Chess Fatigue? - Chess Forums (2024)

Hey all,
Is there such a thing as chess fatigue? I’ve noticed that when I do the puzzles that initially I have a good run then my performance seems to plummet after an hour or so. It could just be because I’m rubbish and inconsistent or maybe tiredness is kicking in, but was wondering if anyone else has experienced similar?

chess study like anything is about quality over quantity. You're better off doing 30 minute of serious tactics study. Not going to the next tactic until you thoroughly understand the tactic you just solved, or didn't solve. Than spending hours of just doing puzzles.

Studies have repeatedly shown that when taking exams, performance decreases with each passing hour. I’d imagine that the chess performance is highly analogous to exam performance.

Anecdotally I definitely experience this.

Yes. Chess fatigue is real, if that's what you want to call it. You do so many games, so many puzzles, especially in one sitting, and you progressively get worse and worse. You'd be surprised at how much five puzzles or even one game takes a toll on your brain.

Of course there is such thing as chess fatigue. It is much faster in older adults than in young people. There are three types of fatigue: vision fatigue, mental fatigue , and physical fatigue (hands and back pain). I am sixty- year - old and I get fast fatigue in vision and mental focus. For me , vision fatigue is the most serious particularly when using mall screens. Mental fatigue becomes very apparent after 20 minutes for me. When I get addictively hooked to chess, I play for hours and see my performance drop fast due to fatigue. Mental fatigue becomes migraine after hours of playing chess. Over time , I started using chess as a meter to measure my focus and fatigue. I am at my best two hours after drinking coffee in the morning. Puzzles and fast games ( bullets and rapids etc.) cause much more mental fatigue for me than longer games and drills that are not time-dependent. IT IS REAL! With some experimentation, you can feel fatigue and give it a score ( over five or ten) as you play chess.

i am experiencing it now. What should I do?

I thought I was the only one!

absolutely not!

Magnus Carlsen sometimes falls asleep while playing chess.

Magnus carlsen the fide world cup winner of 2023

I played today at a championship. It was 3 classic games with 1h in the clock for each side. After the tournament I didn't enjoy driving home and the tiniest noise from my kids got on my nerves. I sure kept it to myself but for such a long time I have never felt this mentally exhausted. I am not even demanding some results from myself at the games, which if I had would make it even worse. So anyways, never take chess too seriously. This is an advise firstly to myself and then to others.

Yeah i have experienced chess fatigue. I played a three-round tournament and won all of my games but when i came back home i just dropped down on the couch, completely exhausted