I think studying tactics is making me worse!

I used to think you could do no wrong studying tactics.  Especially as a lowly rated 1200-1400 rated 5-min blitz player that I am.

I just spent a week trying to brush up on my tactics, as I was missing some winning tactics in some positions.

Amazingly enough, it made me worse! Never thought I'd say that, but what ended up happening is that I started overprioritizing tactics relative to the (far more common) positionally solid moves, and I started getting slaughtered! I'd stopped looking hard enough for minor piece improvement, better pawn structure, etc, and was just hunting for tactics after tactics, and getting myself into worse and worse positions that were harder and harder to play.

This morning I went back to reviewing some d4 games that tended to be more positional from a book that I was studying with good results as of late, and it seems I'm back on the mend. 

 

Of course, what I really should do is get those tactics and simultaneously study the positional stuff just as hard, but as chess is already a huge time-suck, gotta make do with what limited time and ability I have.

But you are just playing 5 minute blitz games. One can spend a minute or two or more trying to work out a tactic. I think you need to try improvements with daily games, at least 24 hour games. To explore and analyze more deeply. When I play fast games it is no loess than 10 minute games, maybe even 20. I did some 5 minute games and found it was move now and think later and hope the other guy blunders more than I do. When the games slow down the pressure is on in a new way, as your opponent will also be plotting and scheming longer. The less chance for in your face blunder and so one must struggle harder I feel. Opportunities arise to see tactical combinations that you simply would never see in a blitz game.

I def need to play longer games, no contest there, but for sure, I play like +100 (1400+ vs 1300 range) when I'm studying positional type games actively as opposed to just solving tactics and tactics, even if they are complicated ones. And this is even in 5-min blitz. 

 

When I'm playing well for my level, what usually happens in the ideal situation is that I build up an opening/middlegame advantage in equal material, and set the ground for a not complicated tactic. Even in 5 min blitz.

 

I strongly suspect a big reason for this is that I'm simply much more versed with tactical study than the 'quiet' moves that you really need to play good chess. When I study tactics heavily and neglect my weakness in quieter developing moves, I find that I end up looking for crazy sacrifices way too often, and neglecting simple developing strategic moves that are much less risky and much more solid.