Repetition Drills - Approaches Workbook

1. Approaches
Workbook
Repetition Drills – Teacher Answers

2. 1) What is the purposeof a repetitiondrill and
in what wayswill this help performance?
• To repeat a particular movement (skill) exactly the same
way over and over again. The intention is to groove the
skill or part of the skill into muscle memory and
therefore make the skill more natural and automatic.
• Through making the movement automatic it means that
during a performance the athlete does not have to think
about how to perform the skill and is therefore free to
focus on other aspects of performance such as decision
making and tactics.

3. Whentryingtoimproveaskillidentifyatleast2reasons
whyarepetitiondrillmightbemoreeffectivethan
practicingthrough simplyplayinggames
• In a repetition drill the situation can be organised so that the
skill being practiced is the sole focus and is performed
repeatedly. In a game the skill may not be performed as
frequently as an appropriate situation for using the skill might
not arise.
• Developing a skill out with a game situation using a repetition
drill removes distractions such as the opponent, winning or
losing, and performing other skills. This allows the performer
to focus only on the movements required within the skill being
practiced.
• In a repetition practice goals/targets can easily be set (e.g. 8
out of 10 serve to target). This allows the performer to check
for improvement and increases motivation.

4. 3)Whenusingrepetitiondrillsitisfairlyeasyto
adjustthedifficultyofthedrill. Whyisthatimportant
whentryingtoimproveperformance?
• It is important that the athlete is working at the correct
difficulty level for them.
• If a drill is not challenging enough then the athlete may
become bored and lose concentration. This may result in poor
technique being practiced and therefore this may be what
become automatic. This will result in the performer using
poor technique in their performance.
• In addition if a drill is not challenging enough then the
performer is not pushing themselves to improve and as a
result little or no progress will be made.

5. 3)Whenusingrepetitiondrillsitisfairlyeasyto
adjustthedifficultyofthedrill. Whyisthatimportant
whentryingtoimproveperformance?
• If a drill is too difficult then the athlete is unlikely
to experience success. This may result in the
athlete losing motivation and as a result losing
focus on the practice and therefore making
limited progress.
• Also if a drill is too difficult there may be too
many distractions that results in the athlete not
being able to concentrate on the skill they are
trying to improve. Therefore making limited
progress.

6. 4) Whyisitimportantthatthedifficultylevelof
repetitionpracticesisincreasedgradually?
• It is important that the difficulty level of drill is gradually
increased so that the athlete can continue to improve the
skills they are working on and their performance. Continuing
to work at the same difficulty of practice would result in no
further progress.
• It is important that the increase is gradual however so that
drills are not made too difficult and the athlete does not
achieve success.
• Increasing the difficulty level gradually will allow the athlete to
improve their performance and also develop their confidence
when using the skill.

7. 5)As aperformerimprovestheirtechniquewhen
performingaskillwhyisitimportantthatdrillsare
mademoregamelike?
• When the performer is ready it is important to
make drills more game like so that the practice
situation more closely resembles the conditions
they will face in a game.
• Doing this will make it easier for the athlete to
transfer the skill being worked on in practice into
the actual game.

8. 6) What can be done to make drills game
like?
• Adding in movement
• Performing the skill from different positions
• Performing other skills along with the one being focused
on
• Increasing the level of opposition
• Increasing the number or speed of feeds
• Changing how predictable feeds are.
• Changing the type of feed.
• Increasing time pressure

9. 7) Why is the amount of time spent
doing a repetition drill important?
• In order for a skill to become automatic it must be repeated
over and over again. Therefore it is important that enough
time is spent doing a repetition drill so that a lot of repetitions
can be made.
• Performing a skill a couple of times is not going to lead to it
becoming automatic.
• There are dangers associated with spending too long on a
practice however….

10. 8)Whencompletingarepetitiondrillwhatmight
happenifaperformerworksfortoolongwithouta
breakortakestooshort abreak?
• Can become boring if used for too long. This can result in the
performer losing concentration which in turn will impact on
the quality of the work being produced
• Can become tiring if used for too long. If the demands of the
practice result in the performer becoming too tired then again
the quality of the practice will be reduced.
• If incorrect technique is practiced repeatedly it can become a
bad habit. Bad technique that is practiced repeatedly can be
very difficult to undo.

11. 9) Why do youthinkathletes might workat
practicesthat are too difficult for them?
• Often more difficult practices are more appealing as they are
more game like. Perhaps they involve competition which
athletes tend to enjoy.
• Simple repetition drills may be boring. Elite athletes
understand however that these “boring” drills have to be
done to ensure they are as well prepared as possible for
performance.

12. 10) What issues might this cause?
• If a drill is too difficult then the athlete is unlikely to
experience success. This may result in the athlete losing
motivation and as a result losing focus on the practice
and therefore making limited progress.
• Also if a drill is too difficult there may be too many
distractions that results in the athlete not being able to
concentrate on the skill they are trying to improve.
Therefore making limited progress.

13. 11)Whencompletingarepetitiondrillwhyisit
particularlyimportanttogeteffectivefeedback?
• To get information about how to improve your technique and
improve your performance of the skill.
• To get information about what you are doing well – so you
know not to try and change this and also to increase your
confidence and motivation.
• So that you are not performing poor technique repeatedly
(believing it to be correct) and therefore creating a bad habit
that will be difficult to undo.
• Bad habits could result in skills not being as effective or errors
being made when performing. In some cases having poor
technique can even result in injury.