Katana VentraIP

Muscle memory

Muscle memory is a form of procedural memory that involves consolidating a specific motor task into memory through repetition, which has been used synonymously with motor learning. When a movement is repeated over time, the brain creates a long-term muscle memory for that task, eventually allowing it to be performed with little to no conscious effort. This process decreases the need for attention and creates maximum efficiency within the motor and memory systems. Muscle memory is found in many everyday activities that become automatic and improve with practice, such as riding bikes, driving motor vehicles, playing ball sports, typing on keyboards, entering PINs, playing musical instruments,[1] poker,[2] martial arts, swimming,[3] dancing, and drawing.

For the term "muscle memory" as related to strength training, see Muscle memory (strength training).

Physiology[edit]

Motor behavior[edit]

When first learning a motor task, movement is often slow, stiff and easily disrupted without attention. With practice, execution of motor task becomes smoother, there is a decrease in limb stiffness, and muscle activity, necessary to the task, is performed without conscious effort.[9]

Muscle memory encoding[edit]

The neuroanatomy of memory is widespread throughout the brain; however, the pathways important to motor memory are separate from the medial temporal lobe pathways associated with declarative memory.[10] As with declarative memory, motor memory is theorized to have two stages: a short-term memory encoding stage, which is fragile and susceptible to damage, and a long-term memory consolidation stage, which is more stable.[11]


The memory encoding stage is often referred to as motor learning, and requires an increase in brain activity in motor areas as well as an increase in attention. Brain areas active during motor learning include the motor and somatosensory cortices; however, these areas of activation decrease once the motor skill is learned. The prefrontal and frontal cortices are also active during this stage due to the need for increased attention on the task being learned.[9]


The main area involved in motor learning is the cerebellum. Some models of cerebellar-dependent motor learning, in particular the Marr-Albus model, propose a single plasticity mechanism involving the cerebellar long-term depression (LTD) of the parallel fiber synapses onto Purkinje cells. These modifications in synapse activity would mediate motor input with motor outputs critical to inducing motor learning.[12] However, conflicting evidence suggests that a single plasticity mechanism is not sufficient and a multiple plasticity mechanism are needed to account for the storage of motor memories over time. Regardless of the mechanism, studies of cerebellar-dependent motor tasks show that cerebral cortical plasticity is crucial for motor learning, even if not necessarily for storage.[13]


The basal ganglia also play an important role in memory and learning, in particular in reference to stimulus-response associations and the formation of habits. The basal ganglia-cerebellar connections are thought to increase with time when learning a motor task.[14]

Muscle memory consolidation[edit]

Muscle memory consolidation involves the continuous evolution of neural processes after practicing a task has stopped. The exact mechanism of motor memory consolidation within the brain is controversial. However, most theories assume that there is a general redistribution of information across the brain from encoding to consolidation. Hebb's rule states that "synaptic connectivity changes as a function of repetitive firing." In this case, that would mean that the high amount of stimulation coming from practicing a movement would cause the repetition of firing in certain motor networks, presumably leading to an increase in the efficiency of exciting these motor networks over time.[13]


While the exact location of muscle memory storage is not known, studies have suggested that it is the inter-regional connections that play the most important role in advancing motor memory encoding to consolidation, rather than decreases in overall regional activity. These studies have shown a weakened connection from the cerebellum to the primary motor area with practice, it is presumed, because of a decreased need for error correction from the cerebellum. However, the connection between the basal ganglia and the primary motor area is strengthened, suggesting the basal ganglia play an important role in the motor memory consolidation process.[13]

 – Ability to do things without occupying the mind with the low-level details required

Automaticity

 – Inability to picture something in one's mind

Aphantasia

 – Organism's movements that reflect changes in the structure / function of the nervous system

Motor learning

 – Directed movement of body parts to accomplish an action

Motor coordination

 – Basic biological tissue

Muscle

 – Category of memory stabilizing processes

Memory consolidation

 – Practicing newly acquired skills beyond the point of initial mastery

Overlearning

 – Unconscious memory used to perform tasks

Procedural memory

 – Condition of sudden skill or control loss in an athlete

Yips

 – Performing art in which practitioners appear to demonstrate exceptional mental abilities

Mentalism

Katana VentraIP

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__subtitleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#0__call_to_action.textDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#5__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#6__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#8__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#8__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#7__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#7__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#4__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__descriptionDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__heading--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#3__description--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#10__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__quote--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__name--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__company_or_position--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__quote--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__name--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#9__company_or_position--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__subtextDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--0DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--1DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--2DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--3DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--4DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--5DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--6DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--7DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--8DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--9DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--10DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--11DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--12DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--13DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$

$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#1__answer--14DEEZ_NUTS$_$_$