Opinions on two practice sessions

[MakeTheSix]

Let’s say a player has two practice sessions of equal length during which he or she practices the same drills. Also let’s assume the player has the same focus, attitude and intensity during both sessions. During one session the player performs far below his or her average ability, and the other session far above.

Which session, if either, do you think is more beneficial to the player’s game, and why?

 

[sjm]

Equally beneficial.

The high-performance session should help motivate the player, opening the player's eyes to how good he/she can be. The low-performance session should serve to remind the player that there remains much work yet to be done and that real consistency is not easily achieved.

All but the truly elite have big swings in performance from session to session. Even the great ones have swings in performance , but those swings are not as pronounced.

 

[Tin Man]

perfect

Equally beneficial.

The high-performance session should help motivate the player, opening the player's eyes to how good he/she can be. The low-performance session should serve to remind the player that there remains much work yet to be done and that real consistency is not easily achieved.

All but the truly elite have big swings in performance from session to session. Even the great ones have swings in performance , but those wings are not as pronounced.

This is the perfect reply. Well done Stu!

 

[BC21]

Equally beneficial.

The high-performance session should help motivate the player, opening the player's eyes to how good he/she can be. The low-performance session should serve to remind the player that there remains much work yet to be done and that real consistency is not easily achieved.

All but the truly elite have big swings in performance from session to session. Even the great ones have swings in performance , but those wings are not as pronounced.

Great reply. I would add that the player who is not feeling it (not at least playing in their normal gear) should drop the practice session and pick it up a few hours later, or the next day.

Just as a good session can boost confidence, a bad session can knock you down even lower. If the practice session feels too difficult because you're just not hitting the balls well at all, then it's counterproductive to keep doing it. On the other hand, if the session feels easy, too easy, then you aren't building or developing your skills. It can be a confidence booster, but you're not pushing to get any better, so you're not gaining any new knowledge or expanding on your existing limitations.

A good practice session shouldn't be super easy, but it also shouldn't be super frustrating or disappointing. It shouldn't be a cakewalk, but also shouldn't be an impossible struggle. If it's a struggle, seems hopeless, then make it easier. Simplify the drills. If you still aren't hitting the balls well, stop, then come back another time to try it again.

 

[HNTFSH]

Agreed above. And...success breeds success.

 

[ChrisinNC]

Let’s say a player has two practice sessions of equal length during which he or she practices the same drills. Also let’s assume the player has the same focus, attitude and intensity during both sessions. During one session the player performs far below his or her average ability, and the other session far above.

Which session, if either, do you think is more beneficial to the player’s game, and why?

Sounds like you are speaking of yourself? It will take more than 2 sessions to draw any meaningful conclusions. You didn't even specify the order of the sessions - was the first session the good one or the bad one? Obviously more encouraging if the first session was the bad one followed by the far more encouraging second session? The next few sessions will obviously provide more feedback for you. You also didn't state whether or not you are working on anything new or different in particular, such any change in fundamentals, etc, or just practicing as you've always been practicing / playing?

 

[Cron]

It will take more than 2 sessions to draw any meaningful conclusions.

Completely opinionated.

While I believe sjm gave you the answer you wanted (and best answer), the above is worth considering. Also, if you start removing expectations from a "session", then nothing holds you back. And if gambling is involved in these "sessions", that inhibits what you learn.

Assuming you strive to be better, the only bad sessions you'll ever have will come from you taking things for granted, because if you didn't take anything for granted, you learned something. Even the greatest sculptors have to pay attention to their familiar knives.

 

[Andrew Manning]

Even the great ones have swings in performance , but those swings are not as pronounced.

Mike Page says the swings are about equally pronounced at all levels. He attributes your observation above to the idea that an elite player's lowest low is still so good that it's hard to perceive how far below their highest gear it actually is. When you play 100 fargo points below your average level, but you're still running out, it's easy for an observer to think you never have an off day, I guess.

 

[MakeTheSix]

Equally beneficial.

The high-performance session should help motivate the player, opening the player's eyes to how good he/she can be. The low-performance session should serve to remind the player that there remains much work yet to be done and that real consistency is not easily achieved.

All but the truly elite have big swings in performance from session to session. Even the great ones have swings in performance , but those swings are not as pronounced.

Thanks sjm for the input. I agree both are beneficial, and I might even lean to the low performance being more beneficial if the player knows how to constructively use it as a lesson for future use.

 

[MakeTheSix]

This is the perfect reply. Well done Stu!

Thanks Tin Man, and another thanks to you and MnPoolBootCamp for the help today.

 

[MakeTheSix]

Great reply. I would add that the player who is not feeling it (not at least playing in their normal gear) should drop the practice session and pick it up a few hours later, or the next day.

Just as a good session can boost confidence, a bad session can knock you down even lower. If the practice session feels too difficult because you're just not hitting the balls well at all, then it's counterproductive to keep doing it. On the other hand, if the session feels easy, too easy, then you aren't building or developing your skills. It can be a confidence booster, but you're not pushing to get any better, so you're not gaining any new knowledge or expanding on your existing limitations.

A good practice session shouldn't be super easy, but it also shouldn't be super frustrating or disappointing. It shouldn't be a cakewalk, but also shouldn't be an impossible struggle. If it's a struggle, seems hopeless, then make it easier. Simplify the drills. If you still aren't hitting the balls well, stop, then come back another time to try it again.

Thanks for the answer Brian. I have a couple hours available to practice late each night and I always feel if I quit a session I’m losing out. I might have to rethink, or at least switch it up more like you said.

 

[MakeTheSix]

Sounds like you are speaking of yourself? It will take more than 2 sessions to draw any meaningful conclusions. You didn't even specify the order of the sessions - was the first session the good one or the bad one? Obviously more encouraging if the first session was the bad one followed by the far more encouraging second session? The next few sessions will obviously provide more feedback for you. You also didn't state whether or not you are working on anything new or different in particular, such any change in fundamentals, etc, or just practicing as you've always been practicing / playing?

I wasn’t speaking of myself in the scenario, just looking for opinions from veteran players like yourself. Then I will possibly adjust accordingly if I feel the consensus is different than how I practice, which would then yes be benefiting me. I probably should have said 100 sessions, 50 good and 50 bad, all things being equal with no changes in fundamentals. I appreciate your reply.

 

[MakeTheSix]

Completely opinionated.

While I believe sjm gave you the answer you wanted (and best answer), the above is worth considering. Also, if you start removing expectations from a "session", then nothing holds you back. And if gambling is involved in these "sessions", that inhibits what you learn.

Assuming you strive to be better, the only bad sessions you'll ever have will come from you taking things for granted, because if you didn't take anything for granted, you learned something. Even the greatest sculptors have to pay attention to their familiar knives.

Thanks for the response Cron.

 

[336Robin]

The one where he did well. Pool is a game of memories. If you have
successes you have to remember what those successes looked like even if you have
an off day where you do things wrong to verify what you did right.

Let’s say a player has two practice sessions of equal length during which he or she practices the same drills. Also let’s assume the player has the same focus, attitude and intensity during both sessions. During one session the player performs far below his or her average ability, and the other session far above.

Which session, if either, do you think is more beneficial to the player’s game, and why?

 

[Cron]

.... I always feel if I quit a session I’m losing out.

You have to reboot. Pro sports players don't go to practice to keep practicing and they don't practice at home. Fatigue brings rapid diminishing returns in anything. While obviously a bad example, Lance Armstrong in all his arrogance once said something along the lines of "You've got to take the wheels off". Also, fatigue destroys memory (or lack of sleep really), so even if you are learning in a long session, retention will be very low (again, this applies to everything).

I'd guess that standing around a pool table for more than 4 hours will put you in a decline of learning. That's a guess based on what a typical store clerk says about an 8 hour shift. They start to short themselves, loose attention to theft, need a chair and other similar things. While they might not be enjoying themselves like playing pool, the physical fatigue is still there regardless of enjoyment. Mental fatigue is tricky on its own. A computer programmer can sit around for 18 hours and feel as if only 1 hour has passed. However statistically, after 4 hours unseen bugs start appearing (bad escapes, eol's, capitalization, incorrect macros, etc...). Playing pool is both physical and mental, so....

 

[muskyed]

SJM, you couldn't have described it more perfectly as to my practice sessions. I am just an average player, and when practicing I can have those wild swings. Sometimes practice goes extremely well, to the point that I almost never miss, and my confidence level is really high. Then the next time, well lets just say, doesn't go so good at all, and really gives me a dose of reality. What really hurts is the simple mistakes on shots that should be easily makeable, or loosing control of the cueball on position for the next shot. I used to practice with the thought that the more I practice, the more consistent I would become. While I still feel that is true to an extent, I now really look at my off days, as to areas for improvement, and try to focus more practice time on problems that show up. Fortunately my better days are getting more often, and off days, less often. For perspective, in the 70's and early 80's, I played alot of pool, and was very confident in my abilities, quit pool for about 30 years, and have now been playing for about the last 4 or 5 years now, the first two years sociably, and the last years with a more focused interest. I do not have that confidence that I once had, but really hope to be able to get back to that level again.