Is anyone else getting a lot worse?

I literally have been getting worse and worse, the more I take on-line lessons, read books, play live games and bots, and do puzzles. 

I was never great, but since I have been focusing more on learning (about a month) I do worse now than before.  my rating has dropped, I run out of time more, I lose to lower ranked opponents and make more blunders.... 

I do "know" more now, and enjoy the learning experience, but I not only lose on-line, but also I lose to my husband consistently and he does no preparation, and hadn't played in decades!

I think its possible to get to 1000 without learning much. How? Just dont do random things, follow basic principles, think twice before every move - is it safe, in every position look is there anything my opponent hung for free and you will improve so fast. And I have an recommendation for you - Building habits by chessbrah on youtube, just check it out, it should help a lot.

What I see on your page is that you "do puzzles" like this: you "think" for 7 seconds and then you make the wrong move. I guess, some good-looking random move. If you want to improve, that is not the way.

Hi! My name is Lauren Goodkind and I’m a chess coach based and chess book author based in California. 

I have tips to help you improve your chess skills so you can win more games.  

I recommend playing with a slow time control, such as game in 30 minutes.  You need time to think.  Beginners tend to make a lot of silly moves with very little time.  This makes sense since there’s a lot of pieces on the board.  
 

I also offer a  free beginner’s free eBook on my website, www.ChessByLauren.com in case you are interested. The book is about asking questions before each move.  
   Before each move, I highly encourage you ask questions before every move such as, “If I move here, is it safe?”, “Can I safely capture a piece?”, and more.  

Also consider all checks and captures on your side and also your opponent’s side. If you are past this stage, then find a forcing winning line.  

 

Learn basic tactics such as the fork, discovered attack, pin, and more.  I offer interactive puzzles on my website: https://www.chessbylauren.com/two-choice-puzzles.php  
I recommend two books for you: 

- 50 Poison Pieces   and

-Queen For A Day: The Girl’s Guide To Chess Mastery. 

Both books are available on Amazon.com and endorsed by top chess masters.
If you are serious about chess, I highly recommend you hiring a chess coach to help you.  
I hope that this helps.  

10 minute games probably wont support your study. Its important to deliberately practise what you've learned and this takes time which means longer games. 30 minutes, 45|45 and Daily are all good for improvement. I spend minutes trying to solve a puzzle. I aim to get them right first time and solve them in my head before making the move. I wouldn't have time to find tactics in a 10 minute game, or plan, or do anything I've learned. Try longer games and deliberate practise, for example play a game without the intention of winning or losing but simply to keep your pieces coordinated (supporting each other) for as many moves as possible.

This guy right here. I feel like I'm getting worse, but at this point I'm OK with that because I'm starting to study chess and actually learn it. Rather than what I did previously, which was wing it. So I make a lot of blunders when I'm trying to use an opening I learned and then forget half way through what I'm supposed to do next. 

I'm thinking chess will be like most things in the pursuit of mastery. A lot of failure and losing, and using every loss as an opportunity to learn. 

Stefan you are the only one who gets what I mean!  everyone is offering suggestions- which is fine-- but none of them explain why I have gotten worse, and played better before.

 

so yes, I should play longer games. but the point is, I used to play better at 10 min games than I do now!

You are not getting worse; it is your chess fat turning into muscle. Soon you will leap forwards like a panther.

This is what they know as tilting. Don't worry, it comes and goes

 

Me too even tho im eight my games have been loosing quite a lot in these days. Its weird i used to be winning and one day i was loosing to so many lower ranked players. I never did much. I suspect a hacker. Like when the fair play system made a WGM  loose the winning tournament to get the world champion in chess title. Weird!

 

I suspect a hacker. 

+ And i agree

Google traduction :

you say that you are only lowering if I understood correctly. It's a bit over-managed. in one month you went from 169 to 420/440. Indeed for 3 days and 3 days only you have lost more than a hundred points. I wonder if you don't get saturated by playing thirty games (or even more) of 10 minutes a day. Try to ease off a bit over the next few days, rest your mind a little. And see what it gives.

Do you drive and remember learning to drive? Every time the instructor introduced a new skill, your driving would get worse then improve. Well that was my case anyway. Chess is the same. It's normal. Its the learning process. It's more noticeable with some things than others. Everyone gets it. Its human.

No. You are just realizing you can improve. I still think I am playing worse, but in reality I know so much more and know much better I can play. This is good as it makes you want to improve more. Just keep practicing and you will get better in no time!

I had the same experience, a short-term drop of more than 100 points when I started studying.

What’s happening is that you have a lot more to think about and a lot more to consider when making each move, so at first it can be hard to sort out all the guidelines you’ve been taught, skills you’ve practiced, and ideas you have about how to play.

Lauren is right: Play slower games, 30 minutes being a good number. Play fewer of them, and stop if you have a couple losses in a row, particularly if you feel bad about them. Take the time after each 30 minute game to analyze and think about how what you did matches what you feel you’ve learned.

Right now, it’s AWESOME to spend time learning all the principles you can, but what you must focus on are these things:

1) Learn and follow good opening principles.
2) Make sure your pieces are guarded when you move, which means they cannot be attacked without the opponent losing a piece of equal or greater value.
3) Your opponent will not follow rule 2. Watch for it and take those pieces!

Basically, your goal is to blunder less than your opponent. If you do this consistently, your rank will go up.

Finally, if you’ve played 3 or 4 30 minute games and you’re not on a hot winning streak, but you still want to play chess for fun, play 5|5 games. The timing feels a lot like 10 but it only affects your blitz rating, so you can use it as a dumping ground for quick “just for fun” games. Just be sure to slow down when you switch back to 30 minutes. Too much blitz can make bad habits feel natural.

it might not even be related to learning

tilt happeneds

everyone tilts

Paleobotanical- thank you so much.

everyone else thanks too.  I just googled "tilt"- interesting! yes, I believe I am suffering from it

Learning more could lead your thoughts on moves to be almost over stimulating. Yes you now have more knowledge but you could just be overthinking the way you play. Chess is repetition and the more you practice similar stuff the better you will become in that situation. You could just be trying new things you are learning and maybe aren't that successful with them yet but over time you'll master the skills and be able to take your rating to an all new high.