When what you do comes with absolute flow. You don’t have to think or feel awkward. That’s when you do not learn anything.
Learning is inherently difficult. Out of the comfort zone, if you will.
Often we want a workout to go smooth sailing. As if being a master at it was the end goal. As if it was shameful not to known how to double under, or snatch. So many go “I need to practice this in a hidden cave somewhere out of sight, so that I can become good at ti and shine in the workout”. I am the same; it’s awkward not to be masterful at something that looks easy when you see someone good do it.
On the other hand - the gym is the very training ground we go into to practice skills. And energy systems and fitness, sure. If I went to school believing that I should know all the lessons already, what use is it going to school?
It’s getting our head around to being in the here and now that is the tricky part.
‘We tend to think of the brain as being static, or even beginning to degenerate, once we reach adulthood,’ says Dr Heidi Johansen-Berg of the Department of Clinical Neurology, University of Oxford, who led the work. ‘In fact we find the structure of the brain is ripe for change. We’ve shown that it is possible for the brain to condition its own wiring system to operate more efficiently.’
The Oxford study essentially says that practicing new skills builds the brain anew. Which is one of the primary benefits of learning double-unders, or juggling, handstands or olympic weightlifting. Things that require high coordination. Perhaps knowing that the awkward feeling is beneficial will help be in the present without getting frustrated. Lean into the headwind and rain and just enjoy the process.
“Nine tenths of Alchemy is chemistry. Nine tenths out of chemistry is waiting.” — From ‘The Name of the Wind’ by Patrick Rothfuss.
Most magic requires a lot of work.
It’s good for you. #science
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