Don’t fall for “self forced errors”

 We’ve heard of unforced errors. Sure. It’s when you’ve made a mistake that is totally on you. Regardless of what the opponent did leading up to that point.  It's a lack of execution on a shot that should have been relatively simple to perform.

What could be worse? Unforced errors that are... self-forced.  Self-forced errors.

We’ve all seen it, and it makes for meme fodder. Here are a couple of examples in the sports world.

Self-forced errors unfortunately are very common in many sports and this includes pickleball.  I'll be the first to admit I've allowed myself to fall prey to self-forced errors many times.  Being aware of them is the first step to avoiding them. 

What are some ingredients of a self-forced error in pickleball?  You know the rally where the opponent makes a mis-hit and it flies way up high. You have all the time you need to position yourself in the perfect spot where the ball will arc right to you.  You think to yourself, "Oh, I've got this!  Get the camera ready, this is going to be the shot of the day!"  It's just too easy to hit that ball over the net in a conservative or even with an increased level of pressure.  

You are going to turn this into a rally-ender that will be a highlight of your day.  You choose to pound the crap out of it.  To your shock and dismay, it flies out the back baseline.  Or you add some very aggressive angle on it and it goes into the net or goes out of the sideline.

Some of the main ingredients of self-forced-errors in pickleball are: 

• Overconfidence
• Impulsiveness
• Lack of focus, or ability to weigh the risk/reward of attempting a specific shot. 

A few months ago I recall the wisdom Coach Bryon shared when he said something to the effect of

sometimes it's better to just keep the ball in play and allow the other team to make an error than to fail to execute a risky shot of your own and lose the rally.

Why is pickleball sometimes so misunderstood by new observers of the sport when they see pros at the NVZ dinking for dozens of rallies?  It seems too easy, and because of that doesn't capture the respect of many observers.  We want to see those high-energy rallies that involve Jedi-like reflexes. Developing players want to experience the thrill of the attack!  But that mindset can also lead to an excessive amount of self-forced errors.

A point that is won from a missed pillow shot by the opponents has the same value in the game score as a point that is won from a rally-ending smash.  

What are some thoughts or strategies you use to avoid self-forced errors?

My rowing journey is about to begin

 So I hit a milestone recently that I'm not happy about.

But the biggest problem here is that it's starting to really take a toll on my ankle.  I haven't been blogging much about my pickleball adventures the past couple of years.  But I've really enjoyed playing pickleball and competing in tournaments.  

Well, this last tournament from last weekend messed me up.  My shins ache like crazy and I'm hobbling around like an old man.  I'm at least 40-50 pounds overweight.  Pickleball isn't doing it.  And I'm only swimming a minimal amount.  Which never did if for me anyway.  What really got me was running.  But at this size my joints are not having it.  So what to do?

I did some homework, and I remember back to the Tomax gym in the basement there was a rowing machine.  That was tough.  It works most of your muscles compared to a recumbent bike or a treadmill.  So I found this:  

Aviron rowing machines!

There are a bunch of youtubes on the Impact rower.  And the way it uses gaming to make it more fun really appealled to me.  I remember back when I used it at Tomax how much of a workout it was.  

Rowing in general is beneficial for:

• Low impact on joints.  There isn't any gravity pounding at my joints like there is with running, or even fast walking.  
• It's more of a full body workout.  Unlike cycling or running, it's actually engaging so many muscles and isn't simply a "calorie burn".  It's going to strengthen muscles all over.
• It's going to be even more aerobic than running because of the increased use of muscles.  Which will mean I can workout for a shorter time period and burn calories faster. 
• I can do it inside year-round.  But unlike a treadmill this will actually take up less room.  

And further with an Impact rower from Aviron, it has so many features.  I'll be sure to add a follow up post once it arrives.

How long after ordering will the Aviron Impact rower ship?

I ordered mine on a Saturday and it shipped on Tuesday.  So about 3 days from ordering to shipping. 

Utah Fall Open 2016 hosted by Salt Lake Table Tennis events center (Adam Davis)

This morning Austin and I went to the events center for the Fall Open. I entered us both for three events: Open, under 1700 and Doubles.

First was the open. I was in a mini round robin with: Arun and Aaron with only one advancing. I beat Arun in two (best of three) and lost ton Aaron in two. So I waited around for about four hours for the next event. As only those who advance got progress and they had a double elimination to go through.

Eventually the under 1700 event started.  I was in a bracket with: Rohit, Morgan, Jan (Little girl who was amazing) and Braxton.  I started with playing Rohit. It was best of three again and I won the first game, he won he second and I came from behind to win the third. After that he took off. I was like what the crud? Nobody else in the bracket has to even play him now. If I lost to even one person I wouldn’t advance. Which is part of the reason I believe he took off. Anyway I beat everyone else in the bracket to advance.

It was especially worrisome for me to play Braxton as I haven’t beat him in a tournament in like 10 years. Once I progressed out of that bracket I played Lief, and too one game from him but he won the next three. Thank goodness it’s a double elimination.

Next up I played Eric whom I lost to at the Farmington Tournament in March. He had pips on one side. But I had to patient and not attack with unnecessary risk. And when I took that approach I had the upper hand. I forced him to do the same as when he took risks he often lost. So it came down to who had the most control.

I think it went to the fifth match but I got it. I then had to play Viorel. I had a similar approach about not taking extra risks and won in four ensuring a bronze medal.

For doubles it was a single elimination tournament and Austin and I had to play Leanne and David and won in three.  Then we played Bob and Walter and won in four.  We then played in the finals against Daniel and Malachi. Dan won the open against Joey in the finals so that was pretty intimidating but we actually won two matches against them which was really surprising!  We took the silver medal in doubles! Awesome day. I exceeded my own expectations as far as wins/losses. But the ultimate goal of every tournament is to simply play my best and to have fun which I definitely met.

Isaac's Cycling Merit Badge

Here are the requirements for the Cycling Merit Badge.

After giving Isaac instruction on how to switch the gears on Cathi's road bike and giving him a few practice tries in the culdesac, we went on our first 10 mile ride together.

Here's the log of his rides:

6/13/2015 - 10 miles - "This kinda hurts my back".  We already had the seat as low as we could.  The frame is a bit big for him, but he was able to stand up without the top tube hitting him in the groin.  But he does need to bend over a little more just to reach the handlebars.  Not overly so.  He also needs to get used to the saddle.  It already has a gel pad cover.

6/17/15 - 11 miles - Nice bike trail ride all the way up to West Point.  He needs eye protection from gnats!

First bike ride in a long time

Saturday, I dusted off the bike and filled air in the tires and did the following ride:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/715413142

10 miles in 36 minutes.  Flat and riding the back roads in Syracuse.  Had a fun time dodging the pot holes on 4000 W.

10.34 mi

Distance

17.1 mph

Avg Speed

727 C

Calories

36:15

Time

102 ft

Elev Gain

My famous athletic wife

I'm so proud of my wife!  She recently had an interview with a KSL reporter who wrote up this article on her.  Right now she is running her 100th marathon down in St. George.  I wasn't able to go cause of all the other activities the kids are involved in here at home.

On Monday morning she will be on KSL tv in the early morning(5am-6am), doing an interview there.
Running is her thing and it brings her great joy and stress relief.  Having 7 kids can get pretty stressful, and many people who are under stress find unhealthy ways to relieve it.  So glad she chose something that can make her life with me on earth last so much longer.

Love this woman!

Alex is kicking my butt, well actually my triceps

At lunch Alex had us do our normal M/W/F workout, but today was chest/tricep day:

Bench Press: 20 @ 135, 15 @ 185, 10 @ 225, 3 @ 275, 20 @ 135

Straight arm Dumbell Pullovers: 5 x 12 @ 55  (Strict form)

Straight arm pulley pulldowns: 5 x 15 @ 80 (Strict form)

One arm DB Preacher Curls: 15 @ 35, 4 x 15 @ 30

Perfect situp machine: 2 x 40 crunches (awesome burn!)

Found my old Bench Press max video and uploaded it on Youtube so it doesn't ever get misplaced again: