Mysteries of Muscle Memory

When you learned to write, you trained the muscles in your arm and hand to create letters. It took time and concentration to do this, but with repetition it became automatic. Your hand developed muscle memory; when you write your name, your muscles remember how to move without focusing on the process.

Dancing, yoga, gymnastics and weight training are examples of other activities that require enhanced muscle memory. We can make the learning process easier and help establish muscle memory by using a few simple techniques:

* Visual images
* Repetition
* Slow motion
* Micromovement

Imagery

Using a visual image is an effective way to train your body to perform a new dance step or exercise. The best visual images are those which are familiar and detailed.

In dance, visualizing a movement helps you perform the step. For example, if a dancer wants to make an S-curving motion with her body, she can visualize a fish swimming, a camel walking, or a snake crawling. Since the best visual images are familiar and detailed, visualizing the color, texture, shape and markings of the image make it more vivid and effective. Likewise, visualizing yourself correctly repeating a new dance step or exercise makes the learning process easier.

Many people find geometric shapes helpful. For example, you can imagine drawing a big circle to make learning a belly dance hip circle or circle step easier. A square is a useful image for learning a box step or hip square.

Repetition & slow motion

Repetition helps fix a new exercise or dance movement in your mind, so that the next time you perform it, you remember it more easily and perform it with less effort. Slow repetitions of a new exercise or dance step enable you to feel every nuance of the movement.

Rushing through a movement before youve completely mastered it skips over the important process of sensing every nuance of the movement; beginning dance students and exercisers often need to be reminded to slow down. Going slowly helps your muscles recognize precisely what the movement should feel like when performed correctly.

Micromovement

Micromovement means performing a movement in a very tiny way, using the least range of motion possible. For example, if you were writing the letter O ten inches high and then writing o in a script so tiny it could barely be seen, your O would require a much larger hand movement than tiny letter o, the micromovement. Using a tiny range of motion helps you sense subtle muscle movements which are occurring, but micromovements must be performed with awareness to get the full benefit. Going slowly helps.

Have fun with learning!

Select the movement or exercise you are working on, then answer the following:

Imagery: what animal, shape or object does it remind you of?
Repetition: what kind of music would help you when practicing this movement?
Slow motion: how many counts does it take you to complete one repetition?
Micromovement:what is the smallest range of motion you can use for the movement?

Ramona is the author of Dynamic Belly Dance, the Joyful Journey of Dancemaking and Performing. See free belly dance videos, read book excerpts and order an autographed copy at http://www.DynamicBellyDance.com

Copyright 2007 - All rights reserved worldwide. Reprint Rights: You may reprint this article as long as you leave all of the links active, do not edit the article, give author name credit and follow the EzineArticles terms of service for publishers. Thank you!

Jivamukti Yoga Houston

Fastest Plumber Always Gets The Job Done Right

If you find yourself in need of a fast and reliable plumber, the fastest plumber will do in this case. Some manufacturers, Kohler Co. and Ferguson Enterprises of Wisconsin, had a Fastest Plumber Competition, in which the plumber who could do the job the best and quickest took home the top prize. This competition allowed many plumbers to compete for a prize and world status as the fastest plumber. Although the completion is intense, the best plumbers from all over come to show their abilities.

Regional Competitions and Finalists

This competition evolves around doing the job, getting it done quickly and professionally. For the pass six years, these businesses have sponsored and hosted the event with the competition being kicked off with forty-six regional competitions across the country. In order to qualify for the finals, the plumbers were required to install a bathroom consisting of a Kohler toilet, lavatory faucet, and faucets and taps in a ceramic shower. The final eight plumbers were then asked to compete in the final round of competition, in which only one of them would be chosen the winner.

Competition at its Best

The final was held in 2006 at Green Bay, Wisconsin. For the final test, they were judged on skills, these amazing plumbers had to install a toilet, a bathroom faucet, and the famous, but difficult three-piece shower unit. However, this time, to show their professional quality, they also had to hook up the water line. Normally taking as long as a day to complete, the new winner completed this project in record time and beat the standing record of a full day.

As part of the contest, the plumbers selected and their families were treated as guests of Kohler company at Kohlers well known American Club for the weekend and as a the football game played by the Green Bay Packers football game that took place after the winner was announced at the competition.

Who Was The Winner

Robert Rousch was given the title after finishing the competition with a time of one minute and eleven seconds short of the best record the competition has had since the beginning. Mr. Rousch was also blessed with a cash award of three thousand dollars. It pays to be fast and competent in the plumbing business. After starting out as an entry-level plumber, Robert has spent the past ten years working for one company who provides excellent service to their customers.

The Speed of Things And Quality

While you want a speedy plumber with the qualifications to get the job done, you can assure that even if your plumber did not win an award, he is still trained and qualified for this type of work. Plumbers do spend hours in school to learn everything needed. As apprentisits, they receive hands on training during the learning process, which provides for quality plumbers who stand by their work.

If you think your plumber is fast, maybe he needs some encouragement to enter the next competition to see if he can win the title. You never know, he might even surprise himself.

You can also find more info on Plumbing Repair and Toilet Plumbing. Sressmanagementmethods.com is a comprehensive resource to known about stress management.

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