The "Skill Bucket" Theory... did Simone fill hers?

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That’s very interesting. It reminds me of some studies in Psychology on the limitations of the amount of some mental exercises (patience, self-discipline) and the impact of stress on our limits. It was very applicable to a hobby of mine: self-control of some dogs and dog training.

We think people have or should have more of certain traits than they do but it turns out a lot are mental exercises that are impacted by what we’ve already done or experience in a short period of time.

I suspect Simone is done.
 
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That’s an interesting theory for sure.

I’ve always thought that the brain, in general, can only hold so much. I used to work for some incredibly, incredibly smart people (like Nobel Prize winning smart) and they struggled with mundane activities like remembering how the coffee pot worked or putting their shoes on the right feet. It was like their brains just spit out the things they learned early on in life to make room for the hard stuff. Maybe gymnastics skills are like that - there’s only so much room in the body/brain for skills before it overflows.
 
It is an interesting theory. I’ve also noticed her “stress bucket” getting more and more full this quad. Making every final, winning a medal in every final, trying for an original skill on each event, doing all that while wearing goat leotards, carrying sponsors expectation, carrying team USAG and NBC ratings …

Every time she accomplished something under stress more expectations (and stress points) were added.
 
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I know some people on the board don’t agree, but I still do think that the Y Double Pike might have been one mountain too much.

Just the absolute blind anxiety she must have had on the runway before doing that onto a hard surface. Cannot be good for your body or brain.
 
I suspect Simone is done.
I am almost certain she is done. I am not going to join in on the speculation about what exactly happened. But I can not imagine her training or competing any more. If I am correct, however, she leaves with her head held as high as an athlete’s head can be held. She was a one in a lifetime gymnast and nothing will ever change that.
 
The brain can hold far more than we think though . And memory is a funny thing. When I am on overload with a case and do not think I can remember facts or documents etc it will come back to me the second I need it in court for instance. But I do agree, everyone has their tipping point – mentally and physically. And the body may just shut off when an athlete has put it through its max.
 
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I think this theory has legitimate psychological value, but framed gymnastically, obviously.

One could say that Chellsie made her bucket bigger in the long run by learning proper set and fundamentals from the start.

As for Simone, She’s crazy talented but obviously human, so I agree with this one:
  • Did Simone’s bucket shrink from all of the stress and random things started happening (spilling out of the bucket)?
 
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I think she’s just older and more conscious of the risks.She had more pressure on her than previous games , she’s also suffered from the twisties before (not surprisingly)A year not competing wouldn’t help anyone . She’ll be fine .
 
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