LADDER OF SUCCESS (PART IV): REPETITION

The following comes from a book that I started a few years back and have yet to finish. This is an excerpt from the chapter titled "Prepare and Compete."

CLIMBING THE LADDER OF SUCCESS

The third rung on the ladder as we continue to climb towards our potential best is REPETITION. Repetition refers to the number of times we do each drill. We have already touched on the fact that repetition is indeed vital, but what actually makes it so valuable? Repetitive drill work allows the player to adapt physically to what the particular drills call for, which then allows for habits to be formed. If fundamentals are executed properly, and within a repetitive basis, then a play will develop good habits. If we can backtrack, this is where simplicity helps. By keeping it simple, it helps us to execute properly. As previously mentioned, this leads to good habits. Poor execution, for whatever reason, can lead to bad habits.

One thing we constantly talk to our players about is the ability to work consistently within the framework that we give them. The development of a basketball player, as well as that of the team, is something that does not remain constant. In other words, you will either get better or worse everyday based on your working performance.

Repetition also plays a key role in the mental part of the game. By constantly repeating something physically, we are conditioning ourselves mentally. An important part of athletic movement is muscle memory. This is when the muscles perform what they have been conditioned to do and this can only come from constant repetition.

One more key thought for coaches is that constant repetition is important -- but it must come with variety.  They may sound contradicting but I believe it's critically important.  For example, you can teach the proper mechanics of a defensive blockout.  And certainly you can be repetitive in teaching those very fundamentals each day in a 1-on-1 sitution.  But you will eventually lose the student to boredom.  If you think that a 1-on-1 situation for teaching blockout is best, certainly return to it as often as you think you need but also utilize other means.  For instance, you can teach blockout 2-on-2 and 3-on-3.  How about a rebounding game 4-on-4 with winners and losers?  Make sure you check those same fundamentals in whole method work.  You can teach and demand the same techinique in a variety of ways to keep some freshness to the approach.

Another part of variety is "advancement" in your drill approach.  For instance, you can do a dribbling drill through cones or chairs stressing the same fundamentals of stance, footwork, head up, etc.  But it's importat to find a way to streatch the growth of your player by making the drills increasingly more difficult.  In this case, give the player a targert time to navigate through the obstacles -- without losing the fundamental teaching points you are stressing. 

Some more thoughts on repetition:

“A baseball swing is a very finely tuned instrument. It is repetition, and more repetition, then a little more after that.”

-Reggie Jackson

“Any idea, plan, or purpose may be placed in the mind through repetition of thought.”
-Napoleon Hill

“Constant repetition carries conviction.”
-Robert Collier

“It's the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.”
-Muhammad Ali

“Repetition of the same thought or physical action develops into a habit which, repeated frequently enough, becomes an automatic reflex.”
-Norman Vincent Peale