Pattern Overload 

Most people think that the best way to improve a certain skill involves in their sport with weight performing the same movement.  For a tennis player might be swinging a dumbell in the same motion as they would on the court or for a baseball player swinging a weighted bat. In most cases this is not training smart. Take a boxer for example if he punches a bag  500 times a day and then he goes into the gym picks up two dumbells and performs the same movement using the dumbells for resistance.  However this has a high possibility of leading to PATTERN OVERLOAD.

Pattern overload is the mechanical breakdown of soft tissue from repeated patterns of movement.

Pattern overload can affect sport by continually stressing the tendons, ligaments and connective tissues in the same type of motor patttern over and over again .  My point being is pattern overload causes instability in the joint which eventually leads to INJURY a nightmare for any athlete. You may even need surgery.

However this does not mean you shouldn't go to the gym or practise your sport scefic skill as this is necessary for maximum performance. Here is a list of things you should do at the gym

• For someone who performes a pushing movement countless times such as a boxer they should not be doing a lot of pushing movements especially horizontal pushing movements and they should do more pullling movements for the area where they perform a punch e.g dumbell row 
• Do not use machines- machines do not allow the body to move in it's natural range of motion. They do not allow the nervous system the freedom it needs to prevent the working joints and soft tissues from injury. Machines are one of the main causes of pattern overload. e.g a regular bench press vs a smith machine bench press
• Don't stretch the muscle in the direction of the pattern you reguarly perform but stretch it the opposite way 

The scientific concepts of neuromuscular isolation and intramuscular loading make sense with regard to building muscle and therefore bodybuilders have a great reliance of machines. However strength coaches and personal trainers have only just begun to realise a strong correlation between machine training and musculoskeletal injuries. Machine training if used at alll in any training program needs to be periodized and well structured in order to prevent Pattern Overload.

A good source of information about pattern overload is Elliot Hulse's strength camp videos about Patttern Overload on youtube. Hope you found this easy to understand.