Does practice really make "perfect"? Some thoughts on diminishing returns.

What does it look like practically:

A great practical demonstration of diminishing returns is the 100m athletic event. This can be displayed through analyzing Usain Bolt’s run times in an 8 year time period. Since setting the world 100m sprint record of 9.58 seconds in 2009, Usain bolt has not matched that speed since. Despite continued years of training, the closest speed he has attained is 9.63 seconds and the furthest being 9.80 seconds. Showcasing that through practice, Bolt has maintained his speed but has not seen significant improvement

Theoretical basis:

Diminishing returns is the concept of performance continually improving with practice but at a slower rate (Spittle, 2013). During early learning stages, a rapid increase in performance can be observed (Spittle, 2013). As the athlete continues to improve, performance levels will begin to decrease and level off. This can be attributed to an individual’s genetics. Genetics are an underlying factor in determining the point of diminishing returns in an athlete (Rennie and Clark, 2006). Factors such as an individual’s muscle fibers can impact training and performance (Rennie and Clark, 2006). Training schedules applying overlearning will lead to individual’s reaching their genetic potential. Once this occurs, diminishing returns will be a factor in future training sessions.

For additional reading check out;

Our full depth piece)

- https://joshgosch.wixsite.com/practiceschedules/single-post/2017/03/14/The-Base-Theoretical-basis-for-practice-schedules

Or our references from the articles)

- Rennie, M., & Colson, M. (2006). Diminishing returns. New Scientist, 191(2563),65. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.lib.monash.edu.au/ps/i.do?p=AONE&sw=w&u=monash&v=2.1it=r&id=GALE%7CA149767383&asid=8723b76553455a68067740b0eaefd7f9

- Chapter 15 of Motor Learning and Skill Acquisition by Spittle, M