Acquiring, learning and perfecting skill is more than motor learning, it requires recognition that the body is a complex system that is continually learning and adapting to ever changing environments. It is not a computer to be programmed, rather it is a self organizing problem solving organism, always learning and growing. The body learns through exploration. I feel it is not about exploring limits, it is more about defining parameters and learning options. We must allow for and encourage individual expression. In reality as coaches what we need to do to insure continual adaptation is to change constraints so the we keep challenging the athlete to solve increasingly complex motor problems. The solutions are as varied as there are athletes performing skill. Be especially aware that you are not creating robots. I know I have been guilty of creating robots by trying to fit the athlete into a box of technical perfection. That box does not exist; it is always changing and being modified. Let’s encourage that exploration of movement parameters at every level of proficiency. My suspicion is that skills will improve and that injuries will be reduced.
