Interesting...
Why did my ratings jump? Caffeine?
Sort:
Feb 28, 2015
0
#3
In real tournaments I skyrocketed from 1300 to the low 1600 in 3 tournaments. Just from playing games againist the right people. If you play at the same level for long enough and never go you up are going to get better just by playing and that can make you shoot up suddenly.
Well I can tell you that you are not unique in having a response to caffeine. For months now I have been having crap ratings, even drifting below 1300 once or twice. A couple of weeks ago I switched my regular coffee intake from Nescafe espresso to brewed Harris. I don't know if I'm making it any stronger than I was for my 3 large cup a day habit (those small size plungers claim to make 3 cups but I only get one mug full of coffee from each charge of the device)
RESULT is I'm back at the high 1400s low 1500s. Which is good for me, because it means that I can use openings that I prefer to use against stronger players again.
So I say get stuck right into it.
My rating has averaged around 1350 for a long time, but in the last two weeks I've climbed to my highest ever at 1503. I used to be frightened by playing anyone above 1400 and usually took a shellacking. Lately, I'm holding my own for the most part against such players, which has taken me now above 1500 (I’m going to savor that rating for awhile!). The only thing that has changed in my life is that I'm drinking coffee again, just a cup a day. It’s just a guess that coffee is a factor. But breaking all the way through the 1400s in just a week or two? Has chess.com changed the rating algorithms lately? I’m not sure why the big jump for me. Has anyone experienced a similar sudden increase in rating, lately or not?