Poker Video: Misc/Other by Travis Steffen (Micro/Small Stakes)

Been a great series!

Thank you

I am so behind my man. I ignored this series and then I found out you are the same guy who did the Poker Health pod cast =>Snap watch/apply homeworks

Great finale. Your adjustment to feedback really improved your episodes and the series overall. Thanks for adding 9 and 10. This last episode hit home hardest for me. Off for a big box of rubber bands now. Snap!

Great series man!

awesome episode, thanks

What would be a good affirmation to counter tilt? As I take it we cannot use the word tilt in the affirmation.

What would be a good affirmation to counter tilt? As I take it we cannot use the word tilt in the affirmation.

Great question. Sounds like you've got a pretty good understanding of this concept already.

A good exercise after you take a beat is to momentarily shut your eyes (unless you're playing a billion tables) while you take a deep breath in. Force yourself to relax your body and smile. On your exhale, say something like "New session". When you open your eyes, imagine you're playing a completely new session. That beat happened long ago and is out of your mind.

I realize this isn't a pure affirmation, but it's a good combination of a few strategies. If you've got time, this would be a good spot for a visualization as well.

Hey Travis thanks for the series it's been very insightful. I'm curious about what you think the best motivational strategy is. Let's say for some reason you don't feel like doing something that you know you should do. Maybe like when you were working on your book, or playing sports or whatever. What do you think the best method is for inspiring you to put in the effort as soon as possible? Do you think about your goals, like the end game that you want to get to for motivation, look at quotes, read about that topic, what do you find works best?

For me personally I can talk myself into wanting to do things if I approach it the right way. Also Listening to others talking about it or watching them do that activity can also be motivating. Obviously this is a very broad question, so I guess to narrow it down, what have you found works the most often, because there's definitely so many strategies you can use that work varying degrees. Thanks.

I personally think about the long term goal, then break it down into short term actionable goals, then into daily steps. In my daily to do list I've got at least one of these steps included, and I don't let myself relax until I've accomplished as much as possible on my list. This is typically fairly powerful for me personally because I'm addicted to productivity, but there are a lot of clients I've had in the past that need to have something riding on their performance.

Your approach is actually pretty powerful and common. There are a lot of clients I've had who have needed to watch motivational fitness vids before each workout. An example would be the Greg Plitt preview vids on youtube.

How do you keep from burning out? How do you get back on track once you've fallen off?

How do you keep from burning out?

This can sometimes be a case-by-case thing, and can depend on what it is you're burning out from, but my best advice would be having balance. If you let one particular part of your life become your only focus, burnout is bound to happen. However, if you make it a point to schedule time to blow off steam, relax, see friends, have a little fun, and do certain things that get your mind away from what you may be at risk for burnout from. The whole "every second I don't spend doing xxx is a second that I could have spent getting closer to my goal" is good - but only up to a certain point. In fitness, we call this overtraining. In poker, you might call it burnout. Make sense?

How do you get back on track once you've fallen off?

It starts with the mind - first and always. Clean your mental slate and start fresh. Set new goals, new deadlines, take a new approach, outline a new strategy, etc. Break those all up into actionable daily items. Add them into your daily to-do list, and then get to it! If you're having trouble motivationally, find a training partner. It doesn't matter whether it's a fitness-based training partner, a sports-based training partner, a poker-based training partner - whatever. They all accomplish the same goal. Instead of disappointing yourself when you don't accomplish your daily tasks (which is mentally easier to handle), you run the risk of disappointing your training partner.

A good way of making sure that doesn't happen is by putting something on the line. For example, some of my past clients have elected to both work out together and have poker sweat sessions together regularly. If one of them misses x number of sessions (usually 2 at the most) per month, they owe the other person their entire rakeback check. If they both miss that number of sessions, both checks go to charity. If neither of them miss, they keep their rakeback. Both played for a living, and both checks were usually fairly hefty, so the money was added motivation for getting up in the morning, for breaking away from the TV or video games, etc. Neither one missed a workout or session for the entire 3 month span I spent with them.

Hopefully this helps!

Travis, you are the man. Thank you.

Beautiful Series. Thanks for getting it on DC!

Hi Travis. I've been reviewing the series again, and feel that, as you eluded to, a series on sports psychology( specifically NLP techniques, etc) would be welcome.

Some areas I have problems with myself are; patience(I know where I want to go, and I know what I need to do to get there, but as I'm doing the work I become restless, and begin looking at other video series, etc, and not finishing what I've started), leak finding (is what I'm looking at a leak, or is it infact self doubt) and resource management (trying to find time to effectively learn and utilise HEM, WIZ, stove, videos, forums, live play in a way effectively). I Only mention this because if I have these problems, then others must do too.

Hi Travis. I've been reviewing the series again, and feel that, as you eluded to, a series on sports psychology( specifically NLP techniques, etc) would be welcome.

Some areas I have problems with myself are; patience(I know where I want to go, and I know what I need to do to get there, but as I'm doing the work I become restless, and begin looking at other video series, etc, and not finishing what I've started), leak finding (is what I'm looking at a leak, or is it infact self doubt) and resource management (trying to find time to effectively learn and utilise HEM, WIZ, stove, videos, forums, live play in a way effectively). I Only mention this because if I have these problems, then others must do too.

I'm actually working on a more in-depth sports psych course right now and am testing it with some private clients. I wouldn't be opposed to turning an abbreviated version of this into a video series fairly soon.

Is smart pasta (or bread) ok? It's supposed to have the same amount of fibre as the whole wheat versions.

I like sushi; should I be concerned with the rice's GI factor? The rolls I get are mostly yam or avocado, and only about 1/3-1/4 rice. Is there a minimum amount of calories needed to cause a meaningful spike in insulin?

I'm fairly certain that while smart pasta has additional fiber, the GI value is still the same, so it's likely you'll see an insulin spike. It's also difficult for me to really tell you the amount of high GI carbs it will take to effect you individually with absolute certainty. It's best to make this judgment yourself after a little experimentation. Also, remember that certain types of sushi can be made with brown rice, and that you can still eat high GI foods occasionally as long as you're not playing right afterward.

Thanks again Travis. I'm currently trying out the "slow-carb" diet from Tim Ferris' "The 4 Hour Body". I eat legumes for carbs plus protean and vegetables. It's not portion/calorie restricted, I just have to avoid eating lactose and starch and drinking calories, all of which I get to have in large quantities on my weekly cheat day. So far (it's been 2 weeks) I've really enjoyed the change and have no intention of re-introducing carbs or dairy in my weekday diet; although my results have been somewhat lack-luster so far (as far as losing weight) I feel awsome.

My question is: I make a whey protean shake for myself each morning, I add a tbs or so of almond butter and a tbs or so of udo's oil or coconut milk as well as some greens powder and some creatine powder and a cup or so of unsweetened almond milk, if I have some. Do I need to add some carbs to my mix or can I wait until I feel like eating? I'm sure I could put down 1/2 cup (or so) of lentils if I had to, but I would prefer to just drink my breakfast. Thanks again.

If you had to do a weekly binge day, how would you go about minimizing the negative mental aspects of the insulin spikes?

Though I loved The 4 Hour Workweek, I haven't read The 4 Hour Body, so I'm not familiar with the specifics of this particular diet. However - remember one thing:

There's a big difference between eating for appearance and eating for performance.

If you're on a particular diet that helps you lose some lbs, that's great, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it's the ideal diet in terms of performance. Hopefully this helps you to evaluate whether a particular diet you read about is right for your situation.

I actually love shakes for breakfast, but I definitely think you need to introduce a decent amount of low GI carbs here. I love putting quick oats and fruit in my shake in the morning. They're fantastic, nutrient-rich options that encourage elevated cognitive function - and they taste great. As far as almond milk goes, I'm not a huge fan - not because it's bad for you (it's really not) but the brands that I've seen really don't have much to them nutrient-wise. You can get a much more utilizable form of protein with cow's milk.

If I had to do a weekly binge....first and foremost I wouldn't play poker. I'd also rather have my worst meal right after my workout as my metabolism is faster so it would do less damage than if I ate it, say, late at night. If you're having high GI carbs, there's really no way around those insulin spikes, so plan accordingly.