While some may argue that the relentless drive to improve can take away from other desirable aspects of fs, it is indisputable that development is an important. In some respect, freestyle is about improving your ability with the ball, whether that be creative, hardcore, or your own unique style.
Predictably, there is a lot discussion within the community regarding training schedules, tips for specific tricks, and other topics associated with improvement. However, I have yet to see a rigorous and all encompassing discussion concerning the essential aspects to successful training program such that practice time is optimized. In identifying the core aspects of a successful training routine, much of what I have to say will familiar to seasoned fsers.
One way to describe the pinnacle that many fsers are trying to reach is as expertise, or another way, mastery of tricks with a ball. Expertise is presently the subject of intense scientific scrutiny, and although fs has not been explicitly studied, I think some general points can be learned from the study of other fields. Large sections of this text are taken from “Moonwalking with Einstein” by Joshua Foer, which examines memory, expertise, and the author’s path to the U.S. Memory Championship (and I highly recommend it).
One of the principle investigators in the field of expertise is Anders Ericsson. His main goals are to identify what cognitive processes distinguish the novice from the expert, and he attempts to do so by studying masters in various fields.
The classic example of his work involves the study of an undergraduate subject known as “SF” through his efforts to improve his memory. What makes this study unique is that it starts with a beginner. For several hours a week, SF sat is a chair as would try to remember numbers read to him at a rate of one per second, over and over, and with no aide from the researchers, and later try to recall the numbers that were given to him. At the outset, he could only remember seven digits. Two years or 250 hours later his memory had improved ten-fold. This overturned the idea that our memory capacities are fixed, and Ericsson believes that this change holds the key to understanding the cognitive processes underlying all forms of expertise, from that seen in waiters and violinists, to ballet dancers and crossword puzzlers.
The typical performance on this test is 7 plus or minus 2, which represents the limits of the short-term memory. Participants typically repeat the numbers over and over in their head, in what is called a phonological loop. This was the technique used initially by SF, but then something changed. He started remembering 10 digits and then eleven, and then more. He bypassed the limits of short-term memory by storing information directly in the long-term memory.
He used chunking, which decreases the number of items he had to remember by increasing their size. Though he had never been taught the method of chunking, SF figured it out on his own by applying his experience as a runner. For example, the string of digits 34924131 initially would have been near the limits of his short-term memory. When thought of as 3 minutes and 49 point 2 seconds (a near world record mile time) and 4 minutes and 13 point 1 seconds (a mile time), eight bits of information have been condensed into two bits. He found that he could apply meaning to seemingly meaningless information by applying past experience.
Over years practice experts build up a bank of experience that shapes how they perceive information. They see the world differently and notice things that novices do not, while identifying what information matters the most and what to do with it. Ultimately, experts process more information in more sophisticated ways.
While memory capacity is quite different than fs, I agree with Ericsson that the lessons gleaned from his studies of memory can be applied to disparate fields. Through these studies he has identified a common set of techniques, “secrets”, that experts across fields tend to employ, and I find it interesting that his recommendations are readily identifiable in the top fsers.
As practitioners develop in their field, they often plateau mentally at the “autonomous stage”, where the individual going through the motions without being fully engaged. Ericsson has found that experts are constantly trying to keep out of this phase, with what he calls “deliberate practice”, and they tend to do this by employing three strategies:
Focus on technique: This could be the fine movements of the body or the ball as a fser performs a trick. What movement is the most aesthetically pleasing? “What allows me to be as efficient as possible?”
Here is an interview with Tobias Becs provided by SKRskillschool concerning just this topic.
Maintaining a goal oriented mindset: By assigning goals beyond current level, fsers must necessarily push themselves out of their comfort zone. “Currently I can only do one ATW, so my goal will be to get 5 by the end of the month,” or “I want to have PATW by the end of the year.” It is also important that the goals are specific.
Constant and immediate feedback: Failure is a large part of practicing fs. A beginning fser will quickly learn which techniques work and which don’t through failure, but this needs to continue as the fser develops. In real time or on video, experts set themselves apart by focusing on their failures, whereas beginners become complacent with their successes. In order to progress to an expert level, a fser must fail and learn from their mistakes.
In an effort to emphasize the importance of embracing failure, Ericsson suggests a final technique:
Watching experts perform: In order to become an expert, one must begin to think like an expert. In approaching a problem, what steps would an expert take? “I am trying to land this trick. How did they figure it out?” By doing this you directly take on the traits of an expert, and push yourself out of the autonomous stage.
In writing this article I tried to write it in a way that applies to fsers of all types and interests who want to improve. As an aside, I think that these techniques are part of the reason we see fs progressing so quickly and I hope this formalized explanation of expertise has positively contributed to the discussion of helping fsers improve. In order to optimize the usage of your time, incorporate these traits into your training, and remember that
how you spend your time is more important than how much time you spend.
Thanks
EvanM
I left out a lot of material in constructing this post. If there is any interest I can write more on the topic.
My previous post "My thoughts on the state of freestyle" can be read
here.
