Akihiro's Journey: High Intensity Repetition

Welcome back to English Listening World! I'm Les Perras, and this is the fourth episode in our series "Akihiro's Listening Journey." In our previous episodes, Akihiro discovered the rhythm of English, learned to break sentences into manageable chunks, and practiced shadowing to improve his prediction skills. Today, he'll learn a technique that musicians have used for centuries: high-intensity repetition. Many English learners struggle with phrases that native speakers blend together at conversational speed. High-intensity repetition helps train your brain to recognize these common patterns through focused, repeated exposure. Let's join Akihiro as he makes this important discovery!

Chapter Four: High-Intensity Repetition Akihiro glanced around the restaurant table, feeling more comfortable than he had a month ago. Three weeks of practicing shadowing had improved his listening skills considerably, though it had been exhausting work. He had learned to practice in short, intense bursts of just 5-10 minutes several times a day, rather than long frustrating sessions that left him mentally drained. The team was celebrating the successful Thomson presentation with lunch. The client had been impressed with Akihiro's data visualizations and his increased participation during discussions. "The Thomson contract renewal is definitely happening. They were very impressed with our updates." "We should plan for their system integration sooner rather than later." The conversation shifted to task allocation. Someone would need to prepare a detailed timeline for the integration phase. "I'll take care of it." Akihiro's attention shifted. He had clearly heard "I'll" but the rest came out as a blur: "takecareuvit." The words had run together so quickly, he couldn't separate them. "What will you take care of?" "The integration timeline. I can start on it tomorrow." Akihiro nodded, disappointed in himself. Despite mastering three listening techniques, he still struggled with certain phrases, especially when they were spoken quickly. His concentration had also started to flag – shadowing during his morning commute had been particularly intense today, and his brain felt tired. Back at the office after lunch, Akihiro heard music coming from one of the small conference rooms. Curious, he peeked through the door's window. Emily from the UX design team was sitting alone with her violin, practicing during her lunch break. She played a complex passage, made a mistake, then immediately repeated it. Again, a mistake. She slowed down considerably and played the passage note by note. Then slightly faster. Then at full speed again. She repeated this same ten-second passage at least a dozen times before finally moving on. Akihiro noticed something else – Emily practiced intensely for about five minutes, then took a short break, checking her phone before resuming another five-minute burst of practice. As Akihiro walked back to his desk, he noticed Tanaka-san in the break room. "Tanaka-san, I just saw Emily practicing violin. She played the same part over and over, but with short breaks. Is that how musicians always practice?" "Yes, that's called high-intensity repetition. Musicians isolate difficult passages and repeat them until their fingers can play without thinking. But the breaks are just as important as the practice. The brain needs time to process what it's learning. Having trouble with listening again?" "At lunch, Mike said something like 'I'll takecareuvit.' I couldn't separate the words. Maybe I was too tired from shadowing practice this morning. It's mentally exhausting." "Shadowing is definitely intense. That's why I only do it for 5-10 minutes at a time, several times a day. Short but frequent practice is much more effective than one long session." Akihiro realized he had been following this principle with shadowing without fully understanding why. His morning commute was broken into several train segments, and he naturally practiced in these short bursts. "Ah, 'I'll take care of it.' Native speakers blend those words together. Perhaps you need the musician's approach. When I face a difficult English phrase, I listen to it many, many times until my brain can separate the sounds." "Just repetition?" "High-intensity repetition. Find a recording with that phrase. Listen to it twenty, thirty times in a row, but in short bursts – maybe ten repetitions, take a break, then ten more. First at normal speed, then find a slow version if possible, then back to normal speed. Your brain will start to recognize the pattern." Back at his desk, Akihiro searched for examples of "I'll take care of it" in English videos. He found a clip from a TV show where the character said the exact phrase. He played it once. Just like at lunch, he heard "I'll" clearly, but "takecareuvit" sounded like one blurred word. He played it again. And again. After the tenth repetition, he took a short break, remembering Tanaka-san's advice. He could feel how intensely his brain was working, much like during shadowing practice. After a two-minute break, he resumed. Now he was starting to distinguish "take" from "care." By the fifteenth replay, he could hear "take care of." By the twentieth, the entire phrase became clear: "I'll take care of it." Fascinated, he found a slow-motion version of the phrase in a language learning video. Here, the words were clearly separated: "I'll... take... care... of... it." He listened to this version several times, then returned to the normal-speed clip. Remarkably, what had sounded like a blur of syllables an hour ago now registered as distinct words. His brain could now separate the sounds even at normal speed. That evening, Akihiro created a system for practicing high-intensity repetition. He recorded short segments from team meetings on his phone. When he encountered phrases that blurred together, he marked them for later practice. Following the pattern he had established with shadowing, he practiced these difficult phrases in short, frequent bursts – five minutes during his morning coffee, another five minutes at lunch, and a final session during his evening commute. Two days later, during the weekly team meeting, Sarah mentioned the new project schedule. "We need someone to coordinate with the client's IT department on access protocols." "I can—" "I'll take care of it." The words had come automatically, and he had pronounced "take care of it" as a native speaker would, with the words flowing together. More importantly, he had understood the conversation perfectly. "Great, Akihiro. Let us know if you need any help getting started." As the meeting continued, Akihiro noticed something unexpected. He was no longer translating in his head or struggling to separate words. For stretches of conversation, he was simply understanding. That evening on the train home, Akihiro added to his growing collection of listening techniques: "Technique #4: High-Intensity Repetition Isolate difficult phrases that sound blurred Listen to the same phrase 20-30 times in succession Practice in short bursts (5-10 minutes) with breaks in between Try to find both normal and slow-speed versions Focus on how sounds blend together Practice phrases in context when possible Works especially well for common expressions and contractions" Below this, he added a note: "Remember: Short, frequent practice sessions (like with shadowing) are better than long, exhausting ones. The brain needs rest to process what it's learning." He reflected on his progress over the past month. From rhythm, to chunking, to the mentally demanding work of shadowing, and now intensive repetition. Each technique built on the previous ones, creating a system for breaking through his listening plateaus. Akihiro smiled, remembering his successful use of "I'll take care of it" in the meeting. Each week, English was becoming less of a barrier and more of a tool. He had gone from struggling to understand to confidently volunteering for tasks. Tomorrow would be even better than today. And the day after? Better still.

And that's how Akihiro discovered his fourth listening technique: high-intensity repetition! To practice this technique yourself, try these simple steps: Identify phrases that sound blurred or unclear at normal speed Find or create recordings of these phrases Listen to the same phrase 20-30 times, in short bursts with breaks If possible, alternate between normal and slow-speed versions Focus on how the sounds blend together in natural speech Remember that short, frequent practice sessions are more effective than long ones Combine with previous techniques: rhythm awareness, chunking, and shadowing Join us next time when Akihiro discovers how closing his eyes can dramatically improve his listening focus! Thanks for listening to English Listening World. Don't forget to subscribe and practice what you've learned today!