Consistency through Variability

Many still believe that “perfecting” the same movement through endless drill repetitions will help athletes replicate these skills under competitive pressure. This often backfires because competition is anything but predictable. Athletes face constantly changing variables—opponents’ strategies, weather, playing surfaces, and their own fluctuating mental and physical states. Therefore, when the game doesn’t match what they’ve rehearsed, they’re often unprepared to adapt since their training has not equipped them to handle such variability.

It may seem counterintuitive, but the key to achieving consistent performance in sports lies in embracing inconsistency during practice. However, the idea of training with variability often faces resistance, as many argue that it undermines the development of “muscle memory”, leads to poor fundamentals, and risks creating inconsistency in skill execution (especially for closed-skill dominant sports such as bowling, wushu and golf).

What evidence do we have for making this claim?

Scientific studies in movement science show that no two actions—whether it’s a swing, throw, or jump—are ever identical, even for elite athletes, as revealed through high-speed camera analysis that captures the subtle variations in each movement.

Variability is not a flaw; it’s a natural feature of human performance. For instance, Russian physiologist Nikolai Bernstein’s famous study of blacksmiths demonstrated that they could consistently hit the same target, even though each swing followed a slightly different trajectory (Bernstein, 1967). This concept, called “repetition without repetition” emphasizes the importance of adaptable skill execution.

“Provide athletes with repeated exposure to solving a problem instead of making them repeat the same rote solution.”

Consequently, achieving consistent performance in sports often requires embracing variability in practice, rather than striving for the exact same movement every time. Although repetitive drills may establish initial motor patterns, practising with variability enables athletes to adjust to the ever-changing demands of competitive sports (Ammar et al, 2023; Buszard et al., 2017; Davids et al., 2008), including :

• Dynamic Environments: Weather, surfaces, and opponents differ, requiring athletes to modify their actions continuously.
• Adaptive Decision Making: Competitive performance requires quick adjustments to opponents’ strategies and game situations.
• Physical and Mental State: An athlete’s body and mind fluctuate daily due to factors like fatigue, emotions, energy levels, focus, confidence, and decision-making, all of which impact performance strategies.

This begs the question, “How do I design practice sessions that replicate these dynamic conditions?” The answer lies in variability—intentionally shaping practice conditions to mirror the dynamics of competition and enhance adaptability. I have examples from a few different sports to help illustrate how these methods can be applied. However, before exploring these examples, I encourage you—whether you are a coach or an athlete—to reflect on your current practices…

• Consider the types of drills and games you already use that align with this approach to practice.
• Alternatively, are there opportunities to adapt certain practices to incorporate variability? Specifically, how would you give learners repeat exposure to solving a problem instead of making them repeat the same rote solution.
• Above all, ensure that the level and type of variability introduced are tailored to the needs and developmental stage of the learners.

What are your responses to the prompts above? Consider sharing your current practices and I would love to hear about your creative attempts at incorporating variability into your practice design.  

Coach Hansen

References:

Ammar, A., Trabelsi, K., Boujelbane, M. A., Boukhris, O., Glenn, J. M., Chtourou, H., & Schöllhorn, W. I. (2023). The myth of contextual interference learning benefit in sports practice: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 39, 100537. doi:10.1016/j.edurev.2023.100537

Bernstein, N. (1967). The coordination and regulation of movements. Oxford: Pergamon

Buszard, T., Reid, M., Krause, L., Kovalchik, S., & Farrow, D. (2017). Quantifying contextual interference and its effect on skill transfer in skilled youth tennis players. Frontiers in Psychology, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01931

Davids, K., Button, C., & Bennett, S. (2008). Dynamics of skill acquisition: A constraints-led approach. Human kinetics.