How many reps does it take to ingrain swing changes?

[golfdu]

Hey guys, I'm currently going through a swing change for the high draw (make downsing through impact slightly inside-out) so I can make it my stock shot (there's no such thing as straight to me, imagine 0 RPM in sidespin, nobody can do that). But how many reps does it take? I'd like to see an unbiased scientific study of how many repetitions does it take to ingrain something in general (other than golf). I'm pretty confused, should I do the 60 reps a day for 21 days, or do the 10,000 reps? Any scientific studies on repetitions by a renowned university or college would surely help me!

[GaijinGolfer]

The only honest answer is, "as many as it takes".

[The Gill]

A lot of it depends. I was working REALLY hard on a Stack and Tilt pattern early this season and was seeing amazing results. The swing was fairly ingrained, but over the past few months I've slowly been overdoing some of the changes and reverting to my old swing on others. The reality is that feel isn't real and it takes more than a few thousand reps in a month to have the swing down. No matter what you do there will have to be some level of maintenance.

[bunkerputt]

"As much as it takes" is pretty much the answer.  Here's a pop-sci article, not necessarily what you asked for, but might contain some useful info:

http://discovermagazine.com/2010/apr/16-the-brain-athletes-are-geniuses

It depends on the complexity of the movement, how much past experience you can leverage, and your age and diet/exercise.  As the brain ages, it loses some of it's plasticity, making it harder, but still possible, to teach old dogs new tricks.  Some foods (greens) and lots of exercise can counteract and even reverse this process somewhat.  But, as my declining chess rating indicates, it's inevitable....

[Mr. Desmond]

Whatever it takes -- but do something each day. That will speed it up.

I have a mini-club - about 2 feet long. You can practice your swing in your home without hitting everything around you.

Get a kids' club.

[Topper]

The "as much as it takes" answer is probably best, but realize that you may never develop muscle memory for that shot if it's not your "natural" shot shape.

[saevel25]

Depends on the quality of your practice. If your just hacking balls with out no concept of the feel you want and the position of the golf club in the swing, you might get lucky with it.

[bunkerputt]

Originally Posted by saevel25

Depends on the quality of your practice. If your just hacking balls with out no concept of the feel you want and the position of the golf club in the swing, you might get lucky with it.

95%+ of your practice motions should not include hitting a ball.  Just make the motion toward the target.  You'll find you change everything when trying to hit the ball and work against yourself.  Nevertheless, always make sure you brush some grass, preferably really thick and long.  It will give you sensory and auditory feedback that, in my estimation, increases the retention rate several fold.