Why They Call Me an 'Ultimate Grinder'

Wow.  November already?!

The Year So Far 
This has been a bit of a strange year of poker for me.  I can't say I'm overly satisfied with the way things have gone.  I thought by earning less than a million vpps, I would be end up having a ton of free time to work on my game a lot, cook amazing meals everyday, workout, and so on. Sadly, it just has not happened that way!  In fact out of those things, the only thing I have really been doing is working out more.

When I happen to get really productive, I often wonder why I seem to waste so much time some days.  It makes me think of the saying "If you want something done, ask a busy person".  It is just so true!  Although I have recovered a bit from being burnt out from poker, I haven't been very productive overall which makes me unhappy.  I worked really hard this past week to earn the vpps I needed to maintain SNE this month.  I've played something around 100,000 hands just in the last 8 days, and though it is pretty exhausting, I have got back into my grinding rhythm, and it feels great to be productive.  I have also learned this past week, how much time I was wasting earlier in the month and in September.  The problem I seem to have is that I'm not good at performing a ton of different tasks throughout the day.  Adam has been a huge help this past week, picking up my slack, and with less 'chores' I can more easily focus on poker and I find I usually play better, too.

Previously, I was thinking of just earning 50k vpp a month I needed to keep SNE for 2013, but if I did that for November and December, I'd end the year at 555,000 vpp.  If I push myself to hit 600,000 instead, I'll be earning an additional $8,000 in rakeback, and hopefully more from table winnings. So, I have decided I'm going to go for it!

The Rest of 2012
My plan to finish off the year:

November: 80,000 vpps / average of 15k hands a day (28 days of playing)

December: 65,000 vpps / average of 15k hands a day (21 days of playing)

So, I'm going to try and keep life simple and do my best to maintain a routine. (I'm not good at this)!  I have 3 fitness classes I really like and will go to each week at the same time.  One of them is a Yin Yoga class, one of them an intense spinning class, and the other a spinning class that has a bit of yoga at the end.  I wish I could do a class everyday, but this is probably more realistic.

Getting Through the Grind 
Coffee!  I mostly have not been drinking coffee since last winter, but my coffee addiction is back in full force.  I have found this month that it actually helped me play alot better, too. I do try and limit myself to one cup or one shot of espresso a day. I'll try and save my 'tolerance' for the days I really need it, and go for green tea instead.



Yoga/Stretching. Aside from going to the studio for yoga classes, every 5k hands I play (I will play 3 sets of 5k hands each day), I will do a short little stretching/yoga/exercise routine.



Healthy Food & Supplements.  I really can't get sick over the next couple months, so I'm going to totally eat with a food for fuel mentality. Although, I am an emotional eater. Sometimes I bribe myself to play my sessions and then I get to eat something 'bad' as a reward. So, I will eat well 90%, and the other 10% will be cupcakes, pizza, and chocolate, haha!

I also have a few supplements I take everyday.  A multi-vitamin, Vitamin D, probiotics, and the one I think effects my mind the most, a vitamin b complex, as pictured above.  I have been taking this regularly for the last couple weeks after not taking it for a while, and really notice a difference. I have much more energy and focus.  I have lots of other vitamins/supplements to ward of sickness and keep my immune system strong as needed- (yes I am a crazy person!)

And, the most important thing...


Self Discipline. This is a tough one, but I believe one of the most important things to being successful (in anything!).


So, I'm motivated and determined to end the year off on a productive note and defend my title as an 'Ultimate Grinder'.