98 A discussion with Ed Coughlan, Phil Kearny and Olly Logan, founders of Movement & Skill Acquisition Ireland. In the interview we discuss the goals of the organization and their upcoming conference: Constraints based coaching and ecological dynamics to enhance sports performance. Download link More information about my guests: https://twitter.com/MSAIreland http://events.cit.ie/index.cfm?page=events&eventId=323 https://twitter.com/DrSkillAcq/ https://twitter.com/kearney_phil https://twitter.com/ollylogo More…

97 A discussion with Mark O’Sullivan, Coach with AIK Football in Stockholm. We discuss Mark’s concept of football interactions and how it relates to practice design and affordances, and the “race to the bottom” in talent identification. Download link More information about my guest: https://footblogball.wordpress.com/category/mark-o-sullivan/ https://twitter.com/markstkhlm More information: Subscribe in iOS/Apple Subscribe in Android/Google My…

96 A look at research investigating the effects of assisted/guided movement on skill acquisition. Can experiencing the movement pattern of an elite athlete facilitate motor learning in a novice? Is it better to use assistance to reduce or augment errors? Download link Articles: Can Robots Help the Learning of Skilled Actions? Robot assistance of motor…

95 A look at how Bernstein’s famous phrase “repetition without repetition” revolutionized how we think about motor learning. And an introduction to a few extensions of Bernstein’s ideas including coordinative structures and the uncontrolled manifold hypothesis. Download link Articles: Dexterity and Its Development The Bernstein perspective: II. The concept of muscle linkage or coordinative structure…

94 A look at Bernstein’s theory of freezing/freeing degrees of freedom during skill acquisition and some research which has tested these ideas. Download link Articles: Dexterity and Its Development Free(z)ing Degrees of Freedom in Skill Acquisition Conscious Control Is Associated With Freezing of Mechanical Degrees of Freedom During Motor Learning Throwing Skills: Analysis of Movement…

93 The first episode in a series looking at the contributions of Nikolai Bernstein to our understanding of motor control and motor learning. What were Bernstein’s “problems? Is finding solutions to these problems really what effective coaching is all about? Download link Articles/Books: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai_Bernstein Dexterity and Its Development The Bernstein perspective: I. The problems of…

92 A look at the Differential Learning approach to skill acquisition. Is maximizing movement variability by preventing repetition and correction the optimal way to design practice? How does this differ from the Constraints-Led Approach? Download link Articles: The Nonlinear Nature of Learning – A Differential Learning Approach Time scales of adaptive behavior and motor learning…

91 A look at some recent research examining contextual interference, blocked vs random and variable vs constant practice. How should coaches put these concepts into practice? Download link Articles: Quantifying Contextual Interference and Its Effect on Skill Transfer in Skilled Youth Tennis Players Effects of practice schedule and task specificity on the adaptive process of…

90 A discussion with Leah Robinson, Associate Professor of Movement Science from the University of Michigan. Topics include the importance of fundamental movement skills, how these skills should be measured, perceived motor competence and interventions for promoting movement in young children. Download link More information about my guest: http://www.kines.umich.edu/directory/faculty/leah-robinson http://www.cmahlab.com/ http://twitter.com/LERobinsonPhD More information: Subscribe in…

89 Looking at research that has evaluated the Constraints-Led Approach (CLA) to coaching. How effective is this approach? What effects do changing constraints actually have on performance? How does the CLA comparing to other more traditional coaching methods? Download link Articles: Scaling the Equipment and Play Area in Children’s Sport to improve Motor Skill Acquisition:…