There is no "muscle memory"

[NewGuy2005 51]

I keep hearing the term "muscle memory." There is no such thing. It would be more appropriate to call it subconcious control or some otehr term that gives credit to the brain. Muscles have no capacity for anything like memory.

[D22369 0]

when you get your instructional ratings you can call it whatever you wish

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[IanHarrop 37]

http://www.simlog.com/muscle-memory.html

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But after a while, the "seeing-thinking-doing" gradually becomes "seeing-doing" because your muscles seem to "know" and "remember" just what to do. What you're learning now is speed, i.e. how to perform the task carefully and quickly. That's muscle memory.

Scientists call this "kinesthetic memory" or "neuro-muscular facilitation" and they speak of "sensory-motor" learning, since you are combining sensing input, i.e. what you see with your eyes, with motor output, i.e. what you do with your body.

Of course, during the "drill-and-practice", your muscles aren't really memorizing anything (since all memories are stored in your brain). Instead, what you see with your eyes is interpreted by your brain in the form of nerve signals to your muscles to make your body move.

Now by making the same movements in response to the same visual cues over and over again, the associated nerve-muscle connections gradually become more effective, i.e. the transmission of the signals becomes more effective, and this is how the "thinking" in the "seeing-thinking-doing" is gradually replaced by "seeing-doing", i.e. by muscle memory.
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"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Call it whatever you want. When I reach for my risers, I have a pretty good chance of knowing where they are. It's call repetition and I practiced it up high before I brought it low to the ground.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[MB38 0]

"subconscious control of repetitive tasks" doesn't sound as good as "muscle memory"

I really don't know what I'm talking about.

[Mike111 0]

For all those of us who aren't good at science, then "muscle memory wuill do!"

[Squeak 17]

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For all those of us who aren't good at science, then "muscle memory wuill do!"

For those of us who are good at science, muscle memory will also do.

For those who are pedants,... well to each their own

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[DJL 232]

There is TOO!! How else would zombies walk? DUH!

"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

[Mike111 0]

.

[popsjumper 2]

Some of us are way too literal in our thinking...we miss out on a lot of human interaction because we don't get it when it comes to irony, sarcasm, satire, allegory, the figurative, etc.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[NewGuy2005 51]

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There is TOO!! How else would zombies walk? DUH!

Yes, but the only way to stop a zombie is to shoot it in the HEAD!!!

[CSpenceFLY 1]

***or "neuro-muscular facilitation




That much easier to say.Lets use that one.

[DBCOOPER 1]

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I keep hearing the term "muscle memory." There is no such thing. It would be more appropriate to call it subconcious control or some otehr term that gives credit to the brain. Muscles have no capacity for anything like memory.

I keep hearing the term "beer light".There is no such thing.I would be more appropriate to call it subconscious control or some other term that gives credit to the brain.Lights have no capacity for anything like drinking beer.

Replying to: Re: Stall On Jump Run Emergency Procedure? by billvon

If the plane is unrecoverable then exiting is a very very good idea.

[Shotgun 1]

You could call it procedural memory.

Edited to say: Actually, when I searched that site for "muscle memory," it directed me to proprioception, but I think either of those terms would work, depending on what you mean when you say "muscle memory."

[tombuch 0]

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I keep hearing the term "beer light".There is no such thing.I would be more appropriate to call it subconscious control or some other term that gives credit to the brain.Lights have no capacity for anything like drinking beer.

Oh but there was, and there still may be at some drop zones. 'Back in the day' many big drop zones had specific rules that said no beer until the last load is off the ground, or until everybody is back on the ground. Those same drop zones would also provide a keg. There was often so much activity it was hard for regular jumpers to know when beer could be consumed, so an actual light was introduced and would be turned on indicating the keg could be tapped. That was (is) a beer light.

The DZ I'm at now doesn't have a beer light, because there isn't any beer rule. For us, when the sun is shining there is enough light to drink beer. When the sun isn't shining, it's dark, and that's a good time to drink beer. So I guess at our DZ the sun is our beer light.

Also keep in mind that there is a "lite beer," and for our skydiving friends with dyslexia, there is definitely a "beer lite."
.

Tom Buchanan
Instructor Emeritus
Comm Pilot MSEL,G
Author: JUMP! Skydiving Made Fun and Easy

[kallend 1,623]

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I keep hearing the term "muscle memory." There is no such thing. It would be more appropriate to call it subconcious control or some otehr term that gives credit to the brain. Muscles have no capacity for anything like memory.

It is a description of the type of memory, not a statement of where the memory is located.

Like "pleasant memory", "bad memory", "suppressed memory", etc.

Seems appropriate to me.

...

The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one.

[riggerrob 558]

After you perform a skill a few hundred times, muscles and nerves strengthen.
Granted, memory may only exist in the brain, but "muscle memory" is a convenient alliteration when describing the process to students.
"Muscle memory" - for large muscles - can be acquired in a few dozen repetitions, but fine motor skills - involving complex combinations of small finger muscles - may require thousands of repetitions to instill them in "muscle memory."

[diablopilot 2]

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when you get your instructional ratings you can call it whatever you wish

Roy

Perfect.

----------------------------------------------
You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

[Tink1717 2]

True, but until more of us who have degrees in exercise physiology or kinesiology get instructor ratings, we're going to be stuck with the term.

The correct term they're looking for is "psychological efficiency"

Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off.
-The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!)
AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717

[AggieDave 6]

The difference is, just about any idiot can visualize the term "muscle memory" it just makes since to the masses. "Psychological efficiency" would make sense to folks, but then you'd spend half of your FJC explaining the seemingly complex term instead of just saying "muscle memory" and continuing on with the important material...like how to recognize a mal and how to correct your situation to live.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[Luv2Fall 0]

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when you get your instructional ratings you can call it whatever you wish

Roy

Priceless!

[mdrejhon 8]

LOL, English language is funny like that. It's just a common slang term. Live with it, like it or not.

"Being in the loop"
What the hell is being in the loop? It sound like someone is trying to commit suicide or working at a circus.

"Gut feeling"
What the hell? Guts ain't got no feelings!

"Instant potatoes"
That's impossible - adding water takes time!

[AlexCrowley 0]

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"Instant potatoes"
That's impossible - adding water takes time!

Not if you get your significant other to do it for you.

TV's got them images, TV's got them all, nothing's shocking.

[DBCOOPER 1]

Ok beer light is on

Replying to: Re: Stall On Jump Run Emergency Procedure? by billvon

If the plane is unrecoverable then exiting is a very very good idea.

[Witelli 0]

That's funny, we have a beer light, actually a traffic light used for that purpose.