Playing while you are tired

Laying aside the stretching out and resting between matches, wear GOOD footwear and drink lots of water. Good support for your feet will help imenesly and keeping over hydrated will flush your muscles from the build up of acids in your system and will help a lot, more than stimulates because it won't numb your brain.
 
I think I'm tired about half the time I play. Only time I can find players where I play is at night. I usually tired from a long day at work, or tired even if I had the day off. My sleeping habits aren't so great.

I keep thinking to myself I should practice when I'm tired because I play when I'm tired, but I don't because I'm tired.:(
 
I don't know what is in the 5 hr energy, but the one in the black bottle works best. It is extra strength 5 hr. I couldn't believe that it actually worked. Usually nothing works for me... coffee puts me to sleep.

Only problem I have with the 5hr, I pee like a race horse.
 
sausage said:
straightman: drugs are drugs. there's no difference between sucking a cig or snorthing coke. somehow, inexplicably, our leaders have convinced the people otherwise.
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I know a lot of people that smoke, I don't. I do not know any that have lost their homes, jobs, etc., or sold their body to get cigarettes.

Pel
 
Unfortunely its something you have to deal with. Stamina is all you really need. Eating healthy and exercising on a regular basis is the best way to achieve great pyshical and mental stamina. Remember that your opponent should be feeling the ill effects of a long battle aswell. So if your in better shape more than likely you'll look and feel more alert. When he or she sees this it might just put them off to thinking that they dont have a chance of winning :wink:

Oh and like meantioned before try and stay away from the caffenne (cant spell). Youshould only use coffee or energy drinks as a last resort and defo in moderation. Caffenne can make one shaky and throw off the mind and body connection. Exercise....Get good sleep and eat health and you'll see a big difference.
 
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Nick Vlahos, who was the best player no one ever heard of, used to sleep under the tables. He would crawl under, take his jacket as a pillow and catch a few Z's.... I feel your pain though. I was recently in a two day tournament two hours from my home. I lost my first match then won a couple then had to come back the next day. So, two hours back home, sleep and two hours back. Played another two matches. Won them. I was in the qurater finals.....and I just didn't have it any more. I lost interest and focus and stunk out the joint. It might of had something to do with they thought the finals would start around 10:30 pm and I still had to drive two hours back home....
 
This all reminds me of the move "The Hustler" Fast Eddie got tired and wore out, and Fat's looked well rested and alert, then he started beating Fast Eddie.
 
I have had some issues also, I noticed what has been working is after every set go to the bathroom and relieve yourself and wash up. I make sure to drink water constantly to keep myself hydrated. Go outside and take deep breaths of air, here it does not work as well as its hot out but since its cooling down it is my favorite thing to do, oxygen for your brain to function right.

I like small snacks and try to eat a salad if I need a meal with some chicken in it. I like green tea to drink and it does wonders. I keep a 5 Hour energy in my case for backup. I do realize I play better in sneakers but wear shoes alot and my feet suffer for it, time to get a good pair of shoes perhaps today or tomorrow for playing in. :smile:
 
KISS when you are tired

MIC FLY AZ said:
Yesterday I started in a tournament at 1pm. I fought all the way back through the losers bracket to make it to the finals. The finals started around 3am because it was a big tournament and the bar owner wanted to get it done in one day. By this time I was so exhausted and tired I could not even concentrate.

I know a lot of you guys would say to just drink some caffine, but what do you do when caffine stops working? Trust me, I drank a s**t load of it all day.

I would love any suggestions as far as things that help you get through the fatigue so that you can bare down and win. Thanks.
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Simplify everything when you are tired. You can hit with follow more reliably than with draw when you are tired. The one rail and a little tougher angle is more likely to work than three rails for the easier shot.

However Gene, JoeyA, and several others have touched on the real issue, don't get tired to begin with. Increasing your stamina is good but there are also dozens of small ways to conserve the resources you have. Don't stand or lean on a table when you can be sitting comfortably. Don't sit on a stool without a back when you can be sitting on one with one. Chill between matches, even to the point of letting your mind drift to a peaceful calm restful place. Don't stand around talking when you can be resting.

The number one thing I can add to all that has already been said though is learn to be a spectator when you aren't shooting. I try for the mindset I have when watching children playing a game outside. I'm watching, I'm mildly interested, but I'm not really involved. I can sit through whatever is happening on the table without batting an eye in this mode, more importantly I'm not sitting there with my engine revving ready to jump to my feet as soon as I get a chance at the table. I can't do a thing until the other player is done. Then it is time to amble over to the table and see what I can do. I paid an elderly gentleman several hundred dollars to teach me this, I feel like it has returned me countless thousands.

Hu
 
I agree with the above poster 1000%...Back in March 09 a friend saw me drinking a coke during a tournament. He said that it would cause you to crash and burn and have irregular highs and lows. During tournaments I would go to the Wendy's or McDonalds for a cheap meal with a soda and I always felt like I had over eaten and was sluggish. So I started to reevaluate that portion of my game. I did some research and concluded as the previous poster said, that multiple small meals throughout the day help you keep your sugar levels the same throughout the day. The other thing I do is eat pasta the night before a tournament. Those carbs can help you the following day.

My pre tournament routine was to stretch as much as possible and make sure I'm comfortable with what I am wearing (sounds silly but it helps). During and in between match play I like to sit as much as possible and rest my legs. Also, at times when I feel my eyes getting tired and that grogginess, I rub my temples and above my eyes. Massaging them helps a lot.

Doing all this, I noticed by midnight I was still going strong.

Christian
 
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cat nap

Great thread, this is a killer. You can play many good sets in a row, but if you wear down and play a little roughly on just a couple of racks it can eliminate you from contention.

This doesn't work during a match, but if I have a 30 minute wait or more until my next match I will go to my car, play some music quietly, lean the car back, and relax. Sometimes I fall asleep for 10 minutes, sometimes I just chill.

Doing this is suprisingly helpful. It also gets me in a good frame of mind and gets a rhythm into my step.

Oh, make sure someone knows where you are so that you don't miss your match!
 
I know this situation more than well.In my area there is a Grand Prix invitational tournament,so far i played in 4 tournaments and i always get to the semis,but later.......STAMINA STAMINA.After many hours of playing at high concentration in pool room full of cigarete smoke im complete wreck.Lately i tryed something new,its a relaxing breath exercise from Yoga.Short breath in and at least 3 times longer out,for me its so unnatural that i forgeting about anything else trying to keep breathing like that.After 2-3 minutes of this my concetration is back and i even can play better than before that day.I hope this will help me to win grand prize in november :D
 
Chewing gum

Someone once recommended chewing gum. I was skeptical, but I find it really helps, especially if my mind has gotten a little "chatty" or there's something in the environment that's especially distracting.

Its interesting to me that so many people are recommending energy conserving strategies. I have sometimes wondered if I shouldn't be doing the opposite...running outside and doing jumping jacks or something to fight the lethargy and boredom that sets in from sitting around and waiting.
 
SpotMonster22 said:
Someone once recommended chewing gum. I was skeptical, but I find it really helps, especially if my mind has gotten a little "chatty" or there's something in the environment that's especially distracting.

Its interesting to me that so many people are recommending energy conserving strategies. I have sometimes wondered if I shouldn't be doing the opposite...running outside and doing jumping jacks or something to fight the lethargy and boredom that sets in from sitting around and waiting.
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I agree with chewing gum also.Studies have shown that peppermint
actually improve focus.
 
I drink the 5 hour energy drinks when I begin to lose focus due to fatigue. It helps my brain turn on....it is made up mostly of Vitamin B's and I don't crash afterwards. Try drinking half a bottle at the onset of being tired....and then the other half a little later.
Also, another recommendation...
I have started running again, in just the past couple weeks. Nothing big, a mile a day 3-4 times a week...that alone helped my endurance at my past tournament. The only reason I still had to turn to the 5-hour energy drink was after I ate something and my brain shut down. :)
 
Thanks for all the replies. I guess one of the biggest problems is M-F I work a job from 7am to 4pm and not to sound old, but I'm in bed before 11pm most nights. This is where these all day tournaments that last until 5am really favors pool players with no jobs or jobs that have flexible schedules. You know they are out late every night playing pool until the wee hours of the morning so their bodies are much more used to this type of schedule.

Next time I guess I will stay up late on Friday so that I can sleep in as long as I can on Saturday. I will also try the 5 hr energy with the peppermint gum.
 
Get checked for diabetes............

sly_shooter said:
I think I'm tired about half the time I play. Only time I can find players where I play is at night. I usually tired from a long day at work, or tired even if I had the day off. My sleeping habits aren't so great.

I keep thinking to myself I should practice when I'm tired because I play when I'm tired, but I don't because I'm tired.:(
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Hi there,
Anyone that I know personally that has complained about being tired all the time I suggested that they get checked for diabetes. This might sound off the wall to you but most people that find out they are have been diabetic for up to 9 to 10 years before being diagnosed. By that time there is alot of damage done to the body.

If you got insurance it is a really simple blood test. Good Luck..... Geno..
 
doing pushups helps too but looks odd. i once was doing a marathon drive and started falling asleep. i got out and did a bunch of pushups and i was good for another 12 hours. it works!
 
Tin Man said:
Great thread, this is a killer. You can play many good sets in a row, but if you wear down and play a little roughly on just a couple of racks it can eliminate you from contention.

This doesn't work during a match, but if I have a 30 minute wait or more until my next match I will go to my car, play some music quietly, lean the car back, and relax. Sometimes I fall asleep for 10 minutes, sometimes I just chill.

Doing this is suprisingly helpful. It also gets me in a good frame of mind and gets a rhythm into my step.

Oh, make sure someone knows where you are so that you don't miss your match!
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There are so many good suggestions as to what different people do to energize themselves. I always enjoy reading these threads and posts.

I have been known to take a "lion nap" (that's the one where you doze off for an extended period of time and miss your next match). :o It's been a few years since that's happened.

Now I set the alarm clock on my cell phone to wake me in case I really start cutting some deep z's.

JoeyA
 
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