The importance of Virtuosity

There is magic in movement mastery.

"virtuosity is more than the requirement for that last tenth of a point; it is always the mark of true mastery (and of genius and beauty). There is a compelling tendency among novices developing any skill or art, whether learning to play the violin, write poetry, or compete in gymnastics, to quickly move past the fundamentals and on to more elaborate, more sophisticated movements, skills, or techniques. This compulsion is the novice's curse—the rush to originality and risk.

The novice's curse is manifested as excessive adornment, silly creativity, weak fundamentals and, ultimately, a marked lack of virtuosity and delayed mastery. If you've ever had the opportunity to be taught by the very best in any field you've likely been surprised at how simple, how fundamental, how basic the instruction was. The novice's curse afflicts learner and teacher alike. Physical training is no different. What will inevitably doom a physical training program and dilute a coach's efficacy is a lack of commitment to fundamentals..."

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Do you chase virtuosity in your squat?

"As a fundamental movement, the squat is a building block to every other movement in CrossFit..." - Pat Sherwood

"Range of motion, flexibility, strength, balance... poor innervation of the glute, tight hamstrings...regardless of what the problem is, the answer is to Squat". - Greg Glassman