jeff081692
Veteran
I don't think it's too much of a contrast to what Noah was saying although that was my first instinct as well. Everything in cubing cubing can be broken down into how many patterns you know and how much practice you have done. By patterns I don't just mean algorithms but knowing how to AUF after each alg is an example and partial edge control is another example of something that once you have been exposed to it you can start using it in your own solves. And so when Feliks says watching example solves are helpful it's because you are exposed to new patterns and you can compare the new things to what you already do and decide if you want to switch or not. This is especially helpful when you have learned intuitive F2L but not every case is optimal because once you see someone do the same case in less moves with better finger tricks it's probably a good idea to consider making it a part of your solves but if you only do lots of timed solves you don't consider alternatives since the goal is to not think much while solving and you risk having a slower solve for trying something new.
Different finger tricks are also things you can learn from watching other cubers. I know Feliks developed his over lots of solves but I never knew about the finger push for U moves until I watched Feliks solve in slow motion.
As for real deliberate practice and coming up with ways to practice your weaknesses, cubing probably has less of a need for it than most other fields. The main point for deliberate practice in tennis for example would be practicing a specific technique that would not occur too often but was still important. With cubing when you can practice everything once in 10-20 seconds there seems to be less of a need to isolate one aspect and drill it. I still think it's helpful (especially if you go beyond fridrich and plan on learning 100+ extra algs to be faster) but people like Feliks and Yu Nakajima have shown that lots of solves can get you far. I think Alex is the fastest cuber who did mostly technique work early on and then consolidated that knowledge with lots of solves like during the 10,000 cube marathon. And even during that marathon where he was doing only around 300 solves a day he was still improving if you look at his posts in the thread which shows that once you know most of the patterns you will ever need then lots of solves will help you maintain all that knowledge and make things feel effortless and you no longer have to think about what you are doing.
So I think one of the main takeaways I got was keep solves as a top priority but if you aren't improving then look at example solves of fast cubers and try to learn what they are doing differently that you can add to your solves and once you assimilate that knowledge then lots of practice will solidify it and you will improve over time.
I would say the best way to utilize some sort of deliberate practice while solving would be figuring out the best turn speed to practice with. In all the research articles I have found about perceptual motor skills when it comes to speed turns into pushing yourself by attempting to be faster than what is comfortable until it naturally becomes comfortable or not having to think as much as Feliks puts it.
Different finger tricks are also things you can learn from watching other cubers. I know Feliks developed his over lots of solves but I never knew about the finger push for U moves until I watched Feliks solve in slow motion.
As for real deliberate practice and coming up with ways to practice your weaknesses, cubing probably has less of a need for it than most other fields. The main point for deliberate practice in tennis for example would be practicing a specific technique that would not occur too often but was still important. With cubing when you can practice everything once in 10-20 seconds there seems to be less of a need to isolate one aspect and drill it. I still think it's helpful (especially if you go beyond fridrich and plan on learning 100+ extra algs to be faster) but people like Feliks and Yu Nakajima have shown that lots of solves can get you far. I think Alex is the fastest cuber who did mostly technique work early on and then consolidated that knowledge with lots of solves like during the 10,000 cube marathon. And even during that marathon where he was doing only around 300 solves a day he was still improving if you look at his posts in the thread which shows that once you know most of the patterns you will ever need then lots of solves will help you maintain all that knowledge and make things feel effortless and you no longer have to think about what you are doing.
So I think one of the main takeaways I got was keep solves as a top priority but if you aren't improving then look at example solves of fast cubers and try to learn what they are doing differently that you can add to your solves and once you assimilate that knowledge then lots of practice will solidify it and you will improve over time.
I would say the best way to utilize some sort of deliberate practice while solving would be figuring out the best turn speed to practice with. In all the research articles I have found about perceptual motor skills when it comes to speed turns into pushing yourself by attempting to be faster than what is comfortable until it naturally becomes comfortable or not having to think as much as Feliks puts it.
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