Training
How to Memorize Forms
Forms are at the core of every Chinese martial arts style, and the learning and practice of forms often constitutes a large part of a training period in many schools.
For many people, even just learning and remembering one form can be a challenging and frustrating experience, which can, and often does, lead to the abandonment of training. This scenario need not take place if certain steps and guidelines are followed. In fact, learning and remembering forms can be greatly facilitated if you can follow the precepts presented in this writing. They are: attention, interest, objective, motivation, confidence, breakdown, repetition, over-learning, review, and drafting.
Your attention must be present whenever learning and remembering are desired. Heighten your sense of sight and hearing to bring your attention into focus and keep in mind that the closer you pay attention, the deeper will be the impressions upon your memory.
A vital part of paying attention is interest. If you are genuinely interested in a subject, you will have a natural desire to acquire more information about it. So it is not surprising then that a strong memory is accompanied by a strong interest. The more interest you have in a subject, the easier it is to learn, the more you know about a subject, the greater your interest will be.
Make it a point to practice as soon as possible after the initial memorizing session.
A form is easier to learn if you understand the objective behind is learning. Will the form teach you certain new techniques and skills? Will it allow you to advance to another level of training or to a more advanced class? Explaining the objective of learning a particular form is the responsibility of the
instructor.
Memorizing will be an easier task if you break down the form in small sections.
Once the objective of learning a form is understood, the motivation, based on the desire for reward inspires attentiveness, which in turn produces strong memory. Lack of confidence in one's ability to learn and memorize a form can present a tremendous stumbling block in the learning process. Constant worry about your progress will only slow you down since your thoughts are occupied on how well you're doing instead of focusing on what you are trying to learn. An optimistic outlook clears the path for the learning process from the outset. Change the dubious “if” to a confident “when.”
Constant worry about your progress will only slow you down.
Normally, when you first learn a form, it is presented to you in sections. It's a good idea then, when practicing a form that you want to set to memory, to repeat this process. Memorizing will be an easier task if you breakdown the form in small sections. Remember that knowing all the sections of a form is not enough; you must be able to string them all together in the proper order to form a complete sequence.
Many times a form that has been committed to memory is forgotten after a few days. This is due to inadequate repetition. In fact, you will remember in proportion to the degree of your practice. Keep in mind that it is repetitive repetition that anchors the impressions of the form firmly in your mind.
When you want to make sure you remember a form, you repeat it again and again, even after you feel confident that you have memorized it. This is called over-learning and it imparts longevity to your memory. As soon as you're sure you've got it, it's a good practice to put in more repetitions. This kind
of practice will increase your memory of the form by months, or even years.
A form is easier to learn if you understand the objective behind it is learning.
An important point to remembering a form is to review the material before the bulk of forgetting has occurred. Make it a point to practice as soon as possible after the initial memorizing session. Keep in mind that in reviewing your form it's better to practice a few repetitions each day than to practice the form for two hours one day a week. Daily review generally produces longer lasting memory
than one long, intensive practice period.
Finally, drafting the form on paper is a practice that has the dual purpose of retaining your focus and attention on the form while adding a sensory dimension to your impression by physically putting you through the act of producing a reminder. The key points presented in this article constitute a formula that will allow you to better direct your mental efforts towards memorizing not only forms, but also other important aspects of martial arts practice and daily life