Feedback helps you practise effectively. Read why good repetition doesn't necessarily lead to lasting learning.
On motor learning, biofeedback, and developing sport skills.
Your coach asks you to do the same movement again. This time with a little more control. You try it, feel a difference, and look up. Was this what the coach meant? In the footage, you can see that you start turning earlier. Now you have something concrete to try again.
This is how feedback can have a place in your training. A cue, a video, or a measurement gives you information about your performance. You discover something you hadn't noticed before and can use it to keep practising. Research shows that such additional feedback can support the performance and learning of sport skills. Which information helps depends on the skill, training goal and practice method. [1, 3, 5]
This raises an interesting question. What do you actually want to be able to do better? Control a landing, place a throw more accurately, or initiate a turn at the right moment? Once that is clear, you can focus on which feedback adds something. Sit-i Pro makes seat movement visible and links that information to what you feel. The Sit-i Academy helps professionals work carefully and purposefully with this.
From a cue to useful insight
A cue becomes valuable when you know what you can do with it. 'That went better' sounds nice, but leaves open what changed. 'The ball came closer to your target' gives information about the result. 'You released the ball earlier' describes a part of the performance. In research on motor learning, these two types of feedback are often distinguished: knowledge of the result and knowledge of the performance. [1, 2]
Both can have a place in training. Suppose you want to throw more accurately. You see where the ball lands and then watch a recording of the moment you release. Perhaps you want to try the same release moment next time. Perhaps you discover that you want to investigate something else first. The goal of the throw gives direction to the conversation.
You can also agree in advance what to pay attention to for a movement without a ball. For a landing, you could, for example, watch the moment of ground contact. For a turning movement, you can compare two performances. You choose a recognisable part, so the athlete knows what the feedback is about and what they can try again.
This makes feedback part of the practice. You look at something concrete, try an adjustment, and discuss what you notice. A small change can thus give rise to a very focused next attempt. You don't need to measure or describe everything at once to do this.
Better performance and learning a skill
A successful repetition builds confidence to keep practising. For motor learning, you also want to know what remains of it later. Can you perform the movement again in a subsequent training session? And can you do it when the circumstances change? Researchers call retaining a skill “retention” and applying it under different circumstances “transfer”. Those outcomes tell you something different from the performance during the practice session itself. [1, 6]
Think of a movement that you can follow well with a screen in front of you. You see the feedback and adjust your performance accordingly. To discover what you have learned, you can do the same task again later, also without that visible aid. This makes it clear what you can perform independently at that moment. A suitable variant then shows how you deal with a change.
That is a useful way to look at progress. During the training, you can appreciate what works and at the same time remain curious about the next time. A coach can, for example, note which task you did and what feedback you received. At the next session, you thus have a concrete starting point for the conversation.
The scientific literature supports the importance of that distinction. A systematic review of gross movements and sport skills found improvements with additional feedback in many studies. However, the studies differed greatly and had methodological limitations. As a result, there is no generally best feedback approach that can yet be identified for all sport skills. [1] It is therefore worth keeping clear in your own training which result you want to monitor.
What a number can add during training
Sometimes you mainly want to know how you perform during an exercise. In strength training, the speed of a barbell can give information about that. You perform a repetition and get back how fast the barbell moved. This makes the result of that attempt visible and offers something to compare the next repetition with.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of feedback in strength training shows a concrete effect of this. With feedback, the barbell moved in the pooled analyses of direct speed effects on average about 8.4 percent faster than without feedback. Both verbal and visual feedback had favorable outcomes; the visual form showed a larger effect in this analysis. [3]
The researchers also found indications of improvements over a training period, including in short sprint performances. For jumping performances, the combined result was less certain. The number of studies and participants limited the conclusions. [3] The outcomes show above all how important it is to state exactly which performance you want to support with feedback.
A number does not have to become an end goal. In this strength example, a higher speed is relevant for the performance being investigated. For an exercise in which you want to dose a small movement accurately, you look at a different result. Therefore, agree in advance what the value means in your exercise. Then you can use the feedback to continue training purposefully.
Biofeedback starts with what you measure
With biofeedback, you receive information back about a bodily process via equipment. Think of heart rate variability or muscle activity. Neurofeedback uses signals of brain activity. For movement, position, direction, and speed are also fed back. In sport research, these different forms of feedback occur alongside each other. [2–4]
That broad range makes it attractive to place all kinds of conclusions under the same heading. Yet it matters which signal a system measures. Information about heart rate variability tells something different than information about the speed of a barbell. For use in training, the explanation therefore starts with a simple question: what exactly am I seeing here?
A systematic review and Bayesian meta-analysis from 2025 found generally favorable outcomes of biofeedback and neurofeedback in athletes, on mental outcomes, sport performances, and cognitive performances. The certainty of that evidence was low to very low, and the investigated approaches differed greatly. [4] It is an indication that this research field offers possibilities, with outcomes that always belong to the investigated signal and the corresponding training.
With Sit-i Pro, the measurement information is about the direction, tilt, and rotation of the seat. That is movement feedback. You can use that recording to look at how the seat moves during a task and place that next to your own experience. This makes it clear from the start which information you use and which question you want to answer with it.
When seeing and feeling come together
You thought you were moving just a little bit to the left. On the display, you see a clear difference with the previous attempt. Or vice versa: two performances feel very different, while the measured course looks similar. Such a difference can be an interesting start. What did you notice yourself? And which part do you want to try again?
Video footage offers a different way to look back at a performance. A systematic review of video feedback in movement education found possibilities to support the learning of movements, often together with verbal guidance. The available time, equipment, and guidance played a role in this. These findings come from school physical education lessons; they do not give a fixed preference for one form of feedback in every sport. [5]
For your own training, you can make a clear comparison. Choose, for example, two attempts of the same task and look at the same moment. First let the athlete tell how the performance felt. Then watch together what is visible. You can discuss where experience and footage agree and where a new question arises.
A coach can help keep the description precise. 'This attempt felt calmer' is the experience of the athlete. 'The turn started later' is something you possibly see on the footage. By mentioning both, you have more to talk about than just the question of whether an attempt was good. You can choose together which change you want to try further.
Feedback at a moment that fits the exercise
Watching along during a movement gives a different possibility than looking back afterwards. With direct feedback, you can follow what happens while you perform the task. With feedback after the movement, you can first complete the movement and then discuss what you experienced. For sport skills, the research literature does not yet point to a fixed time that works best in all situations. [1, 2]
Suppose you are introduced to a new display. Then you can first calmly try which movement belongs to which change on the screen. At another time you want to know what you notice yourself. You perform the task, describe your experience, and then watch the recording. The choice for the moment of feedback follows from what you want to practise or discover that time.
You can also choose the amount of feedback from that goal. A meta-analysis found no convincing average benefit of a lower feedback frequency for the performance and learning of motor tasks. The differences between studies and the uncertainty were large. [6] At the same time, frequent feedback in the review of strength training went together with better direct performances. [3] 'Less feedback is always better' is therefore no useful general rule.
In practice, you can agree when you look together. After every attempt, after a set, or at a moment that is chosen in advance. You can also occasionally watch a performance without visible feedback to see what the athlete shows then. Those are ways to organise your training and follow the progress. Discuss which choice suits the task and the result you want to achieve.
The athlete has something to contribute
A coach sees the movement from the outside. The athlete knows how the task felt and what they tried to do. Both can come up in the same conversation. Ask, for example, what stood out before you show the recording. Perhaps the attention went to a completely different moment than you expected. That gives a concrete starting point for the next explanation.
You can also discuss choices. Which attempt does the athlete want to review? Which part still asks for an explanation? What do they want to try again? This way, the athlete gets a recognisable role in the use of feedback. The coach can then help to make the chosen question small and doable.
In this, one scientific claim deserves nuance. Being able to choose yourself when you get feedback is regularly linked to more motor learning gains. A Bayesian re-analysis of meta-analyses showed that earlier benefits of self-directed practice conditions were small and uncertain after correction for selective reporting, possibly absent. [7] You can therefore give choices a place in the collaboration, without promising that freedom of choice itself causes more learning gains.
A useful, comfortable conversation about feedback need not be a long discussion. You can ask for one experience, watch one fragment together, and agree what the athlete wants to do again. This way, there remains room to move. After the next attempt, you can continue the conversation with what actually happened.
Where does feedback end up in your sport?
Feedback during an exercise only gets a sporting meaning when you know which action you want to perform later. A turning movement, landing, or throw can change on a screen; on the field, in the gym, or in the saddle, other demands and reactions come along.
A review of cricket showed that feedback in real training programs is often interwoven with other practice parts, making its separate effect difficult to establish. The pooled outcomes for anticipation and performance remained uncertain. [2] That is reason to state exactly which feedback you added and which sport outcome you monitor.
What can you take from Sit-i into your sport?, 'What can you take from Sit-i into your sport?', shows with hockey and horse riding how you test such an insight in a next training. Here, the main question remains what feedback during practice adds and what someone can later do without that help.
Discover movement with Sit-i Pro
Sit-i Pro moves with you. The dynamic seat allows tilt and rotation, while the sensors register direction and angle changes of the seat. This way, you can make visible during practice what changes. A Sit-i Professional can help you connect that information to what you feel and to the movement you want to investigate.
Suppose you want to discover how you control a small turn. You agree on a starting position and try the movement a few times. First you tell what you notice. Then you watch the measured course together. Did you use the same direction in every attempt? Where do you see a difference? From that comparison, you choose what you want to do again, for example a smaller movement or the same task from a different starting position.
The professional also looks at your body during the performance. How do your pelvis and upper body move along? What support do you use? The sensors measure the seat; for statements about individual movements of the spine or about muscle activity, additional information is needed. Observation, measurement, and your own experience thus each get a clear place.
Sit-i Athlete · Pro is the version for sport, training, and movement analysis. You can work with it on concrete questions about the performance of an exercise. What you can use independently of that later and how that connects to your sport, you take along in the continuation. The research discussed in this article gives background on feedback and motor learning; they do not provide product-specific evidence for learning gains through Sit-i Pro.
Learn to use feedback with Flow Analyst
In Flow Analyst, trainers and coaches learn to connect observation to the measurement information of Sit-i Pro. You record what the athlete tried, what feedback was given, and what change in the seat was visible. This helps you to choose the next practice attempt purposefully.
See. Feel. Refine. Improve. gets a concrete place in your training. You see how a performance goes, feel what you do, and choose what you want to refine further. Whether that leads to the desired improvement, you follow during practice and at the moments when you need the skill again. This way, feedback remains connected to your development in movement.
What can we conclude?
Feedback can help to make a performance visible, practice purposefully, and support training performances. The research results differ per task and feedback form. A fixed formula for the best timing or amount of feedback is missing. [1–7] A good start is therefore a clear goal and information that tells something about that.
Choose one part in your next training that you want to understand better. Describe what you feel, watch what the available information shows, and try the movement again. Then also take the time to discover what you can use again later. There lies a valuable question for every athlete: what do I take from this exercise to my sport?
Explore further
View Sit-i for sport and training
Academy · Flow Analyst — view the learning pathway
Sit-i Insights — Read more
Article 5, “What does a cue do to your movement?”, explores attention and instructions. Article 7, “How do rider and horse move together?”, connects movement coordination to the interplay in the saddle.
Scientific sources
The publications below support the numbered scientific statements in this article. It concerns two systematic reviews without meta-analysis and five publications with meta-analyses, including a re-analysis of earlier pooled results.
[1] Petancevski, E. L., Inns, J., Fransen, J., & Impellizzeri, F. M. (2022). The effect of augmented feedback on the performance and learning of gross motor and sport-specific skills: A systematic review. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 63, 102277.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2022.102277
[2] Tissera, K., Orth, D., Huynh, M., & Benson, A. C. (2022). The impact of augmented feedback (and technology) on learning and teaching cricket skill: A systematic review with meta-analysis. PLOS ONE, 17(12), e0279121.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279121
[3] Weakley, J., Cowley, N., Schoenfeld, B. J., Read, D. B., Timmins, R. G., García-Ramos, A., & McGuckian, T. B. (2023). The Effect of Feedback on Resistance Training Performance and Adaptations: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 53(9), 1789–1803.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01877-2
[4] Zhang, X., Chang, Z., Zhao, S., & Ning, Z. (2025). The effects of biofeedback training on athletes’ mental health and performance: a systematic review and Bayesian meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 16, 1662868.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1662868
[5] Mödinger, M., Woll, A., & Wagner, I. (2022). Video-based visual feedback to enhance motor learning in physical education—a systematic review. German Journal of Exercise and Sport Research, 52, 447–460. Published online in 2021.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12662-021-00782-y
[6] McKay, B., Hussien, J., Vinh, M.-A., Mir-Orefice, A., Brooks, H., & Ste-Marie, D. M. (2022). Meta-analysis of the reduced relative feedback frequency effect on motor learning and performance. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 61, 102165.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2022.102165
[7] McKay, B., Bacelar, M. F. B., Parma, J. O., Miller, M. W., & Carter, M. J. (2025). The combination of reporting bias and underpowered study designs has substantially exaggerated the motor learning benefits of self-controlled practice and enhanced expectancies: a meta-analysis. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 18(1), 242–262. Published online in 2023.
https://doi.org/10.1080/1750984X.2023.2207255
Scientific justification: systematic reviews synthesize the available studies, but the certainty of the conclusions also depends on their quality. The broad review of motor skills included 24 studies with 895 adults; eighteen studies had a high risk of bias and six were of concern. [1] The cricket review included eleven studies, five of which were meta-analyses, and could not establish the individual effect of feedback. [2] The strength training review included twenty studies and distinguished immediate performance from adaptations over a training period. [3] The biofeedback review synthesized 41 studies; the certainty of the evidence was low for mental outcomes and very low for sports performance and cognitive outcomes. [4] The video feedback review involved eleven studies in motor learning. [5] The analysis of feedback frequency and the re-analysis of self-guided practice conditions support caution with general recommendations. [6, 7]
The practical examples are suggestions to link observation, feedback, and practice. They are not researched training protocols. Findings on physiological biofeedback, strength training, and motor learning are described within their own context. The mentioned studies do not test the effects of Sit-i Pro on motor learning or sports performance.