I stumbled across an interesting thought while giving some thought this morning to two of my favorite forms of exercise, pilates and horseback riding. It became clear to me that both of these activities measure progress in similar ways: advancement requires increasingly less coarse or jerky movement.
In fact, greater control translates into finer movement to the point that experts in either field make even the most demanding moves look effortless. This, to me, is the essence of refinement. Refinement is more than the appearance of ease, it is the evidence of the presence of ease. Refinement, therefore, cannot be faked.
Refinement comes on the heels of control. Control comes as there is a deep and fluid understanding of the principles that govern any given activity. In the equestrian arts an effective rider must take into account the ever-present principles of rhythm, balance and suppleness. In pilates, the practitioner must remain mindful of centering, concentration, control, precision, breath and flow. Mastery is made possible by the purposeful utilization of these principles and despite many attempts to prove another way, there are no shortcuts.
Every activity you undertake should, over time, take less of your energy and conscious attention to complete. Practice may not always make perfect, but diligent practice provides the means by which progress is made relative to the efficiency of effort.
The opportunities for improvement are endless when you look at the activities you undertake in this light. If things are not getting easier over time, you’re likely missing an important principle or two. Go back to the fundamentals and honor the basics. You will likely take a giant leap forward!
Gregory Hake 
I’m always amazed how some people will think if they can’t do something well after studying it then it wasn’t for them or some other reason. It takes practice and more practice. I think it was Malcom Gladwell that suggested it takes 10,000 hours of doing something to become expert. I’ll bet the ones that really become the best of the best do as you’re suggesting, “honor the basics”. It makes sense.
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Great points, thanks.
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Just when I was feeling a little less than enthusiastic about my Pilates class tonight… I will definitely be conscious of your points. Thanks!!
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Centering, concentration, control, precision, breath and flow… I can see that if there is a short cut on any one of these there cannot be mastery in anything one does. Helpful meditation to start the day.
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“Diligent practice provides the means by which progress is made relative to the efficiency of effort.” Great food for thought this morning. Thanks!
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A corollary to this is as you advance in your particular skill, you should be able to handle more of said activity as well. For example, if you want to be a great runner, don’t just run one mile slowly everyday. You will be very good at running a mile slowly, but you won’t be the best runner you can be. You have to increase speed an distance intelligently until you reach your particular body’s limit. The principle of incremental improvement is one that many people do not use properly. The way to go from a fumbling new-guy to a refined practitioner of whatever skill you are attempting is through many hours of intelligently designed incremental improvement. Like you said, start at the basics and go from there!
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