How to Make a Permanent Change in Your Game — SS #10

I have the most frustrating player.

We're working on an over-rotation flaw on his serve.

He's losing out on a ton of potential racket speed; he could be serving way faster!

So we toil away in our lessons trying to fix this.

And we make some legitimate progress!

He wants to improve.

I don't doubt that.

But other than our one lesson a week, all he does is play matches.

So when he comes back a week later—a week of playing matches and just competing—what do you think has happened to his over-rotation flaw?

It's right back to where it was.

He's over-rotating.

And he’s losing potential power.

For the longest time, I kept getting frustrated with him, not understanding what was going on and why he wasn't willing to make this change to his serve.

That was until I started looking at what was going on through the lens of motor programming.

More specifically, something I call the Pie Chart of Permanence.

(N.b.: I don’t believe this is an original or unique idea—just the best way I’ve found to describe this phenomenon.)

I'm sure this is a common issue for coaches and players around the tennis world— that what is recreated in a lesson is rarely translated to what happens in a match.

I hope this concept helps to demystify what is actually going on.

The Pie Chart of Permanence

A common solution to making a change is to think that doing one or two lessons on a particular skill is all that’s required to make them permanent.

In fact, before I really started taking the science around motor learning seriously, this is what I used to think, too.

But holding this belief is downright laughable.

Because it doesn't accord with what we know about how the brain stores and solidifies information.

The best way I've found to describe this to players is through the use of The Pie Chart of Permanence:

A big principle I've observed in how skills are made permanent is to do with how often you execute them; in other words: how often you recreate the new movement compared to the old.

For example, take my frustrating player.

He was recreating the new serve for 20% of his time on the tennis court.

The other 80%, where he was playing matches, his competitive nature got the best of him, and he was unwilling to slow down and focus on not over-rotating.

Remember this: muscle memory (yes, I know it's not actually stored in your muscles, this is just the regularly accepted terminology) is self-reinforcing.

If 8 times out of 10 he was using the old way of serving then, no sh*t! Of course he wasn't going to make the change permanent.

Every time he played matches he was just making his crappy old way of serving more and more permanent.

And more and more ingrained.

Have you struggled with a similar issue?

How You Can Actually Change

Now that we've set the stage, the answer I hope becomes obvious.

You have to execute the new more often than the old.

And you have to execute it in pressure-filled, match-like situations.

It's not accurate to say, "You have to forget the old way of doing things."

As in, "I have to forget the old way of hitting my forehand" or "I have to forget the old way of hitting my serve."

The more accurate way of thinking about it is that you have to make the new way of doing things your brain's preferred motor program.

Over a few weeks time, you have to execute the new more than the old.

Seven times out of 10—or even more.

This is what your Pie Chart of Permanence has to look like:

And you also have to do it in realistic, pressure-filled scenarios.

Understanding that the new motor program needs to be reinforced in challenging, competitive scenarios is crucial.

So here are some practical steps to ensure this happens:

1. Integrate New Skills into Regular Practice: Instead of isolating new skills to occasional lessons, you need to work on them consistently (until they are permanent/automatic). This means dedicating a significant portion of each practice to the new technique, even if it initially reduces performance.

2. Simulate Match Conditions: When practicing the change, create conditions that mimic match pressure. This could include point play with specific goals, using the new technique under score pressure, or even organizing practice matches where the focus is on implementing the change rather than winning. This is a big one! Set aside your ego and focus on the kind of player you want to be in 2 years. Not the kind of player who wants to beat their buddy, Bob, and will forego their long-term improvement to do so.

3. Use Video and Get Consistent Feedback: Regularly review video footage of your practice and matches to visually confirm the incorporation of the new technique. Feedback from a coach or a trusted hitting partner can also help to keep you accountable.

4. Patience and Persistence: Accept that setbacks are part of the learning process and keep at it! Changing a deeply ingrained motor program is challenging and requires time and continued effort.

Final Thoughts

Remember, it’s not about “forgetting” the old way, but about making the new the preferred motor program.

And if you need more personalized guidance on how to change, how you should be structuring your practices to give yourself the best chance of improvement, have a think about working together.

From Virtual Private Lessons/Consults, to a comprehensive, intense performance package, I’m sure I can help you improve your tennis.

If you’re finding consistent value in The Fast 4, I would appreciate if you could share it with your tennis friends! As a thank you, I’ve set up a system where you earn rewards and discount codes:

Thank you for reading.

My best,
Malhar