For You - No More "Muscle Memory"
Many of you who read golf magazines and watch ads on TV have certainly seen products advertised by saying "these help you develop muscle memory." Well, is this true - can muscles develop memory? For years I have believed that this is false - that only the brain has memory. And it is more clear than ever that my belief is true; here is some interesting information that hopefully will show this to you.
This week I sent a note to my good friend and PGA Professional in Germany - Mike McFadden. Mike has spent quite a bit of time investigating how people learn to improve in golf. He provided me with some good references on this topic (one a book that I have ordered and will read soon). But the most interesting thing he said to me is that "In science, the term muscle memory does not exist. What is commonly referred to as muscle memory is correctly called motor memory." In fact, he said that NO WHERE in the science of motor learning is the term muscle memory used. Here is one of the links on this topic that he sent to me that is well worth reading:
So, if in practicing to improve our golf games, we are developing motor memory, what exactly is happening? Daniel Coyle, who wrote The Talent Code (must reading on developing talent), created a beautiful set of visuals on what actually happens when we are successfully working to learn a complex task (like say, a golf swing). It all relates to developing a substance called myelin in our brains:
The point of all of this? I hope this information helps you to be at least a little more informed about what really happens when we are working to improve our golf swings - or develop any talent. And just to close, here is my friend Mike McFadden's favorite picture related to muscle memory:
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More Green Reading Myths
One of the exciting things about Putting Improvement these days is that there is more and more good information available. A golfer may have a great putting stroke and be playing with a well-fit putter, but if he cannot read greens he will have a difficult time making putts he thinks he should make. One of the Tasks in my Putting eBook is related to Green Reading. A week or so ago I found this new link on Green Reading Myths that is well worth reading. Boo hoo - wish I had this link in my eBook! (but hey, who says there will not be a 2nd edition sometime in the future). I hope you enjoy this information from Pete Brown (an AimPoint Level 2 Instructor) on Green Reading Myths: Pete Brown - "Top 10 Green Reading Myths Exposed"
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Putting eBook - and Mizuno Iron Fitting
On Thursday March 13, I provided a link on my web site so that golfers can download my new Putting Improvement eBook - "It's Time YOU Improved Your Putting!" I hope those of you who have already downloaded it and read it (when I sent it a week ago) have found information to help you putt better.
For those of you who have not downloaded it, here is a link you can use to do so:
Putting eBook Download Link
And please share this link with your friends!
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A few weeks ago, Game Improvement Golf became a Mizuno Performance Fitting Center. I have the full Mizuno iron fitting cart, including their Shaft Optimizer and a large group of custom fitting shafts. I will also soon add at least a dozen Aerotech SteelFiber fitting shafts to my version of their system. If you want to learn more information about true custom fitting with Mizuno irons, please get in touch with me.
Rooting For YOUR Golfing Success!!
Tony Wright
GAME IMPROVEMENT GOLF
Oak Ridge, TN
The PREMIER Short Game Fitting Center in East Tennessee!
tony@gameimprovementgolf.com
www.gameimprovementgolf.com
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