I'm not very good at chess, however I'm finding it quite difficult to make any sort of progress, and I play very inconsistently. Are there good ways to study chess for consistent improvement?
Probably playing more consistently would be the first step, based on the information provided.
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I also used to have a big problem with inconsistent playing. I highly reccomend playing when you're rested and in good mental shape. I always play one blitz game to check if I'm playing well enough to attempt a series of more serious rapid games.
In order to improve at chess at your level I reccomend studying annotated games of masters and grandmasters. That way you can also broaden your opening knowledge. I believe there is no other way to truly study an opening than studying the resulting most common plans and ideas as well.
I also suggest that you play more rapid and classical chess instead of just blitz. I used to have a big problem with improving as well when I was a blitz-only player, I was stuck around the 1800 mark for a long time.
In order to improve at chess at your level I reccomend studying annotated games of masters and grandmasters. That way you can also broaden your opening knowledge. I believe there is no other way to truly study an opening than studying the resulting most common plans and ideas as well.
I also suggest that you play more rapid and classical chess instead of just blitz. I used to have a big problem with improving as well when I was a blitz-only player, I was stuck around the 1800 mark for a long time.
@JMC07 said in #1:
> I'm not very good at chess, however I'm finding it quite difficult to make any sort of progress, and I play very inconsistently. Are there good ways to study chess for consistent improvement?
Those are very good fast ratings for a guy who doesn't feel he is good at chess. Perhaps you should go play over the board and get yourself a title and then maybe you'll feel validated as a chess player ?
> I'm not very good at chess, however I'm finding it quite difficult to make any sort of progress, and I play very inconsistently. Are there good ways to study chess for consistent improvement?
Those are very good fast ratings for a guy who doesn't feel he is good at chess. Perhaps you should go play over the board and get yourself a title and then maybe you'll feel validated as a chess player ?
@TheKingClash said in #3:
> Long-term strategic chess is necessary for you to improve at this level. Books will really help. Start with "My System" by Nimzowitsch. Then read more advanced strategy books to increase your knowledge on chess strategy. Books by Nimzowitsch, Euwe, Dvoretsky, Nunn, Engqvist or Watson are good, as well as endgames. Endgame books, especially books by Karsten Müller, are helpful too. You should also watch some videos on YouTube about the important principles in Endgames featuring different pieces. Try and develop an opening repertoire as well that suits your chess personality. Also solve some puzzles to increase your tactical knowledge and spot tactics more easily.
Botvinnik also...
> Long-term strategic chess is necessary for you to improve at this level. Books will really help. Start with "My System" by Nimzowitsch. Then read more advanced strategy books to increase your knowledge on chess strategy. Books by Nimzowitsch, Euwe, Dvoretsky, Nunn, Engqvist or Watson are good, as well as endgames. Endgame books, especially books by Karsten Müller, are helpful too. You should also watch some videos on YouTube about the important principles in Endgames featuring different pieces. Try and develop an opening repertoire as well that suits your chess personality. Also solve some puzzles to increase your tactical knowledge and spot tactics more easily.
Botvinnik also...
Annotating games and going over those with a strong player is one of the best ways to improve at chess. Your own games are the best for this. Second best is to do it with master games for which you have master annotations; perhaps from a book. You can compare your annotations with the master's.
I have a number of games from books done as Lichess studies. These are without annotations, and may be cloned.
Just today I made a study of the 50 illustrative games from "My System", by Nimzowitsch - the book mentioned by TheKingClash in #3. There are versions of that book in the public domain, but they will be in descriptive notation. That is not a hard notation to learn, but can be a hurdle. There are versions of the book which have been converted to algebraic. The book itself is not the easiest read, and the ideas in it are in many modern books. However, "My System" is a classic, nostalgic, and fun.
I have a number of games from books done as Lichess studies. These are without annotations, and may be cloned.
Just today I made a study of the 50 illustrative games from "My System", by Nimzowitsch - the book mentioned by TheKingClash in #3. There are versions of that book in the public domain, but they will be in descriptive notation. That is not a hard notation to learn, but can be a hurdle. There are versions of the book which have been converted to algebraic. The book itself is not the easiest read, and the ideas in it are in many modern books. However, "My System" is a classic, nostalgic, and fun.
Play slower games and use all your time..
Watch some good video content for ideas
Do puzzles.. 10-15 a day
Learn the basic principles and try to play them.. don’t worry too much about learning openings but if you do, just pick a couple and play them all the time. I’m learning so only play the Lopez, the London as white and mainly the Caro Kann as black.
I also do puzzle rush to see if my brain is functioning ... , if I can’t solve the simplest ones then I don’t play as ‘the chess brain’ simply isn’t working.
Watch some good video content for ideas
Do puzzles.. 10-15 a day
Learn the basic principles and try to play them.. don’t worry too much about learning openings but if you do, just pick a couple and play them all the time. I’m learning so only play the Lopez, the London as white and mainly the Caro Kann as black.
I also do puzzle rush to see if my brain is functioning ... , if I can’t solve the simplest ones then I don’t play as ‘the chess brain’ simply isn’t working.
@JMC07 said in #1:
> I'm not very good at chess, however I'm finding it quite difficult to make any sort of progress, and I play very inconsistently. Are there good ways to study chess for consistent improvement?
Apart from all the suggestions here, I recommend to study daily at Chessable, and not opening books but more generic strategic ones. Keep up your streak. And ask some stronger players or a chess coach to look at your games and find your strengths and weaknesses. By the way, 1900+ Rapid on Lichess is fairly decent in my opinion !
> I'm not very good at chess, however I'm finding it quite difficult to make any sort of progress, and I play very inconsistently. Are there good ways to study chess for consistent improvement?
Apart from all the suggestions here, I recommend to study daily at Chessable, and not opening books but more generic strategic ones. Keep up your streak. And ask some stronger players or a chess coach to look at your games and find your strengths and weaknesses. By the way, 1900+ Rapid on Lichess is fairly decent in my opinion !
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