bb55nc's Intermediate Rapid & Classical Plan

Focusing mostly on rapid and classical sounds good. You may find later on that you want to go back to incorporating more blitz games, but for now, your idea will help you stay focused on slower games.

bb55nc's Revised Chess Goals 12 week Intermediate Rapid & Classical Plan (week 3 thru 12)

Daily: (required)

  Play Daily Game moves

  15 minutes Lichess Puzzles

  30 minutes Chess.com Puzzles

  15 minutes Chess.com Puzzle Rush

Day 1: (required)

  Post Study Plan Review 

  Play two 15+10's

  Analyze 15+10's (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

Day 2: (required)

  Play one 30+0

  Analyze 30+0 (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

Day 3: (required)

  Play two 15+10's

  Analyze 15+10's (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

Day 4: (required)

  Play one 30+0

  Analyze 30+0 (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

Day 5: (required)

  Play two 15+10's

  Analyze 15+10's (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

Day 6: (required - rotating weekly)

  Yusupov chapter examples

  or

  Failed puzzle review

  or

  Endgame review

Day 7: (required - rotating weekly)

  Yusupov chapter test

  or 

  Opening Repertoire Review

  or

  Failed Puzzle Review

Extra:

  Primary (desired)

  One Slow Classical Game 45+45

  Analyze Slow Classical Game (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

  Secondary (if time available)

  Additional 15+10's

  Analyze 15+10's (Opening Review, Key Moment Review, + & - Take-aways)

  Tertiary (if time available)

  10+0's or 5+5's 

  Analyze 10+0's or 5+5's (Opening Review and Key Moment Review)

After much back and forth over the past months coming to grips with a beginning repertoire I have decided on the following for the remainder of this initial 12 week plan.  This repertoire has served a friend of mine for years and has gotten them to a pretty decent rating (~1600) here on chess.com.

White:

1. e4 e5 2. Bc4     Bishop's Opening

1. e4 c5 2. Bc4     Sicilian Defense: Bowdler Attack

1. e4 e6 2. Bc4     French Defense

1. e4 e5 2. exd5   Scandinavian Defense

1. e4 c6 2. Bc4    Caro Kann Defense: Hillbilly Attack

1. e4 d6 2. Bc4.   Pirc Defense 

Black

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6

1. d4 d5 2. c4 Bf4      QGD: Baltic Defense

1. c4  d6 2. ...Nf6                         

1. Nf6 d6 2. ...Nf6

A Systematic Method of Chess Thinking and Choosing Moves

A thinking model that I plan on using for solving tactics and choosing game moves for the duration of this 12 week plan.  I will update as required.

1. Attack/unprotect

  What is opponent's move attacking and do I need to respond or can I ignore?

  Has my opponent left a piece or key square unprotected?

2. Checks and captures

  I must look at every check and capture!

3.  Undefended pieces

  Are any of my opponent's pieces undefended?

  Are any of my pieces undefended?

4.  Attacking/defending

  What are each of my opponent's pieces and pawns attacking/defending?

  What are each of my pieces and pawns attacking/defending?

5.  Attack every piece

  Are my opponent's pieces vulnerable?

  Can I launch an attack on my opponent's Queen? Rooks? Bishops? Knights? Pawns?

  What about my vulnerabilities?

6.  Pins

  Can I attack any of my opponent's pinned pieces?

  Do I have any pinned pieces that are vulnerable?

7.  Piece placement

  Improve my piece placement (gain space) and hinder my opponent's

8.  Piece contact

  Be aware of any move that brings pieces and pawns into contact.

Your plan sounds great. And as you practice this it will become more and more automatic.

Week 3 Day 1

Feeling good about the modified plan today!

Some may disagree with me, however, I have decided to play this week's games against the Lichess maia1 bot rated ~1550.  The bot was neural network trained to make human-like moves using Lichess user games of ~1500 rated players.

I played two 15+10 games today losing both, however, I was able to gain insight to my blind spots that I was not able to see from the faster time control games of the past two weeks.

In both games I was able to come thru the opening with slight advantage as white and slight disadvantage as black.  Missed tactics as white and played much better as black surprisingly. Achieved an endgame in both games at a pawn disadvantage.  End game work begins this week in the plan.

Need to continue to work on thought process to find missed tactics!

Week 3 Day 2

Played one 30+0 game today.  I could have slowed down some.  Big mistake on move 20 when I left bishop on f4 hanging when I did not ask what did my opponent's move change in the position.

Week 3 Day 3

Played two 15+10's vs the Lichess maia1 bot today - 1 loss and 1 draw.  Tactics mistakes again today.  I can attribute some to the time control, however, some very similar to the last two days.  Game 1 - missed winning opponent's Q on move 21!  Game 2 - played Bc4 on move 2 vs Nc6 - not sure what I was thinking.  Very happy that I modified the 12 week plan.  At least I can now zero in on my blindspots and work to eliminate them.  The blitz games were just not allowing me to accomplish this.

Week 3 Day 4

Played a 45+45 game as black today against the Lichess maia1 bot.  Game ended in a stalemate.  No blunders, however, missed three opportunities to win the game outright.  Still optimistic about improvement with this plan with the modifications.  Slowing down has helped greatly.  Looking at speed after accuracy improvements.  Need to continuously work on tactics.  This week plan has the opportunity to go back and work on failed puzzles.

Week 3 Day 5

Played and won a 45+45 game as white today against the Lichess maia1 bot.  Pretty much as yesterday, a few blunders, a few mistakes, and a couple missed wins and mates.  Next week will include endgame work, something I have not focused much on to date.  

How do you like training with maia so far?

Are you planning to play humans, maia bot, or a mix after this week?

I believe the maia bots play both more human-like and computer-like than other toned-down bots here or other sites.

Also for me since I am fairly new and do not have many games under belt and get really stressed out against humans this works well.  I do tend to play better against higher rated opponents and longer time controls.  Being that training time is valuable, really unsound moves and traps are not helpful to improvement.  I will most likely continue with a mix of the maia bots and human play in the future.  I will probably use performance against the maia bots as the primary indicator of improvement.

That sounds like a good plan. I think it's important to have some human opponents and that can definitely pair with your idea of using the maia bots as your indicator of improvement.

Week 3 Day 6

Puzzle day today.  I loss significant rating points on both Chess.com and Lichess.  Another puzzle day planned for tomorrow.  Hoping not to got on tilt!

Week 3 Day 7

Another puzzle day today.  I was able to gain some rating points back on chess.com, however, dropped some on Lichess.

Week 3:  Chess Goals 12 week Intermediate Rapid & Classical Plan Review

Metrics: Start / Week 3 / Week +/-

Chess.com Blitz:  -NR- / 511 / 0 (no games)

Chess.com Daily:  1233 / 1146 / -7

Chess.com Rapid:  918/ 859 / 0 (no games)

Chess.com Puzzles:  1004/ 1113 / +61

Chess.com Puzzle Rush (3min):  9 / 11 / 0

Lichess Puzzles:  1650 / 1612 / -90

vs maia1 bot (1554):   NR / 1382 /  7 games  1 win, 2 draws, 4 losses

Take aways:

1.  Longer time control games has allowed me to identify improvement areas to work.

2.  maia1 bot provides human like play alternative.  I would recommend playing the maiax bot family over other personality bots or degraded engines

3.  The Chess Goals plan has provided me a framework to organize my training relevant to my skill level.

4.  Considering taking a few day break before continuing the plan.

Week 4 Day 1

+100 rating points today on chess.com puzzles (1112 to 1212)!

Planning a couple 15+10 training games later today.

Week 4 Day 1 con't

Played two 15+10 live games on chess.com.  Won Game 1 with 0 blunders and 0 mistakes. Lost Game 2 against the Kiddie Gambit, again 0 blunders with a few mistakes.

Week 4 Day 2

I was unable to get any games in today, however, I still managed my daily games and tactics work.

Week 4 Day 3

Played two (no time control) training games (white) vs Stockfish 1600 on chess.com.  Lost both games after having the advantage. Need to continuing working on limiting blunders and mistakes.  Even though the games were no time control, I did play both games at a rapid pace.