Transfer of Training from an Ecological Perspective

Transfer of training, specifically how practice improves performance in competition, is explored from an ecological perspective in this podcast episode. The speaker emphasizes the importance of representative learning design, which focuses on creating practice conditions that closely match the competition environment. Transfer can be positive or negative, weak or strong, and can occur over short or long distances. The episode highlights the need for information, movement, affordances, and emotional context to be similar in both practice and competition. It also discusses the value of unpredictability, consequences, and time pressure in achieving representative practice. The concept of action capacity training is also introduced, which aims to expand a person's potential movement solutions by developing adaptability and increasing force, speed, and stability. Action capacity training can complement skill training, and both forms of training should be combined for optimal results.