Why Your Pickleball Game Stopped Improving

Most pickleball players eventually run into the same quiet question. Should I be playing more, or should I be drilling more. It often shows up when improvement starts to slow down. You still enjoy playing, but something feels stagnant. At the same time, drilling sounds like work, and work is not always why people came to the sport in the first place. In this issue, I want to explore when playing makes the most sense, when drilling starts to matter more, and how to use both without burning out or stalling your progress.

Early on, playing is almost always the right answer. Beginners need exposure more than precision. They need to feel the pace of the ball, understand spacing, learn where they get into trouble, and most importantly, associate the game with enjoyment. Playing builds intuition in a way drills cannot because real points are messy, unpredictable, and emotionally engaging. At this stage, drilling too much can even be counterproductive because the brain does not yet have enough context to know what matters.

As players improve, something shifts. You start to recognize patterns. You notice that the same shots break down again and again. You might even know what you should be doing, but your body does not reliably execute it. This is where playing alone starts to lose efficiency. In a typical game, you may only hit a specific shot a handful of times. If those reps are inconsistent or rushed, the nervous system never gets enough clean input to change how it moves.

This gap between knowing and doing has everything to do with how motor skills are encoded. Drilling works because it compresses learning in a way that aligns with how the brain actually builds competence. Repetition removes uncertainty. When the same movement is repeated with intention, the brain begins to automate it through a process called motor consolidation. What we casually call muscle memory is not really stored in the muscles at all. It is stored in neural pathways, specifically in the motor cortex and cerebellum, that become stronger and faster through consistent, predictable input.

Each time you execute a movement, your brain reinforces the neural circuit responsible for that action. Early repetitions are slow and effortful because the brain is still figuring out which muscles to activate, in what order, and with how much force. But as the circuit gets used repeatedly, something remarkable happens. The connections between neurons become more efficient. Myelin, a fatty insulation that wraps around nerve fibers, thickens with practice. This speeds up signal transmission, which is why practiced movements eventually feel automatic and require almost no conscious thought.

The key word here is consistent. Random practice, where the same shot is attempted under wildly different conditions or with long gaps between repetitions, does not create the clean feedback loops the brain needs. Drilling gives you far more of that concentrated, high quality input than playing ever can. In a single drilling session, you might execute a specific motion fifty or a hundred times. In a game, you might get five. The difference in neural adaptation is profound.

That said, playing offers benefits that drilling never will. Playing trains decision making, emotional regulation, adaptability, and social connection. It is where you learn how to manage pressure, recover after mistakes, and read opponents. It also provides stress relief, enjoyment, and the sense of flow that keeps people coming back week after week. Without play, motivation fades, even if skill improves.

The mistake is treating playing and drilling as opposing choices instead of complementary tools. Playing teaches you what needs work. Drilling fixes it. Then you return to play to integrate it under pressure. As players advance, drilling tends to offer a higher return on investment for technical growth, while playing remains essential for psychological health and real world application.

The healthiest long term approach is not choosing one over the other, but adjusting the ratio as your goals and skill level change.

Professional players do not drill because it looks disciplined. They drill because it removes randomness. At higher levels, small inefficiencies compound quickly, and drills allow those inefficiencies to be isolated and corrected. Most pro level drills fall into a few broad categories, each designed to sharpen a specific part of the game.

One category focuses on control and consistency. These drills are not flashy. They are often slow, repetitive, and even boring to watch. Crosscourt dinking patterns or controlled rally drills fall into this group. Their purpose is not winning the point, but owning the ball. When control improves, everything else becomes easier, from shot selection to recovery positioning.

Another category centers on transition and movement. Pros spend a great deal of time drilling shots from uncomfortable positions, especially the transition zone. These drills teach players how to stay balanced while moving forward, reset under pressure, and avoid panic swings. The goal is not perfection, but stability. A player who stays composed in awkward positions wins far more points than one who relies only on clean setups.

A third category targets reaction and hand speed. Fast exchanges at the net demand automatic responses. Reaction drills compress time and force the nervous system to respond without conscious thought. Over time, this reduces hesitation and improves confidence during chaotic points.

What all of these drills have in common is volume. Pros get hundreds of meaningful repetitions in a short period. That volume is what rewires movement patterns.

For players without access to courts or partners, simple at-home drills can still be surprisingly effective. Foam pickleball balls make wall work accessible without noise or space concerns. Bouncing the ball against a wall and controlling paddle angle trains hand-eye coordination, timing, and touch. It feels unimpressive, but it builds the same neural foundations that show up later on the court. Even a few minutes a day compounds over weeks and months.

The biggest shift for most players is realizing that drilling does not need to be dramatic to be effective. It just needs to be intentional and repeated.

Playing and drilling are not competing philosophies. They are different answers to different problems. Playing keeps the game alive, social, and meaningful. Drilling sharpens skills and removes friction. When players stop framing the choice as either or and start using each intentionally, progress feels steadier and frustration fades. The goal is not to drill endlessly or play mindlessly, but to understand when each serves you best and to let that balance evolve as you do.

Boris.

Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read in this newsletter.