Monkey Business

November 19th

Starting BR: $755.13
EOD BR: $750.56
Difference : $4.57
Hands : 841
Session time : 4 hours
Not a bad day again. Although I didn't get as many hands in, I am only $1.32 down. So far this week I have played all $1.10 xmas double up games, but no win so far.

Overall my graph for this week looks horrendous. But I know this will change. Being on a higher limit I should expect larger swings, and hopefully this will look better in the coming weeks.
For my habits I have slipped again today. I didn't feel 100% and it took longer to feel awake than previous days.
Getting up early. - 4/5 Got up later today. 10.00
Stretches and Exercises. - 2/5 Stretches but no exercises.
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5
Warm up - 1/5 Didn't warm up today.
Breaks - 3/5 Had 1 good break today.
Meals - 4/5
3 pints of water - 3/5 got to do better.
Early nights - 5/5

Making another cake today! This time I haven't any chocolate and subbed this for nesquick! So today is a banana and chocolate cake. I used:
2x eggs at room temp.
250g self raising flower
250g caster sugar
250g unsalted butter
3 tbls of chocolate nesquick
1 tbls vanilla extract
1 tbls coffee
3x bananas

melting the butter in a bowl over a heated pot. add vanilla extract and coffee and add 100g milk.
Mash bananas.
in a mixing bowl sieve flower and caster sugar then add bowl of chocolate, butter, vanilla extract and coffee, mixing it in to the flower and sugar. Add bananas to mix. When you have a thick mixture pour into a baking tray. Into the oven at gas mark 4 for 40 mins. Let it cool down and enjoy!

November 20th

Starting BR: $750.56
EOD BR: $740.02
Difference : $10.54
Hands : 942
Session time : 5 hours
10 days left to make a habit! On paper this looks easy. But it can be deceiving! So far I have made tremendous improvements on my sleep and as a consequence my energy and attention levels have really improved. I am still lazy on certain tasks like exercise and stretches, still need to improve on my breaks and amounts of water I drink. So far this month I have grinded 15 days of the Level Up promo.

Getting up early. - 4/5 Got up at 09.30
Stretches and Exercises. - 2/5 Stretches but no exercises.
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5
Warm up - 5/5 warmed up on 25nl 100 hands.
Breaks - 4/5 Had 2 good break today.
Meals - 4/5
5 pints of water - 4/5
Early nights - 5/5

November 21st

My day off today. I have played a few games today. 5fpp rebuy satellite for Sunday storm, No results.
Big .55c I came 315th place out of 6892 winning $1.48. I have not played any of the Xmas double up $1.10 today. So far I have played them all but no cashes yet!
So far I have grinded 34,497 and up 1.38 bb/100 $189.66

One of my problem hands today. I felt Villains stats were good enough to fold the KK.

Poker Stars $0.10/$0.25 No Limit Hold'em - 9 players

SB: $25.00
BB: $25.37
UTG: $25.78
UTG+1: $10.13
UTG+2: $34.72
MP1: $25.00
Hero (MP2): $25.00
CO: $26.59
BTN: $87.73

Pre Flop: ($0.35) Hero is MP2 with K♠ K♥
4 folds, Hero raises to $0.75, CO calls $0.75, 3 folds

Flop: ($1.85) 6♣ 7♠ J♣ (2 players)
Hero bets $1.50, CO raises to $4.05, Hero calls $2.55

Turn: ($9.95) 4♣ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets $6.18, Hero folds

Final Pot: $9.95
CO wins $9.50
(Rake: $0.45)

Hey Metal, great blog so far, keep it going bud. Ride the variance and keep that grinding going! Subbed. Good luck!

See you on the felt!
-DD

November 22nd

Semi day off today. Rather than a grind I decided to play a few tourney and work on my goals for next month.
In the last few weeks I have been trialing out a normal working day. What it will take to achieve the goals I have laid out. From next week I have decided that I need to spend the rest of the year working on getting my BR to the maximum I can for the start of my pursuit to turn poker into a working wage. For the rest of the year I will also do more educational work and get a business plan set for the next few years.
I have read some inspiring blogs from other member who have 'been there, done that' and feel the goals ahead are certainly achievable.
Getting up early. - 1/5 Just rolled out of bed late
Stretches and Exercises. - 0/5
Mindless Tasks. - 0/5
Breaks - 5/5 Today has been a bit of a big break.
Meals - 2/5
5 pints of water - 2/5
Early nights - 5/5

Hey. Sorry i didn't read the whole thing, but wanted to ask, whats your main goal with exercises n stuff?

Noveber 23rd

Bit a bad start to the day which led to a drop of $44 over a short period of hands. Another problem was finding a good table that didn't disappear after 10 hands or with half the players sitting out. So I decided to give up for today before I found my self losing more.
Over the last few weeks I have thought about giving 6-max a try. In reflection of today and this week, I think my next move is to rest a bit and learn this for the new year. I have never really veered from FR since I started playing. So it may be a nice change.

Hi gAsheks. Thanks for dropping in. My main goal with exercises and stretches are to be in good physical shape after a shoulder injury where I have had muscle cut out. I was given physio exercises to do but been a bit lazy with it!

November 24th

Haven't played again today. Just not feeling it, instead I have been posting on the Forum here today and catching up with other peoples blogs.
Thanks DemonDavies for dropping by and looking forward to seeing how your 6-max Journey goes in the next few months.
The rest of this week I am going to have a go at 6 max micro. Looking back on my history here at poker strategy I came across my home work for the No Limit Beginners Course and found it interesting to see my Goal back then.

Question 1: What is your motivation for playing poker?
To be able to make money from home. I enjoy the game, even if I loose. Tied of being stressed out working for pennies and following everyone else.
But Mainly I feel that to play poker at a higher level will be my main goal and reason for taking such with a serious approach.

The first time around I didn't put in the work due to other non poker related issues. I am certainly going to do better this time
around as I have been writing a business plan for this which I shall post on the 1st December and finish for 1st January 16 when I start poker as a business.

BR currently stands at $700

November 25th

Starting BR: $700
EOD BR: $738.10
Difference : $40.10
Hands : 687
Session time : 4 hours

Today I tried out my first session on 6-max. My BR allows me to play on NL25, but as I am learning this format I played on 10NL. Two tables and 687 hands later I am up $38.10
Tomorrow I am going to explore the training material available for beginners on 6-max and tune into the Live coaching with double2 at 19.00

Getting up early. - 5/5 Woke up at 09.00 and went for a morning walk.
Stretches and Exercises. - 3/5
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5
Breaks - 2/5 Did a solid grind with 2 tables for 4 hours.
Meals - 4/5
3 pints of water - 3/5
Early nights - 5/5

November 26th

Starting BR: $738.10
EOD BR: $719.91
Difference : $18.19
Hands : 693
Session time : 4 hours

Second day on 6-max and a few bad beats but overall a good day. Tuned in to Double2 hand clinic today and I can see there is a lot of learning to cover before I begin in January.
Tomorrow I shall take some time off grinding and spend most of it putting together my learning material.

Getting up early. - 2/5 Woke up at 11.00 Really tired today so I had a late morning.
Stretches and Exercises. - 3/5 Stretched a few times through the day.
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5 Bit of a mixed day with starts and stops to do tasks.
Breaks - 4/5 Did a solid grind with 2 tables for 4 hours.
Meals - 4/5
5 pints of water - 5/5
Early nights - 5/5

Hey metalmonkey! Thanks for dropping by at my blog. Pretty awesome blog you have here by the way. I like it how you're making really thorough posts, giving us a really good insight into your journey. It even inspired me to write more at my blog

Good luck at the 6-max tables. After you get the hang of it, you never want to go back to FR again...

GL indeed! It can feel a bit more aggressive when you make the switch, but just don't get caught up in it, they're not THAT much more aggressive, a bit sure, but since there are fewer players it'll also FEEL as if you're targeted more often when you're probably not! If that makes sense.

Novemeber 27th

Starting BR: $719.91
EOD BR: $726.73
Difference : $6.82
Hands : 375
Session time : 2 hours
Today has been more an educational day than a grind. I played around 375 hands today in between watching various w34z3l videos and working my way through the strategy section.
My notes for today and what I am going to be working on over the next week are:

C-Betting, Value betting and slow playing turn and river.
Check raising flops rather than betting out with Top pair and good kicker.
Protecting ranges, wet boards and leading out.
Check raise by default.
And stopping check calling.

Defence with value hands, pairs, OESD and Straight draws, Flush draws, Nut back door + 2nd nut flush draws.
And not forgetting gut shots.

Monday is the last day of my 30 days to make a habit and I am going to do a overall review of how I have got on and adjustments I need to make for next month. On the 27th October I read a article about useful software
for poker players I have now been using Essential PIM Free (calender software) and Notepad++ for the month and found it really helpful in productivity. Monday I will go over the basics of my experiences with both and the great features I have discovered with Notepad++!!
In my earlier posts I have spoken about the importance of work space and came across a blog by Mystt One Step Beyond- My 60k Journey

I had a free Monday and ended up being around all day, also went to buy a sit and stand desk!! On Tuesday I was putting it together and let me tell you, cable management is the difference between pro's and amateurs

This is worth thinking about when looking at ways we can help improve our play and I look forward to seeing how he gets on with this.

Hi Vonki and caltabiano. Thanks for dropping by and the support I am enjoying the change and it looks like FR is a thing of the past for me now!
Also a delayed hello to SvenBe

dewy! Finally a word that i know - yeah!

I thought that it would be nice to add a word of the day as PS is a international community about learning and it may help other members improve on their understanding of the English language. Another great reason to play the Word Game!

My Results for today.

Getting up early. - 2/5 Woke up at 11.00 Really tired today so I had a late morning.
Stretches and Exercises. - 2/5 went out for a walk.
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5 Got all tasks done early
Breaks - 4/5
Meals - 5/5
4 pints of water - 4/5
Early nights - 4/5

November 28

Day off in a loose term today. I played the Saturday Micro and busted on QQ all in against AA & 42s.
Also played 3 spin and go's in a deluded though I could win the million. Lost all 3!
Tomorrow is a full day off.

Getting up early. - 2/5 Woke up at 11.00
Stretches and Exercises. - 2/5
Mindless Tasks. - 1/5 Nothing to do!
Breaks - NA
Meals - 5/5
4 pints of water - 4/5
Early nights - 2/5 Late night.

November 29th

Getting up early. - 1/5 Woke up at 12.00
Stretches and Exercises. - 2/5
Mindless Tasks. - 5/5 Budgeting.
Breaks - NA
Meals - 5/5
4 pints of water - 4/5
Early nights - 4/5

November 30th

Last day of the challenge! How have I done?
Well looking back on the first few weeks I feel that this program has really helped me in preparing myself and finding leaks in my life that will hold me back from moving forward.

this guide will only help you if you apply these strategies, just acknowledging them without any application will not help you improve your productivity.

The best part of doing Schnitzelfisch 30 days to make a habit is being able to evaluate my performance at the end of the program. In the beginning I answered questions from the guide.

2. Vision Statement
With my vision statement I am happy with everything that I have already outlined. What I would add is, to be comfortable in admitting my mistakes and growing from the experience.

1.2 GOALS
-I will read four poker related articles this week. 5/5
-I will play poker at a set time at least for 6 hours a day for 5/7 day per week. 4/5
-To break even, or be 3 buy ins up! 2/5
-I will also post 5 hands for review. 1/5 I did not post enough hands over the period.
-I will update my Goals and habits list until I am happy with it. 4/5 Looking back on the 30 days I have updated where needed.
-I will take time to read others blogs. 5/5 I have really enjoyed reading others blogs and learn t more about my own play and overall goals.

WEEKLY PLANNER
My weekly planner works well for me. When I have been able to attain to it my productivity levels are up!!

Getting up early. - 7/10 I still have to do better with this. A lot better!
Stretches and Exercises. - 1/10 Again this area I must do better with and next month I will conquer this!
Mindless Tasks. - 9/10 Overall I have been getting things done early.
Breaks - 6/10 Although I have breaks they are not regular.
Meals - 7/10 I need to work on a better diet. Will cover this topic in December!
6 pints of water per day - 7/10 It has really made a difference in my day drinking more water.
Early nights - 8/10 Overall I have done well with this. But on occasion been relaxed.

So marking my self out of 70 points I have achieved 45 points and an above average score. My aims for December are to continue assessing my daily goals and adding a learning goals list. I have abandoned grinding FR for 6-max. With this in mind I am starting from scratch with learning.
Tomorrow I will outline the next 30 days of learning. Using my experience of the 30 days to make a habit I am going apply this to making December my '30 days to learn 6-max!'
My poker partner is ahead of me with 6-max and is working out a crash course for me to follow. I will post these details tomorrow. I think with all this in mind, Decembers volume of hands and quality of grinding will drop dramatically in lieu for education.
After reading this article in the main news I have also decided to take on the course suggested and will cover this in future posts.
5 Point Plan
Other news I want to look at is 7 routes from tilt to zen I am not on tilt but this is worth remembering for the days that I am!

Overall I believe that if you do the 30 days to make a habit course, it will improve many aspects of your life on and off the table. I would recommend this to anyone who hasn't looked at it already or are going though problems with organization, especially people beginning their poker career to take time out for this.

December 1st

EOD BR: $764.95
Hands: 540
24 days to go until Christmas day!!! I am continuing with my 30 day habit but this time I am applying it to education, in particular 6-max. Spent most of my day looking though the forums as I have now become a Moderator! I am sure this month I won't be going for volume.

With the new year approaching and the beginning of the grinding year on its way I must keep up with the trends and 6-max offers the grinder a quicker way to notch up volume and hit their targets quicker. So over the next 30 days I am going to make learning my habit and attain to the following courses.
No limit Starter Course with LemOn36followed by Beyond the first strategy.... And in between both I will also be watching w34z3l Academy videos.

Today I got awarded the milestone hand. (reason for big dip in my graph at the end) And found myself in a position never before in my time on cash. Everyone ALL IN!

Congrats on becoming a mod, participating in a milestone hand and writing an interesting blog, monkey! Cheers.

December 2nd

Haven't play one hand at all today. Had a few bits to do and notes to make. Tomorrow I probably won't play again, rather make a start on learning.
Thanks Pkrpains for dropping by and I hope you manage to accomplish your goals for December. Looking forward to reading your next entry.
Thanks also Jakkosh for the kind words and I hope the next few weeks will be better for you too.