Athletes, artists, and top athletes know it: Success comes from targeted practice and repetition. And that’s exactly what you can use for the participants in your next training! In this article, I want to show you what matters and how you can utilize this for yourself.

For those in a hurry: What can I do now to improve my exercises?

A brief overview: Why practicing helps

Targeted practice changes a very specific area in the body: The brain. You probably already know that our brain processes and transports information of any kind in the form of electrical signals. This applies not only to the brain but also to motor signals to the body, which are thereby connected to the brain.
One thing is important: The better the pathways for these electrical signals are insulated, the better and faster the signal transportation works.

When a person practices, the insulation of these data lines becomes thicker and the signals get faster and more precise over time. The effect is always the same: the practiced activity becomes progressively easier for the learner.

A great depiction of this structure can be found in a TEDed video titled “How to practice effectively… for just about anything (approx. 5 min):

If you’re looking for even more science: The pathways are called Axons, and their insulation is formed by Myelin. Both are detailed on Wikipedia.

What do I derive from this for my exercises?

The question of how participants become exercise champions can also be answered with this principle. At its core, it boils down to the following things:

1. Keep exercises very simple at the beginning
The insulation of the pathways builds up gradually. At first, they are still very weak. Therefore, you should keep the exercises very simple at the beginning. Over time (and with repetition), they will strengthen, and the exercises should consequently become more difficult.

2. Pay attention to the correct execution of the exercise (adjust difficulty)
Regardless of whether we perform an exercise correctly or incorrectly, a signal is sent through the body and contributes to further insulating this signal. If we perform incorrect executions too often, they become ingrained and harder to untrain. Therefore: start with small, but correct steps.

3. Focus on the exercise and remove all distractions
For a precise execution of an exercise, reducing distractions is important. For this, participants can, for example, turn off their smartphones and tablets. Short and precise exercise phases are better than extended, distracted practice.

4. Continue the exercises (including motoric ones) in the brain
Whether it involves intellectual or motoric exercises: In the brain, they are electrical signals. So even if the topic is body language, the brain continues to train through conscious visualization of an action – through the development of insulations. Mentally repeating exercises leads to a training effect and can enhance your performance.

5. Divide the exercises over an extended period
The development of insulation of the pathways does not happen overnight. For the brain to be trained, it needs time. So it’s best to ensure that your participants can train over an extended period. For example, through targeted action impulses after your presentation.

What can you do now to improve your exercises?

Take 5 minutes now and reflect on the exercises from your last training and answer the following questions:

• Are the initial exercises simple enough to be executed accurately by my participants?

• Do I let my participants repeat the simple exercises often enough before giving them more difficult exercises?

• Are the exercises short enough for my participants to concentrate on them without distractions?

• Do I motivate my participants sufficiently to actually perform the exercises?

If you can answer all these questions with “Yes”, your exercises are good. If you feel you might answer “No” to any of the questions or cannot answer the question with certainty, it’s always a good idea to get feedback directly from your participants. That way, you’ll quickly find out how you can refine your exercises.

Would you like to know even more about how your exercises can improve? Just send us a short list of bullet points at info@blink.it and exchange ideas with us. We’re excited!