you cant stop the PROPHET

weird hand. i find that shouting "**** you" as you click the call button increases your likelihood to win the hand

bb/100 (BTN): 234.04 BB
SB: 110.6 BB
BB: 156.78 BB
UTG: 79.02 BB
MP: 102.54 BB
CO: 76.6 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) bb/100 has T♦ 8♦

fold, fold, fold, bb/100 raises to 2.5 BB, SB raises to 12 BB, fold, bb/100 calls 9.5 BB

Flop: (25 BB, 2 players) 8♣ 4♥ 4♦
SB bets 8 BB, bb/100 calls 8 BB

Turn: (41 BB, 2 players) 7♥
SB checks, bb/100 checks

River: (41 BB, 2 players) J♦
SB bets 90.6 BB and is all-in, bb/100 calls 90.6 BB

keep bluffing the scare card little bro

BTN: 102.1 BB
SB: 106.52 BB
BB: 118.76 BB
bb/100 (UTG): 176.5 BB
MP: 177.78 BB
CO: 153.32 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) bb/100 has Q♥ Q♠

bb/100 raises to 2.5 BB, fold, fold, fold, fold, BB raises to 12.5 BB, bb/100 calls 10 BB

Flop: (25.5 BB, 2 players) 3♥ 3♣ 2♠
BB bets 12.1 BB, bb/100 calls 12.1 BB

Turn: (49.7 BB, 2 players) K♣
BB bets 23.6 BB, bb/100 calls 23.6 BB

River: (96.9 BB, 2 players) 8♠
BB bets 70.56 BB and is all-in, bb/100 calls 70.56 BB

cat seeming a lot better. showing much more of his own character. his tail, which never dropped, is now completely limp and hanging. i don't know if he has any feeling in it, but i need to remind myself that he could be dead, and not being able to wag the tail is nothing in comparison to this.

medication routine is a week, and intense. two different eye medications three times a day, one tablet twice a day, syringe every day. he doesn't seem to enjoy anything other than the syringe.

this is the kind of situation one might look to a deity for - i don't find myself feeling the urge.

currently mapping out a process for my study and review each day. i find myself lost some mornings - so having a plan i can follow takes away some of the "free will"/option paralysis, and helps me just jump from one thing to the next seamlessly.

football game has been moved to 9pm. i think that's an awful time for a fixture but there's nothing we can do about it. I'm taking it super easy today in preparation, really want to show the gaffer that I'm capable of playing full games - we have lots of new triallists so I reckon there could be some serious competition. but who really wants to be a wing-back anyway?

shot took 100nl yesterday. i feel very comfortable, but it's on a different site without a captioning software, so the process is still a bit janky. I'm holding off from buying anything until I'm certain that I'm playing the same site full-time, otherwise it's a bit of a waste of money.

i was confident enough in my playing ability - think i just ran super awful in a lot of spot. would need to play much more before i draw any conclusions.

If its not a secret, what sites do you play?

party and some shitty ipoker skins - there's probably a "highest EV" choice w.r.t sites but i have more pressing issues in terms of winrate

We won 4-3 today. I came on for the final 30 minutes. The scoreline doesn't reflect how big of a skill gap there was between us and the opponents, but a combination of summer beers and lots of new triallists led to some sloppy mistakes. I'm happy about the future of the club for this year though - I started the project among friends for a laugh three years ago and somehow we're still attracting new players.

My performance was comfortable - I played left back today. I spent all the drive there visualising my objectives: close down space on defence, organise defence on set pieces and just be a general nightmare to play against. My footwork was sloppy but my gamesense made up for it.

One thing I want to work on is my intensity. This team weren't very in shape, and I was comfortable with the distance given all the running, but I know that better teams will force me to work harder, and I'm not sure how much I have in the tank.

On Monday or Tuesday, I'm going to look at getting some HIIT sprint work in, in an effort to build up the gas tank for counter-attacks. It will also allow me to play a bit higher and give more options on set pieces.

In truth, I know nothing about football. I regurgitate the things my ball-savant friends say, I try to emulate what I see on the TV on the pitch, and make sure I always work hard. I'll never be a step 5 player, but I can for sure do better in the amateur game.

Distance running is great for cardio and weight loss, but it isn't as effective for athletic explosiveness. Get in the leg days and do 9 incline 60-second sprints on a treadmill. Make sure you are on your arse every session - you're doing this to make serious progress.

Be careful with frequency. If doing leg days, sprints, distance running, football, you run a high risk of snapping your legs in two. Be super measured and careful so as to not do this.

Woke up late feeling quite rough - having to stay up in order to medicate the cat is messing the sleep schedule around. I haven't been to the gym yet or done any work.

That said, I picked up the guitar this morning and ****ed around with it. I haven't done this in a good couple of months and enjoyed it. I need to start playing it more just for my own sake - and to improve.

might be the greatest value check of all time

BTN: 124.9 BB
SB: 157.34 BB
bb/100 (BB): 376.2 BB
UTG: 100 BB
MP: 136.4 BB
CO: 61.5 BB

SB posts SB 0.5 BB, bb/100 posts BB 1 BB

Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) bb/100 has 8♣ 6♥

fold, fold, fold, fold, SB raises to 3 BB, bb/100 calls 2 BB

Flop: (6 BB, 2 players) 7♣ 7♦ A♦
SB checks, bb/100 bets 2.46 BB, SB calls 2.46 BB

Turn: (10.92 BB, 2 players) 5♣
SB checks, bb/100 bets 10.48 BB, SB calls 10.48 BB

River: (31.88 BB, 2 players) A♠
SB checks, bb/100 checks

reckon i might take the day off tomorrow as a victory lap and move up to 100. reckon I'll do pretty well there, if not, back down to 50 where i know I'm doing really well.

trying to get jurojin working on my computer has been a ****ing nightmare. the software user experience is awful, fortunately for them I'm desperate for a 2e button.

I've had to sleep at midnight, still getting up around 7am, but this means I'm getting two hours less sleep than previously.

Frankly, I feel like ****. I'm confused, demotivated, more stressed, feel less well. It's crazy that I spent ten years of my life living like this every day. Perhaps if I slept well (such a basic thing to do really), I'd have achieved more and got more done.

Thankfully, I can go back to normal sleep tonight.

I've loaded a rather large sum of money in preparation for 100. I'm waiting for my sleep to be sorted so I fire first.

Taken the back half of the day off to relax. I want to be as prepared as possible to start the 100 grind.

Subbed mate it’s an interesting read
Whereabouts in uk are you that there’s no local cash games?

Hi mate, appreciate the feedback.

I was being a bit disingenuous about not having local cash games. Since I moved to a "satellite town" (quaint town but still good bus links to a city), the time to get to games has increased.

I have a 1/1 cash game (1/1/2 half the time) about 30 minutes drive from my house. It's not great but it's probably like a ~£20/hour winrate for me if I wanted. It's slightly irregular running too, some days start at 7 pm, and some days start at 10 pm.

However, the disruption to my sleep schedule, the fact that I am not improving at all while playing, and just the ballache of turning up and waiting a few hours put me off. I can sit at home, put in 4x the volume online, improve at the game, and exist in social hours — it's a no-brainer for me.

It would have been a different story if I had been exclusively playing poker for a living, but I'm not doing that. It's a stupid idea for 90+% of players. I've met people who are pros, and it sounds a hell of a lot more stressful than just having a job.

A few years ago, I used to drive 75 minutes to a 1/3 game that was fun to play, but it has died since and the commute is near-suicidal when it's 5 am, I'm dying of "tired", and it's pissing it down. They also kept closing the motorway so I'd have to bang it back home through all these dodgy A-Roads.

My girlfriend works for the government and it's possible we may have to move to a larger city down the line as she is currently applying for various things, where there would be better options to play. But, unless I'm living in London, I'm hard pushed to see a reason to tough the felt. Maybe I'll attend some live tours but they've turned to **** as well

Ignore the Goliath in this table as people plan to attend it months in advance so it gets propped up. Ask yourself what the **** is happening to UK poker (answers obvious so ask rhetorically)

Spoiler

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first 100 session in the books. tough field, lots of 200+ regs coming down when their games aren't great. going to be lots of fun.

finally hit the stress dump of moving up to 100, all the cat drama, and other things. got drunk on Friday night, slept in late yesterday and today morning, haven't been very productive at all this week.

currently cleaning in order to have a full reset for Monday. back into the swing of things as I know how to do them.

Play 5k hands of 100 so far and down 5.5 buyins. Not really concerned, won't bother thinking too hard until I've got 30-50k, and even then it'll only be an indicator, not a true reflection of results.

Cat needs some non-emergency surgery to improve his quality of life. It's going to cost minimum 1.5k - things starting to rack up so I'm concerned about how much more I'm going to have to pay over this, but it's for the best.

Monday - back in gym, back in study, back in mega volume. Intend to be BE or better at 100 by end of the year, 200 by June 2025.

more or less roundabouted this week. we finish +£371.58

so far, not happy with how I've approached this new shot at 100. the poker has been fine, but all other aspects slipped in the back half of the week. i feel tired, undernourished, a little bit unwell.

this week, it's back in the gym daily for more strength and cardio training.

it's back to a few hours of study and review every morning to improve.

it's back to trying to maintain full focus when playing, especially now we're playing regspeed.

this week I'll crush it.

in the bath right now. wasn’t really sure what to do between playing poker and going to bed.

i feel frustrated. i’m disappointed in my “professional conduct” this week, and it feels like failure. if for nothing else, i have been lazy this week, and i am unhappy about it.

i suppose that is a good thing. my girlfriend, the intelligent woman that she is, says that “tomorrow begins a new week, so you can do better”. she is right. i should not be so hard on myself for the failures of this week, when a new one is just around the corner.

perspective is also important. if i zoom out 6 months, i’m doing much better in all aspects of life. zoom out multiple years and it’s like i’m a completely different person. i’m glad that you don’t have to be the same person your entire life, especially if that means change for the better. and how much change there has been.

tried playing some rust to kill the time but i wasn’t really getting the kick i used to from video games. i think actually it’s the same level of effect as it always was, but my brain is much less rotted than before, and so i don’t have such a low bar for fulfilment.

i want to come back with a strong one this week. i’m in london for a work conference on wednesday but not staying overnight, so can get some all-important online volume in. i’d like to try playing 10k hands this week. if i can do it for one week without too much compromise, i can do it every week. i want to keep setting new bars for myself as i continue working hard to improve and, ultimately, rake in money. whilst i do this for the love of the game, i ultimately see it as a way to improved financial stability as well. i want to play for a living (without having to quit my job).

there are a few regs i’m noticing now that never seem to have a day off. all hours of the day (my schedule is super varied) i bump into them. it’s like they play 12 hours a day every day. that’s no kind of life. i want to do sport, be social, step away from the computer. i assume they’re just no-lifing the career, possibly even gambling addicted despite being winning/breakeven.

we will see what next week brings. it starts with sleep tonight, however. i had two <6 hour sleeps last week due to medicating the cat at late hours. that didn’t help at all. i’m having 8+ hours tonight.

day has been reasonable. hit the gym in the afternoon as my girlfriend wasn't feeling up to it this morning. instead, bashed out a weekend review, trained some spots, made some notes.

4/5-tabled much of the day as and when i found games. didn't shy away from some HU battles with recs/bad regs although I'm fully aware that I'm terrible at the format. i'd like to get much better at HU to help with lobby-holding but one thing at a time.

trying to play Rust. I've been waiting all week for this server I've chosen (for no tangible reason) to reset so I can try and achieve something with it in my off-time. I've never been on a server from wipe, and didn't realise how ****ed the queues would be. I'm 112nd in the queue right now, lesson learnt.

I'm going to buy Rust for my girlfriend so we can play. I built this gaming PC for her to work and game on two years ago, but she mostly enjoys Sims so it doesn't really live up to it's potential. I made some crazy smart investments when i was 17 into CS:GO cases, so I basically have infinite bankroll for video games on Steam. I thought about cashing out into real money, but prefer the idea of never having to pay for a video game ever again.

House is getting colder along with the winter. We're particularly conscious about heating - we both grew up in houses where the solution was more layers, not turning up the boiler. I can feel it having an effect on my hands - the bloodflow is reduced. I'll go into more detail on my hands when I can be arsed. 108th in the queue.

pretty happy with how today went. made a lemon loaf in the evening and watched the television to relax. interesting piece on the radio about how they convey horror in theatre, and celebrating some bronski beat album's 40th anniversary.

won +£484 today, really went my way on the felt. redline suffering, but that's the consequence of playing tougher opponents. green line the most important one anyway.

gym went fine, didn't do full routine but will be back tomorrow morning.

bring on tomorrow.

slow start to the morning - absolutely freezing again so didn't want to get out of bed. will be going to gym in the afternoon as per my girlfriend's request.

looking through review, seems a lot of the dodgy hands are played against recreationals, and I'm somewhat happy with my reasoning for this.

going to do some training spots, have breakfast, have shower, then get straight into playing. let's ****ing go.

discovering how ratty the regs are at 100nl. comfortable lobby holding, don't mind playing heads-up - oh my god are they ****ing boring. flatting sets/two pairs/top pair vs b25 in 2BPs, making "hero folds" (folding pairs to small probes)

bored of these guys. they have saved themselves money by boring me out of playing with them

think i need to return to basics for this shot-take. I'm not feeling all that confident, due to my redline currently taking a ****. Hopefully going back to how I originally wanted to do things:

• 4-tabling maximum
  
• no HU battling
  
• no FF
  

early results have allowed me to get a little ahead of myself, so it's time to draw things back a bit.

i find myself in the bath once again. i enjoy it when iÂ’m tired, and find it a good space for reflection. my girlfriend is roasting vegetables for pasta this evening, and i expect to be in here pondering until sheÂ’s done. sheÂ’s watching 500 days of summer.

i have felt a familiar emptiness in me this week, synonymous with the post-“push for a goal” phase of life i sometimes enter. by rights, i should be proud of myself for having reached 100, but instead i am unhappy with my performances.

i retrace the chain:

• i feel unwell
  
• because my results are not what i expected/wanted
  
• because iÂ’m not playing my A-Game
  
• because i do not have full focus
  
• because i do not have full health
  
• because i feel tired
  
• because iÂ’m not getting good sleep
  
• because iÂ’m not sleeping/eating/exercising well
  
• because i compromised these things to break into 100
  

so what is the solution? comes back to discipline. iÂ’ve strayed too far from my core tenets

• i havenÂ’t eaten healthily enough
  
• i havenÂ’t gone to bed at the 10pm mark
  
• i havenÂ’t exercised anywhere near enough
  

and why could this be? video games and **** food. itÂ’s not like itÂ’s impossible to maintain a healthy relationship with these things, itÂ’s just that i havenÂ’t, and as such i find myself back in the self-fulfilling prophecy of poor health.

my A-Game is strong. iÂ’m constantly picking the right sizes, finding the tough bets/raises/calls and am a nightmare to play against. that skill level is easily winning in the pool. but my focus has lapsed entirely through the poor health. i get tired earlier, i have been less sharp.

iÂ’m at a work conference on wednesday, so tomorrow is a day off for me - rest and recuperation in preparation for the reset. iÂ’m determined to make this week the october turnaround. once iÂ’m back i shall

• start going to bed at 10pm again (alarm set every day)
  
• bring vegetables/fruit and protein back into diet
  
• ensure i have dedicated meals every meal time
  
• get back in the gym early at 7am 5 days a week
  

just like a poor lifestyle can be self-fulfilling, so too can a healthy one. only a few focused, good days can put me back on track.

having solved the problems off-felt, i now move to those on-felt. terrible habits have crept back in.

my mind is all-over this week.

• iÂ’m erasing my presence from the internet (terrified of web scrapers and future leaks)
  
• iÂ’m playing the guitar again (making good progress and good for the soul)
  
• iÂ’m downloading media from archives iÂ’ve accepted wonÂ’t be around forever (including big companies)
  
• iÂ’m trying to spear more whale clients for the company (might start calling whales “clients” from now on)
  

itÂ’s more evidence for ADD/ADHD that i am unable to exist without jumping from point to point, hyper-fixating for a week or so at a time. when i was in mexico i learnt a ton about earthquakes, following a false alarm i experienced early in my trip.

i think the rules i wrote above are productive and intelligent, but allow me to refine them:

• 4 TABLES ONLY. This includes lobby-holding
  
• DonÂ’t lobby hold! It leads to HU battles you might be winning, but not by enough in (ik the regs are trash at it but weÂ’re not 10bb/100 winners there yet)
  
• Use other sites to fill gaps that lobby-holding normally would
  
• Take breaks if i need to release energy into something else for a bit (BIG ONE)
  
• no fast fold as it counts as 2 reg tables
  

iÂ’m about breakeven after 6k hands so itÂ’s not exactly disastrous, but perhaps iÂ’ve gotten lucky. the graph shape is super unalike what i was producing at 50 and although some of it will be from facing tougher opponents, it doesnÂ’t account for all of it. i donÂ’t rate them anyway.

the goal is to return everything back to A-Game level. this is where iÂ’m crushing the games, and itÂ’s where i need to stay. when iÂ’m back i should be able to get on track again. it will probably fix my mood also.

my girlfriend is away next week on her own work trip, and is coming back up with her parents too. this gives me the chance to do two things

• really grind out volume and health
  
• clean the entire house
  

iÂ’m going to talk to her tonight about how weÂ’ve both slipped off kilter a bit, and how we can get back on top. weÂ’re crushers.