Prof, PhD

Between the Faze situation at worlds and the bubble scene conversation now, hrs-past-2 has been talked about A LOT The stat is used to measure one’s commitment to the game, and for this, it’s good. But it’s worth note, there is such a thing as playing too much. As someone who seriously practiced guitar from 13-22, not all practice hours are equal. Playing through already-learned pieces did nothing to help me improve, it only kept me at the place I already was. Real practice came in pushing my mind, learning new pieces, but most of all, DRILLING FUNDAMENTALS, especially the ones I was weak in. Pushing your mind is uncomfortable, the same way physically working out is uncomfortable. You can feel the new neural paths being laid. It’s not fun, in fact that’s the main reason we always avoid it: it’s boring. Mind numbingly boring. But it is literally irreplaceable for getting ACTUALLY better at something. Many of the people bragging about having 100+ past 2 are not using their time wisely. Rather, they are grinding ranked and calling it “practice.” It *feels* productive because it’s time consuming. But I mean it when I say 1 hour a day of actively, intentionally working on fundamentals is worth more than 4 hours of ranked.* Putting in more than 40 hours a week is a collision course for burnout. It could also be an emotional dependency on the game, neither of which are healthy long term. But either way, if you are putting in 80 past 2 and not seeing improvement, the solution is not more hours, but rather improving the quality of the hours you are already booking. Anyone who is serious about fitness and muscle growth will also tell you about how important rest and balance is. Your brain is a muscle, overworking it will not improve it. *I’m not devaluing the “real-world” experience of ranked, but the reason you missed that double tap that would have won you the game isn’t because you hadn’t had the pressure before, it’s because you haven’t drilled that shot until it’s automatic.