beating your head into a wall.  There's nothing wrong with walking away and coming back the next day when you've calmed down and cleared your head.
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TOMBELAINE
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #7 - Mar 30th, 2023 at 1:29pm
 
Rat Man wrote on Mar 30th, 2023 at 1:22pm:
Sometimes it's simply a bad day and you're just beating your head into a wall.  There's nothing wrong with walking away and coming back the next day when you've calmed down and cleared your head.


Ok with you. But sometimes, it isn't easy.
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JudoP
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #8 - Mar 31st, 2023 at 6:15pm
 
It's an interesting question. I'm personally of the opinion that (outside of injury, or if you already overpracticed that day) practice is always good, even if you are doing badly. I have nothing to back that up, just my feeling. Plus I think it helps with consistency to get used to practicing even when things aren't going well.

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Blindsquirrel
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #9 - Mar 31st, 2023 at 7:49pm
 
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« Last Edit: Jan 2nd, 2024 at 2:25am by Blindsquirrel »  
 
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StaffSlinger
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #10 - Mar 31st, 2023 at 10:49pm
 
Most of us who practice various martial arts know that when things start to go pear-shaped, what you need to do is stop.  Stop focussing on what's happening.  You know the drill.  Breathe... relax... clear your mind.  Stop trying to tell your body what to do... just do it.
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Blindsquirrel
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #11 - Apr 1st, 2023 at 12:04am
 
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« Last Edit: Jan 2nd, 2024 at 2:26am by Blindsquirrel »  
 
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IronGoober
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #12 - Apr 1st, 2023 at 11:03am
 
I personally don't like to end a session on a bad note, in case I'm rewiring brain pathways wrong. I think taking a break, collecting yourself, and getting a few throws on target at the end is probably the best way to go. 

That being said, I've definitely thrown in the towel in disgust because of how poorly I've been doing and just can't seem to get out of the slump.

I think what it really comes down to, is the practice that you are doing reinforcing good, or bad habits and movements? If you are being mindful about working on a particular thing, then doing poorly probably isn't a problem. But just getting frustrated and not paying attention to small things in your form probably isn't going to help. I would stop at that point. or at least take a break.
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« Last Edit: Apr 3rd, 2023 at 10:16am by IronGoober »  

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joe_meadmaker
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Re: Is there a time when practice is bad?
Reply #13 - Apr 1st, 2023 at 6:02pm
 
Lots of good thoughts guys.  I think I was mentally set on doing the 100 Round, so changing something didn't really occur to me.  Should have stopped the 100 and changed the distance or sling or something.
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