To beat the best, there can be no half-hearted training, which only leads to bad habits. As a famous Greek poet Archilochus once said: “We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.”

Motivation, discipline and habits

It’s completely normal for all athletes to have a hard time finding motivation to train every now and then, especially when having a lot of bad games or having real life issues outside of the game. That’s why it is important to be disciplined. You need to have your training routine figured out and you stick to it, no matter if you feel like it or not. What helps with being disciplined is habits. Habit is a behavior that is repeated frequently and automatically. A habit requires only minimal mental effort or conscious awareness. Then you don’t think about whether you should, or want to or feel like it. You just do it because that’s what you do.

Rest is necessary for growth. Too much training without rest leads to burnout and unproductive habits.

SMART goals

You should start your training with a goal, not just an intent. Every goal should be SMART.

S- specific: What do I want to accomplish?
M-measurable: How will I know when it’s accomplished?
A-attainable: Can I reach this goal?
R- rewarding:  Will it feel rewarding to me if I reach this goal?
T-timely: In what period of time will I accomplish this?  

Basic needs

First there are basic needs that need to be fulfilled, before you can find your motivation to play. It’s pretty unfair to expect from yourself to be fully engaged and focused in training, while you’re not sleeping enough, while being hungry or thirsty, while being sick etc. That’s why it is of utter importance to have a healthy and regular sleep schedule and to get at least 8 hours of sleep per night. The food that you intake drastically impacts focus so it’s important to take care of your eating habits (avoid too much sugar, processed foods, fast food). Real life factors also need to be considered while planning the training - if you’re under stress, have other responsibilities or problems in your life, it’s important to address them, otherwise they will impact your ability to train effectively.

General guidelines to create more effective training routine:

• Place the part of your training that takes up a lot of energy at the beginning of a training session (ex. try a new champ your first soloq game).

• Train in blocks (for example 2 blocks per 1,5) and use longer breaks between two training sessions.

• Schedule your training sessions. Make a schedule, where you put in your training, while being able to take care of other responsibilities and rest. At least once every week take a day off the game to rest fully.

• Do an analysis of your gameplay after training. What did I do good, what did I do bad and what’s the plan for the next day?

• Light physical activity (such as stretching, taking a walk) before training enhances your concentration and leads to more effective learning.

• Rest is necessary for growth - too much training without rest leads to burnout and unproductive habits.