People experience a natural motivation boost when provided with opportunities to exercise control via choice. When given the opportunity to choose, our intrinsic motivation becomes elevated & our performance tends to increase. Giving athletes control over certain practice elements is one way that coaches can increase motor learning. For example, letting athletes decide:

• which drill they begin their training session with.
• the order of a pre-selected set of drills.
• whether or not they use assistive devices.
• if/when they want to see a movement demonstration.

Interestingly, research suggests that learner autonomy benefits motor learning even when the choice provided is unrelated to the motor task. For example, when participants were allowed to choose which colour golf ball (white, orange, or yellow) they preferred to use during putting practice, they outperformed participants who were not given a colour choice during a retention test 1 day later (Lewthwaite, Chiviacowsky, Drews, & Wulf, 2015). The findings of this study, & several others, showcase the positive influence that autonomy can have on motor learning.

Recommendation: Regularly incorporate choice – relevant or not – into practice sessions.