Maintaining Muscle (Memory)

If you exercise your capacity to do something on a fairly frequent basis, the body retains that capacity (memory) and readiness to do so -- but how much repetition is required to maintain that memory, is grossly overstated.

Obviously, you don't require repeating the combination to your locker or password 1,000 times a day, in order for one to retain that capacity to do so -- when in fact, just doing so once a day, would be sufficient for most people to have that memory etched in their minds.

The problem starts, when one doesn't access that memory for several days, then weeks and months, and shortly thereafter, one begins to lose the memory that one even had that capacity anymore -- even though the underlying capabilities are still there.

And that is the reason for "conditioning" and "education" to require frequent drills to maintain that readiness and capability as its essential responses. However, if those responses (memories) are too numerous, and repeated overly long, then one has the problem of having to search through too many memories to find the right one (response), and if it has been drilled into one excessively much, the proper stimulus may initiate no appropriate response -- other than that it is what one always does anyway, no matter what the challenge -- which is indistinguishable, from no response. It is just compulsive and obsessive behavior -- which is more likely what one has conditioned oneself to be, rather than a truly "fit" person, ready to respond appropriately to the challenge (problem) at hand.

We recognize that as the "knee jerk" response, of those who no matter what, is triggered to the identical and predictable response, every time, no matter what -- because that has been their conditioning (education) -- and usually, they have known (been taught) no other way possible.

Then, every subsequent thought, action, and deed -- becomes the repetition of this one same action, even when it is obviously an inappropriate and inadequate response to the challenge -- which is usually that although they are doing more of the same thing that isn't working, they refuse to believe there can be any other possibility -- and are conditioned to reject it as soon as they can identify it as such.