I've been thinking about this exact thing all week. My husband and I normally show up an hour or so before league on Monday nights and throw a practice game to warm up. This past Monday we got a pair of really fried lanes, so it was a good mental and physical warm-up. I shot a 167 in that practice game, and I'm pretty much a 140s average bowler. Then league starts. First game, 180. Nice! Second game 184. Nicer! Man, I'm getting tired. Third game, 124. Argh!

Did I miss my chance for my highest league series ever by tossing that practice game and having to work so hard to figure out those fried lanes? Heck, I don't know. Do I continue to throw the practice game, or do I come up with another way of warming up? Would concentrating on a few stretching exercises work just as well to get me ready to bowl league? Was it really fatigue, or did I let my head play games with me because I shot so well in those first two games of league play? Ah, well, it's water under the bridge now.

One other possibility ... my entire team was tired on Monday, and I was the only one bowling over average. Could I have just bowled down to their level in the third game? Yet another head vs. hand issue if I did. I'm going to figure out this practice/warm-up/league play thing someday.

Deb

I like to get to league early enough to stretch my arms and legs out and also walk around some to get everything warmed up.  There's not too many feelings worse than throwing that first ball when your body is stiff.  For tournaments, I will try to get a game of practice in as well as the stretching.  This is because the lane conditions are not as familiar as my weekly league condition.  The practice game is to get my body, mind, and equipment ready.  Most tournaments only allow a bowler to get a few practice shots in, so I want to make all of these count toward reading the lane, not still trying to get loose.