Getting back in stroke takes sooooooo long.
Man I wish this was like riding a bike
- Thread starter Billiard Architect
- Start date
Playing pool is like riding a bike..
Being in stroke is like being in shape.
And now you feel better about it, right?!
Being in stroke is like being in shape.
And now you feel better about it, right?!
I can tell you that my younger stroke in pool was much better than it is now. I can also tell you that popping wheelies on a bike was much easier when I was young than it would be now. So just as you never forget how to swim or ride a bike you never forget how to play pool. But being really practiced up on either is a different story. You see just knocking balls around is like keeping a bike up and riding it without falling. But drawing the cue ball several feet and placing it where you wanted is like riding a wheelie or going over a jump on the bike. Running racks is like winning races on a bike.
Try coming back after a stroke where 90% of both memories is gone. Played the game for 50 years at a pretty high level and couldn't figure out how to draw the ball, bank, force follow...nothing. I had to learn the game all over again. I just about cried when I first started back to shooting. I almost quit right away, until my wife (nurse) said, "Keep at it. Everything you knew is still in your brain somewhere...don't give up. You never give up." Johnnyt
Wow... I don't feel so bad now. But somehow feel bad that I am complaining. How did you do that?
I have been watching the zero-x videos to refresh some of my position play memory. I like them and will probably buy the series.
Bought DVD's, Books, and asked 100's of stupid questions on here. Bought a BB and played everyday until I got to tired or hurt too bed to continue. Johnnyt
Just have to clear the mind, going for a ride in the wind sometimes helps. Then come back to the table with a clear memory of what you use to do.
Good combo there. Johnnyt
If you have some footage of yourself playing strong, Johnny, haul it out and watch it a number of times over sequential days when you're completely relaxed. It will all get into your subconscious and give you positive affirmations that will more than offset the negatives on your road back to getting your "younger stroke" back.
If you have no "totally in-stroke" footage of yourself, just find Youtube videos of players whom you admire -- and most important -- whose style and form closely resemble you at your best. These will serve your subconscious just as well, as a very usefully-detailed aid with plenty of "positives" that will increasingly show up during your practice sessions. Be patient and eventually all the negatives that are presently impeding your progress -- in restoring the strength of your game -- will be cleared away. And the speed of all the muscle memory restoration will be greatly accelerated as well. Your mind and your playing muscles will be in total cooperation as you continually receive positive reinforcement as you progress and encourage yourself over time.
I've had to similarly re-invigorate myself several times during the 64 years I've been enthusiastically loving our sport and not letting "an advancing state of youth" discourage my belief in myself in any way.
Arnaldo
If you have no "totally in-stroke" footage of yourself, just find Youtube videos of players whom you admire -- and most important -- whose style and form closely resemble you at your best. These will serve your subconscious just as well, as a very usefully-detailed aid with plenty of "positives" that will increasingly show up during your practice sessions. Be patient and eventually all the negatives that are presently impeding your progress -- in restoring the strength of your game -- will be cleared away. And the speed of all the muscle memory restoration will be greatly accelerated as well. Your mind and your playing muscles will be in total cooperation as you continually receive positive reinforcement as you progress and encourage yourself over time.
I've had to similarly re-invigorate myself several times during the 64 years I've been enthusiastically loving our sport and not letting "an advancing state of youth" discourage my belief in myself in any way.
Arnaldo
I hear this all the time....probably said it myself a few times.......truth is it's nothing more than our egos beckoning us.
The saying goes like this......."The older I get, the better I was......" ......who's to say if any of us ever had a decent stroke to start with.
If you possessed a great stroke in the past, then finding it again is a lot easier than looking for something you may have never truly had.
Like I earlier wrote, the older we get....the better we used to play..........Yeah, it's an ego based proposition when it comes to our pool skills.
Matt B.
The saying goes like this......."The older I get, the better I was......" ......who's to say if any of us ever had a decent stroke to start with.
If you possessed a great stroke in the past, then finding it again is a lot easier than looking for something you may have never truly had.
Like I earlier wrote, the older we get....the better we used to play..........Yeah, it's an ego based proposition when it comes to our pool skills.
Matt B.
I have comeback to "A" on a BB in about 4 years. That will have to be good enough, as too many other health problems have arose to play much more than 45 min at a time. At 75 YO I'll have to settle for that. Johnnyt
It never gets easier, it just gets faster!