Code reviews, when intentional, are deliberate practice. Both reviewing, and getting reviewed. With deliberate practice, people get caught up in the practice

Code reviews, when intentional, are deliberate practice. Both reviewing, and getting reviewed. With deliberate practice, people get caught up in the practice part, and believe that if they are "actually doing something productive, it's not practice." But practice is more than that. It's the intentional application of ideas. The difference between deliberate practice and normal work is that normal work is, in many cases, boilerplate. It's things you know. You are doing things that aren't pushing yourself. Yes, Topcoder and things like that can be deliberate practice, but deliberate practice is not limited to such things. And those who are successful, really successful, don't limit deliberate practice to such events.