Make haste, slowly. ~ Wyatt Earp

Slow is smooth, smooth is fast, and speed is the economy of motion.

‘Slow is smooth, smooth is fast’ came from elite units of the U.S. Military, The saying evolved from something Wyatt Earp said about trick shooting, ‘Make haste, slowly.’ The original saying includes a critical piece which is often left out. The entire saying is ‘slow is smooth, smooth is fast and speed is the economy of motion’. This third part of the axiom means that speed is definitely a part of the whole process.

‘Slow is smooth, smooth is fast’ is used quite often in conjunction with the phrase ‘muscle memory’. There is no such thing as ‘muscle memory’. Muscles don’t have memory. Nerve pathways transmit signals from the brain to your muscles resulting in movement, and it’s there where the speed develops. If you repeat an action slowly and carefully, then the mind muscle connection will be established to the point of unconscious technique, and then the speed quickly starts to appear.

SLOW is SMOOTH, SMOOTH is FAST & SPEED is the ECONOMY of MOTION

Smooth and fast are related, but they aren’t the same thing, A hand movement can be bobbled at some point, but still be very fast. The idea that you should sequentially learn slowly, then smoothly and then speed will come is wrong. You should carefully learn good technique first, then practice so it becomes absolutely subconscious, and then the speed will develop. If you go fast all the time with no technique, you’ll fail. Similarly, technique that never gets fast is also a failure. Technique opens the door to speed. Speed and accuracy come from efficiency, efficiency comes from technique. Teachers who say ‘slow is smooth, smooth is fast,’ leave out that crucial last step. They dump the technique on the student, and the student then continues to struggle.

Even though it’s a popular saying, when it comes to instruction, ‘Slow is smooth, smooth is fast’ tells only part of the story. Going slow for slowness’s sake is not the solution. Proper technique is the key to improvement, not the speed you perform an action. Learn that first, practice it regularly, and then the speed will come.

Who won the race, the tortoise or the hare?