It seems like the idea of “muscle memory” spans many aspects and activities of life, from small fine motor movements such as playing an instrument, to large movements such as gym exercise or running. The list goes on. What is this phenomenon?
In: Biology
It’s been a minute since I took a cognitive psychology course so hopefully I don’t butcher this (and please correct me if I do)
Muscle memory is a part of procedural memory. When we first learn a new skill we are using declarative memory. Essentially, we have to think of every individual step of the skill as we do it. The more we practice it, the more these pathways (the steps we are taking) in our brains become reinforced. Over time, the pathways become so reinforced (through practice, specifically deliberate practice) that the skill moves into procedural memory where we can learn execute it without much thought.
Think of driving a car on the freeway. When you first learn you are using declarative memory. When you change a lane you think to yourself “okay, signal. Now, check my mirrors, over my shoulder, etc. Okay now that I see it is clear I am going to turn the wheel slightly to the left.”And so on. With a bit of practice you may be able to do that with a little less precise thought. Eventually, once you’ve been driving for a while, it will be moved entirely to procedural memory and you’ll be like me where you slap on an audio book and think “oh shit I’m at my exit” without ever thinking about what you were doing.
EDIT: I just realized what sub I’m in and that wasn’t exactly ELI5, my bad
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